Fri. morning Oct. 2
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all, to you be glory and praise forever. You founded the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands. In the fullness of time, you made us in your image, and in these last days you have spoken to us in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh. As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us, let the light of your love always shine in our hearts, your Spirit ever renew our lives, and your praises ever be on our lips.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us; let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day, so may the light of your presence, O God, set our hearts on fire with love for you; now and forever.
Amen.
Hymn
Are You Washed in the Blood
Confession of Sin
Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.
Silence may be kept.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your name. Amen.
Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life.
Amen.
Psalm 55
𝙍: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you.
Give ear to my prayer, O God,
and do not hide Yourself from my supplication.
Attend to me, and answer me;
I am restless in my complaint, and I murmur,
because of the voice of the enemy,
because of the oppression of the wicked;
for they bring down trouble upon me,
and in anger they hate me.
My heart is in anguish within me,
and the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
Fear and trembling have come upon me,
and horror has overwhelmed me.
𝙍: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you.
I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest.
Indeed, I would wander far off,
and remain in the wilderness.
I would hasten my escape
from the windy storm and tempest.”
Confuse, O Lord, divide their tongues,
for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
Day and night they go around it on its walls;
iniquity and trouble are in its midst.
Destruction is in its midst;
oppression and deceit do not depart from its marketplace.
𝙍: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you.
For it is not an enemy who reproaches me;
then I could bear it;
nor is it he who hates me who has exalted himself against me;
then I could hide from him.
But it was you, a man, my equal,
my companion, and my acquaintance.
We took sweet counsel together,
and walked in the house of God in the throng.
Let death seize them,
and let them go down alive to Sheol,
for wickedness is in their dwellings and in their midst.
𝙍: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you.
As for me, I will call upon God,
and the LORD will save me.
Evening and morning and at noon
will I reflect and groan,
and He will hear my voice.
He has redeemed my soul in peace
from the battle that was against me,
for there were many against me.
God will hear and afflict them,
even He who sits enthroned from of old.
Because they do not change,
therefore they do not fear God.
𝙍: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you.
He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him;
he has violated his covenant.
His speech was smoother than butter,
but war was in his heart;
his words were softer than oil,
yet they were drawn swords.
Cast your burden on the LORD,
and He will sustain you;
He will never permit
the righteous to be moved.
But You, O God, will cast the wicked down
to the pit of destruction;
bloodthirsty and deceitful men
shall not live out half their days.
But I will trust in You.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever. Amen.
𝙍: Cast your burden on the LORD, and He will sustain you.
Psalm prayer
Lord, in all times of fear and dread, grant that we may so cast our burdens upon you, that you may bear us on the holy wings of the Spirit to the stronghold of your peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
2 Kings 2:1-18
Then when the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, “Tarry here, I ask you, for the LORD has sent me to Bethel.”
But Elisha said to him, “As the LORD lives, and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.
The sons of the prophets who were at Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the LORD is taking away your master from you?”
And he said, “Yes, I know. Keep silent.”
Elijah said to him, “Elisha, stay here, for the LORD has sent me to Jericho.”
And he said, “As the LORD lives, and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they entered Jericho.
The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho approached Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the LORD is taking away your master from you?”
And he said, “Yes, I know. Keep silent.”
Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, for the LORD has sent me to the Jordan.”
And he said, “As the LORD lives, and as you live, I will not leave you.” And the two of them went on.
Fifty men of the sons of the prophets went and stood at a distance, and the two of them stood by the Jordan. Then Elijah took his robe and rolled it up and struck the water, and it was divided from one side to the other. Then the two of them crossed on dry ground.
And as they were crossing, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask for something, and I will do it for you before I am taken away from you.”
And Elisha said, “Let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.”
He said, “You have asked for a difficult thing, but if you see me when I am taken from you, it will happen to you. If not, it will not.”
As they continued walking and talking, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha was watching and crying, “My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!” And he did not see him again. Then he grabbed his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.
He picked up the robe of Elijah that fell from him, and he returned and stood on the bank of the Jordan. And he took the robe of Elijah that fell from him, and struck the water, and said, “Where is the LORD, God of Elijah?” When he had struck the water, it parted from one side to the other, and Elisha crossed over.
When the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho saw him from far off, they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” And they came to meet him and bowed down to the ground before him. They said to him, “Behold now, there are fifty strong men with your servants. Let them go and look for your master. Perhaps the Spirit of the LORD has lifted him up and thrown him on some mountain or into some valley.”
