EVENING
PRAYER for Wednesday after 7 Pentecost
Vespers
(Lutheran
Book of Worship, page 142)
Jesus
Christ is the Light of the World,
The
light no darkness can overcome.
Stay with us, Lord, for it is evening,
And the day is
almost over.
Let your light scatter the darkness,
And illumine your
Church.
Joyous
light of glory:
of
the immortal Father;
heavenly, holy, blessed
Jesus Christ.
We have come to the setting of the
sun,
and we look to the
evening light.
We sing to God, the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit:
You are worthy of being praised
with pure voices
forever.
O Son of God, O Giver of life:
The universe proclaims
your glory.
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give
him thanks and praise.
Blessed
are you, O Lord our God, king of the universe, who led your people Israel by a
pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night: Enlighten our darkness by
the light of your Christ; may his Word be a lamp to our feet and a light to our
path; for you are merciful, and you love your whole creation, and we, your
creatures, glorify you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Amen
Let my prayer rise
before you as incense;
the lifting up of my hands as the
evening sacrifice.
O Lord, I call to
you; come to me quickly;
hear my voice when I cry to you.
Let my prayer rise
before you as incense;
the lifting up of my hands as the
evening sacrifice.
Set a watch before
my mouth, O Lord,
and guard the door of my lips.
Let not my heart
incline to any evil thing;
let me not be occupied in wickedness
with evildoers.
But my eyes are
turned to you, Lord God;
in you I take refuge. Strip me not
of my life.
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.
Let my prayer rise
before you as incense;
the lifting up of my hands as the
evening sacrifice.
Silence
for meditation.
Let
the incense of our repentant prayer ascend before you, O Lord, and let your
lovingkindness descend upon us, that with purified minds we may sing your
praises with the Church on earth and the whole heavenly host, and may glorify
you forever and ever.
Amen
Psalm 134
1 Behold now! Bless
the Lord, all you servants | of
the Lord,*
you that stand by night in the
house | of the Lord.
2 Lift up your hands
in the holy place and | bless the Lord;*
the Lord who made heaven and earth bless you | out of Zion.
Lord,
where two or three gather in your name, you promised to be with them and share
their fellowship. Look down upon your family gathered in your name, and
graciously pour out your blessing upon us; for the sake of Jesus Christ our
Lord.
Amen
Hymn Love Divine, All Loves Excelling
LBW 315
1 Love
divine, all loves excelling,
Joy
of heav’n, to earth come down!
Fix
in us thy humble dwelling,
all
thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus,
thou art all compassion,
pure,
unbounded love thou art;
visit
us with thy salvation,
enter
ev’ry trembling heart.
2 Breathe,
oh, breathe thy loving Spirit
into
ev’ry troubled breast;
let
us all in thee inherit;
let
us find thy promised rest.
Take
away the love of sinning;
Alpha
and Omega be;
end
of faith, as its beginning,
set
our hearts at liberty.
3 Come,
Almighty, to deliver;
let
us all thy life receive;
suddenly
return, and never,
nevermore
thy temples leave.
Thee
we would be always blessing,
serve
thee as thy hosts above,
pray,
and praise thee without ceasing,
glory
in thy perfect love.
4 Finish
then thy new creation,
pure
and spotless let us be;
let
us see thy great salvation
perfectly
restored in thee!
Changed
from glory into glory,
till
in heav’n we take our place,
till
we cast our crowns before thee,
lost
in wonder, love, and praise!
Text:
Charles Wesley, 1707-1788
Reading Romans 8:12-25
12So then,
brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to
the flesh—13for if you live according to the flesh, you will die;
but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14For
all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. 15For you
did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have
received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16it is
that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17and
if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—if, in fact,
we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
18I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not
worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. 19For the
creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; 20for
the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of
the one who subjected it, in hope 21that the creation itself will be
set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of
the children of God.
22We know that
the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; 23and
not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the
Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the
redemption of
our bodies. 24For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is
not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? 25But if we hope for what
we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to
God.
Response
In
many and various ways
God
spoke to his people of old by the prophets.