He said, “Do not send them.”
When they urged him until he was ashamed, he said, “Send them.” So they sent fifty men, and they searched for three days but did not find him. When they returned to him (for he had stayed at Jericho), he said to them, “Did I not say to you, do not go?”
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Acts 24:24-25:12
After several days, when Felix arrived with his wife Drusilla, who was a Jewish woman, he sent for Paul and heard him speak concerning faith in Christ. As he lectured about righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgment, Felix was afraid and answered, “For now, leave! When time permits, I will send for you.” At the same time he hoped that money would be given him by Paul, that he might release him. So he sent for him more often and conversed with him.
But after two years Porcius Festus succeeded Felix. And Felix, desiring to do the Jews a favor, left Paul imprisoned.
Now three days after Festus had come into the province, he went from Caesarea up to Jerusalem. The high priest and the elders of the Jews spoke to him against Paul. And they begged him, asking as a favor against him, that he would summon him to Jerusalem, plotting to kill him along the way. Festus said that Paul should be kept at Caesarea and that he himself intended to go there shortly. He also said, “Let the men in authority go down with me. If there is anything wrong in the man, let them accuse him.”
Having stayed among them more than ten days, he went down to Caesarea. And the next day he sat on the judgment seat and ordered that Paul be brought in. When he arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him and brought many serious charges against him which they could not prove, while he defended himself, saying, “Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I sinned at all.”
But Festus, desiring to do the Jews a favor, asked Paul, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem to be judged concerning these charges before me?”
Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you know very well. If I am doing wrong or have done anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die. But if these are empty charges of which these men accuse me, no one may deliver me to them. I appeal to Caesar.”
When Festus had conferred with the council, he then answered, “To Caesar you have appealed. To Caesar you shall go.”
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of long ago,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
might serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
for you will go before the presence of the Lord to prepare His ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to His people
by the remission of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise from on high has visited us;
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever. Amen.
Brief silence.
The Apostle’s Creed
Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:
I believe in God,
the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ,
his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the
right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge
the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Intercession and thanksgiving
Prayers may be offered for:
the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns:
Political leaders and the armed forces
Peace and justice in the world
Those who work for reconciliation
All whose lives are devastated by war and civil strife
Prisoners, refugees, and homeless people
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Lord of life
In your mercy, hear us.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you: pour your love into our hearts and draw us to yourself, and so bring us at last to your heavenly city where we shall see you face to face; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Savior taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever. Amen.
Conclusion
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.
Thu. morning Oct. 1
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all, to you be glory and praise forever. You founded the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands. In the fullness of time, you made us in your image, and in these last days you have spoken to us in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh. As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us, let the light of your love always shine in our hearts, your Spirit ever renew our lives, and your praises ever be on our lips.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us; let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day, so may the light of your presence, O God, set our hearts on fire with love for you; now and forever.
Amen.
Hymn
O Worship the King
Confession of Sin
When we cry to the LORD in our trouble,
He will save us from our distress.
God will bring us out of darkness
and out of the shadow of death.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.
May the Father forgive us by the death of his Son, and strengthen us to live in the power of the Spirit all our days.
Amen.
Let us give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
and for His wonderful works to all people!
Let us offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
and declare God’s works with rejoicing.
cf Psalm 107
Psalm 78:1-39
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable;
I will speak mysteries of old,
which we have heard and known,
that our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children,
but tell the generation to come
the praises of the LORD,
and His strength and the wonderful works that He has done.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
For He established a testimony in Jacob
and appointed a law in Israel,
which He commanded our fathers
to teach to their children,
that the generation to come might know them,
the children yet to be born,
that they may arise and declare them to their children,
so that they should set their hope in God
and not forget the works of God,
but keep His commandments;
and that they may not be like their fathers,
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation that did not set its heart aright,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
The Ephraimites, being armed with bows,
turned back in the day of battle.
They did not keep the covenant of God
and refused to walk in His law;
they forgot His works
and the wonders that He had shown them.
In the sight of their fathers He performed marvelous wonders
in the land of Egypt, in the fields of Zoan.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
He divided the sea and caused them to pass through,
and He made the waters stand up like a heap.
In the daytime He led them with a cloud,
and all the night with a light of fire.
He split rocks in the wilderness
and gave them plenty to drink like the depths.
He brought streams also out of the rock
and caused waters to run down like rivers.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
But they sinned still more against Him
by rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
They tested God in their heart
by asking for the food they craved.
Then they spoke against God, saying,
“Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?
Behold, He struck the rock, so that the waters gushed out
and the streams overflowed.
Can He give bread also?
Will He provide meat for His people?”
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
Therefore the LORD heard this and was full of wrath;
a fire was kindled against Jacob,
and anger also came up against Israel,
because they did not believe in God
and did not trust in His salvation.
Yet He had commanded the skies above
and opened the doors of heaven,
and He rained down manna upon them to eat
and gave them the grain of heaven.
Men ate the bread of angels;
He sent them food in abundance.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
He caused an east wind to blow in the heavens,
and by His power He directed the south wind.
He rained meat on them like dust,
winged birds like the sand of the seas;
then He let them fall in the midst of their camp,
all around their dwellings.
So they ate and were well filled,
for He gave them their own desire.
They were not separated from their desire;
but while their food was still in their mouths,
the wrath of God came upon them,
and He killed the strongest of them
and struck down the young men of Israel.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
For all this they still sinned,
and did not believe in His wondrous works.
Therefore their days did He consume like a breath,
and their years in terror.
When He killed them, then they sought Him;
they turned back and sought earnestly for God.
They remembered that God was their rock,
and the Most High God their Redeemer.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouths,
and they lied to Him with their tongues;
for their heart was not steadfast toward Him,
nor were they faithful in His covenant.
But He, being full of compassion,
forgave their iniquity
and did not destroy them.
He often restrained His anger,
and did not stir up all His wrath;
for He remembered that they were but flesh,
a wind that passes away and does not return.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever. Amen.
𝙍: How awesome are Your works, O Lord!
Psalm prayer
God our deliverer, as you led our ancestors through the wilderness, so lead us through the wilderness of this world, that we may be saved through Christ forever.
Old Testament reading
2 Kings 1:2-17
Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria and became ill. So he sent messengers and said to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub the god of Ekron whether I will recover from this illness.”
But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is not a God in Israel, that you go to inquire of Baal-Zebub the god of Ekron?’ Therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You will not come down from the bed on which you have gone up but will surely die.’ ” Then Elijah departed.
When the messengers returned to the king, he said to them, “Why have you returned?”
And they said to him, “A man came up to meet us and said to us, ‘Go, return to the king that sent you and say to him: Thus says the LORD: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub the god of Ekron? Therefore you will not come down from the bed on which you have gone up, but you will surely die.’ ”
He said to them, “What sort of man was he who came up to meet you and told you these things?”
They answered him, “He was a hairy man with a leather belt around his waist.”
He said, “It was Elijah the Tishbite.”Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. He went up to Elijah, and there he was, sitting on the top of a hill, and he said to him, “Man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’ ”
But Elijah answered the captain of fifty: “If I am a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men.
Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty men. He said, “Man of God, thus says the king: Come down quickly.”
Elijah answered them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men.
Then again the king sent a third captain of fifty with his fifty men. The third captain of fifty went up, came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and pleaded with him, “Man of God, may my life and the life of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight. Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two captains of the former fifties with their fifty men. May my life now be precious in your sight.”
Then the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him. Do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king.
Then he said to him, “Thus says the LORD: Have you sent messengers to inquire of Baal-Zebub the god of Ekron, because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His word? Therefore you will not come down from the bed on which you have gone up, but you will surely die.” So he died according to the word of the LORD which Elijah had spoken.
Then Jehoram reigned in his place in the second year of Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, because he had no son.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Acts 24:1-23
After five days Ananias the high priest arrived with some of the elders and a lawyer named Tertullus. They brought before the governor their charges against Paul. When he was summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying, “Since through you we enjoy much peace, and your foresight is bringing reforms to this nation, with all thankfulness, most excellent Felix, we always welcome it everywhere. But not to detain you further, I beg you to briefly hear us in your patience.
“We have found this man a troublemaker, instigating riots among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. He even tried to profane the temple. So we seized him and wanted to judge him according to our law. But the commander, Lysias, came to us and forcefully took him out of our hands, ordering his accusers to come before you. By examining him yourself you will be able to learn about all these things concerning which we accuse him.”
The Jews assented, alleging these things to be true.