But
now in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.
The
GOSPEL CANTICLE is sung.
My
soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on his
lowly servant.
From this day all generations will
call me blessed.
The Almighty has done
great things for me,
and holy is his name.
He has mercy on those
who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his
arm;
he has scattered the proud in their
conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from
their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good
things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his
servant Israel,
for he has remembered his promise of
mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children forever.
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
The
LITANY is sung.
In
peace, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
the peace from above, and for our salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the Church of God, and for
the unity of all, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
all who offer today their worship and praise, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
Dan, our bishop; for your unworthy servant; for all pastors in Christ, for all
servants of the Church, and for all the people, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
our public servants, for the government and those who protect us, that they may
be upheld and strengthened in every good deed, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
those who work to bring peace, justice, health, and protection in this and
every place, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
those who bring offerings, those who do good works in this congregation, those
who toil, those who sing, and all the people here present who await from the
Lord great and abundant mercy, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
favorable weather, for an abundance of the fruits of the earth, and for
peaceful times, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
our deliverance from all affliction, wrath, danger, and need, let us pray to
the Lord.
Lord,
have mercy.
For
the faithful who have gone before us and are at rest, let us give thanks to the
Lord.
Alleluia.
Help,
save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.
Silence
for meditation.
Rejoicing
in the fellowship of all the saints, let us commend ourselves, one another, and
our whole life to Christ, our Lord.
To
you, O Lord.
O God, patient and forbearing, you alone know fully
the goodness of what you have made. Strengthen our spirit when we are slow and
temper our zeal when we are rash, that in your own good time you may produce in
us a rich harvest from the seed you have sown and tended; through Jesus Christ,
our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one
God, now and forever.
Amen
Almighty
God, your Son Jesus Christ restored Mary Magdalene to health of body and mind,
and called her to be a witness of his resurrection. Heal us now in body and
mind, and call us to serve you in the power of the resurrection of Jesus
Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and
forever.
Amen
O
God, it is your will to hold both heaven and earth in a single peace. Let the
design of your great love shine on the waste of our wraths and sorrows, and
give peace to your Church, peace among nations, peace in our homes, and peace
in our hearts; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
O
God, you made us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son. Look
with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred
which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in
bonds of love, and through our struggle and confusion, work to accomplish your
purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you
in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
O
God, giver and sustainer of life, in this time of need send us the gentle rain,
so that we may receive the fruits of the earth for our benefit and for your
praise; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
We
pray to you, almighty God, in this time of pandemic. You are our refuge and our
strength, a very present help in time of trouble. Do not let us fail in the
face of these events. Uphold us with your love, and give us the strength we
need. Help us in our confusion, and guide our actions. Heal the sick, console
the bereaved and afflicted, protect the innocent and helpless, and deliver all
who are in peril; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
O
God, from whom come all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works:
Give to us, your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, that our
hearts may be set to obey your commandments; and also that we, being defended
from the fear of our enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through the
merits of Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy
Spirit, God forever. Amen
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 and ever. Amen
Let
us bless the Lord.
Thanks
be to God.
1 The day you gave us,
Lord, has ended;
the darkness falls at
your behest.
To you our morning
hymns ascended;
your praise shall
hallow now our rest.
2 We thank you that your
church, unsleeping
while earth rolls
onward into light,
through all the world
its watch is keeping,
and never rests by
day or night.
3 As to each continent
and island
the dawn leads on
another day,
the voice of prayer
is never silent,
nor dies the strain
of praise away.
4 The sun, here having
set, is waking
your children under western
skies,
and hour by hour, as
day is breaking,
fresh hymns of
thankful praise arise.
5 So be it, Lord; your
realm shall never,
like earth's proud
empires, pass away;
but stand and grow
and rule forever,
till all your
creatures own your sway.
Text: John Ellerton, 1826-1893, alt.
Sermon
Prayer
and Benediction
Lord
God, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the
ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go
out with good courage, not knowing where we go, but only that your hand is
leading us and your love supporting us; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
The
almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, + the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless
and preserve you.
Amen