After the governor motioned to him to speak, Paul answered, “Knowing that for many years you have been a judge over this nation, I cheerfully defend myself. You may verify that it is no more than twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem to worship. They did not find me in the temple or in the synagogues or in the city disputing with anyone or stirring up a crowd. They cannot prove the things concerning which they now accuse me. However, I affirm that in accordance with the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of my fathers and believe everything written in the Law and in the Prophets. I have hope in God that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust, which they also expect. In this do I always strive to have a clear conscience toward God and toward men.
“Now after many years I came to bring alms and offerings to my nation, when some Jews from Asia found me purified in the temple, neither with a crowd nor an uproar. 1They ought to be here before you to accuse me if they have any charges. Or let these men say what crime they found in me when I stood before the Sanhedrin, 2unless it is concerning this one statement which I cried out while standing among them, ‘Concerning the resurrection of the dead, I am being judged by you this day.’ ”
When Felix, who had more exact knowledge concerning the Way, had heard this, he adjourned the proceedings and said, “When Lysias the commander arrives, I will decide your case.” Then he ordered the centurion to guard Paul, and to let him have liberty, and to forbid none of his own people from attending to him.
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of long ago,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
might serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
for you will go before the presence of the Lord to prepare His ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to His people
by the remission of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise from on high has visited us;
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever. Amen.
Brief silence.
The Apostle’s Creed
Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:
I believe in God,
the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ,
his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the
right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge
the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Intercession and thanksgiving
Prayers may be offered for:
the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns:
Local government, community leaders
All who provide local services
Those who work with young or elderly people
Schools, colleges, and universities
Emergency and rescue organizations
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Lord, hear your people
and answer our prayers.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you: pour your love into our hearts and draw us to yourself, and so bring us at last to your heavenly city where we shall see you face to face; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Savior taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever. Amen.
Conclusion
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.
Wed. morning Sep. 30
Opening response
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Sovereign God, creator of all, to you be glory and praise forever. You founded the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands. In the fullness of time, you made us in your image, and in these last days you have spoken to us in your Son Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh. As we rejoice in the gift of your presence among us, let the light of your love always shine in our hearts, your Spirit ever renew our lives, and your praises ever be on our lips.
Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.
The night has passed, and the day lies open before us; let us pray with one heart and mind.
Silence is kept.
As we rejoice in the gift of this new day, so may the light of your presence, O God, set our hearts on fire with love for you; now and forever.
Amen.
Hymn
He Died for Me
Confession of Sin
The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in mercy.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
nor recompensed us according to our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his mercy toward those who fear Him.
Silence is kept for reflection.
Holy God,
Holy and strong,
Holy and immortal,
have mercy upon us.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children,
so the LORD pities those who fear Him.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all that is within me, bless His holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits.
Psalm 77
𝙍: In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord.
My voice rises to God, thus will I cry aloud;
my voice rises to God, thus will He hear me.
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord;
in the night my hand was stretched out without ceasing;
my soul refused to be comforted.
I remembered God, and was troubled;
I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed.
You hold my eyelids open;
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
𝙍: In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord.
I have considered the days of old,
the years long ago.
I call to remembrance my song in the night;
I meditate within my heart,
and my spirit ponders:
“Will the Lord reject forever?
Will He be favorable no more?
Has His mercy ceased forever?
Have His promises failed for all time?
Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has He in anger withheld His tender mercies?”
Then I said, “This is my grief;
but I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High.”
𝙍: In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord.
I will remember the works of the LORD;
surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
I will meditate on all Your work
and muse on Your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy;
what god is great like our God?
You are the God who works wonders;
You have declared Your strength among the peoples.
You have with Your arm redeemed Your people,
the sons of Jacob and Joseph.
𝙍: In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord.
The waters saw You, O God;
the waters saw You, they were afraid;
the depths also trembled.
The clouds poured out water;
the skies gave forth thunder;
Your arrows flashed back and forth.
The sound of Your thunder was in the whirlwind;
the lightnings lit up the world;
the earth trembled and shook.
Your way was through the sea,
Your path through the great waters;
yet Your footsteps were unseen.
You led Your people like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever. Amen.
𝙍: In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord.
Psalm prayer
God our shepherd, you led us and saved us in times of old; do not forget your people in their troubles, but raise up your power to sustain the poor and helpless; for the honor of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
1 Kings 22:29-45
So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead. The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and enter into the battle, but you wear your robes.” And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle.
But the king of Aram ordered his thirty-two commanders who had control over his chariots, saying, “Fight neither against small, nor great, but only against the king of Israel.” So when the commanders of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “Surely it is the king of Israel.” And they turned aside to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out. When the commanders of the chariots realized that it was not the king of Israel, they turned away from pursuing him.
A certain man drew a bow at random and struck the king of Israel between the joints of the armor, and because of this, he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn around and carry me out of the battle, for I am wounded.” The battle intensified that day, and the king was propped up in his chariot against the Arameans and died that evening, and the blood ran out of the wound into the floor of the chariot. A proclamation went throughout the army as the sun was setting, saying, “Every man is to return to his city, and every man is to return to his own country.”
So the king died and was brought to Samaria, and they buried him there. The chariot was washed in the pool of Samaria, and the dogs licked up the king’s blood, and they washed his armor according to the word which the LORD spoke.
Now the rest of the acts of Ahab and all that he did and the ivory house that he built and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? So Ahab slept with his fathers. And Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.
Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi. He walked in all the ways of Asa his father. He did not turn aside, doing that which was right in the eyes of the LORD. Nevertheless, the high places were not taken down, and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there. So Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat and the strength he showed and how he warred, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Acts 23:12-35
At daybreak some of the Jews conspired under oath, saying they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul. There were more than forty who had conspired. They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have bound ourselves under oath not to eat until we have killed Paul. So now, with the Sanhedrin, tell the commander to bring him down to you tomorrow, pretending to inquire further concerning him. We are ready to kill him before he arrives.”
But when the son of Paul’s sister heard of the treachery, he went and entered the barracks and told Paul.
Then Paul called one of the centurions over and said, “Take this young man to the commander, for he has something to tell him.” So he took him to the commander and said, “Paul the prisoner sent for me and asked me to bring you this young man who has something to tell you.”
Then the commander took him by the hand, went aside privately, and asked him, “What is it you have to tell me?”
The boy said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to the Sanhedrin, pretending to inquire further concerning him. Do not trust them. More than forty men, who have bound themselves with an oath to neither eat nor drink until they have killed him, are waiting for him. And now they are ready, waiting for your promise.”
The commander dismissed the young man and ordered him, “Tell no one that you have reported these things to me.”
Then he summoned two centurions and said, “Prepare two hundred infantrymen, seventy mounted soldiers, and two hundred light infantrymen with spears to go to Caesarea at the third hour of the night. And provide mounts so Paul may ride and take him safely to Felix the governor.”
He wrote a letter that went like this:
Claudius Lysias,
To His Excellency Governor Felix:
Greetings.
This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them. When I learned that he was a Roman citizen, I came with soldiers and rescued him. Since I wanted to learn what crime they alleged, I took him to their Sanhedrin. I found him being accused of controversial matters about their law, but charged with nothing worthy of death or imprisonment. When it was revealed to me that there was a plot against the man, at once I sent him to you and ordered the accusers to state before you their charges against him.
So the soldiers, according to their orders, took Paul by night to Antipatris. The next day they let the cavalry depart with him and they returned to the barracks. When they arrived in Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they presented Paul also to him. Upon reading the letter, the governor asked what province he was from. When he learned that he was from Cilicia, he said, “I will hear you when your accusers also arrive.” And he ordered that he be guarded in Herod’s Praetorium.
Silence may be kept.
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)
Luke 1:68-79
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of long ago,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
might serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
for you will go before the presence of the Lord to prepare His ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to His people
by the remission of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise from on high has visited us;
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever. Amen.
Brief silence.
The Apostle’s Creed
Let us unite in this historic confession of the Christian faith:
I believe in God,
the Father Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ,
his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the
right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge
the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Intercession and thanksgiving
Prayers may be offered for:
the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the church and her life
Prayers may include the following concerns:
The social services
All who work in the criminal justice system
Victims and perpetrators of crime
The work of aid agencies throughout the world
Those living in poverty or under oppression
Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.
Response
Lord, hear your people
and answer our prayers.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Almighty God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you: pour your love into our hearts and draw us to yourself, and so bring us at last to your heavenly city where we shall see you face to face; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
As our Savior taught us, so we pray
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
forever. Amen.
Conclusion
The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.