Come join us as we close the day and welcome the evening in this devotional time.
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A SERVICE OF EVENING PRAYER
PRELUDE
My Faith Looks Up to Thee ELW 759
My faith looks up to thee,
Thou Lamb of Calvary,
Savior divine!
Now hear me while I pray,
Take all my guilt away,
Oh, let me from this day
Be holy thine.
When ends life's transient dream,
When death's cold, sullen stream
Shall o'er me roll;
Blest Savior, then, in love
Fear and distrust remove;
Oh, bear me safe above,
A ransomed soul!
Be Thou My Vision ELW 793
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that thou art:
Thou my best thought both by day and by night,
Waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.
Light of my soul, after victory won,
May I reach heav-en's joys, O heaven's Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my vision, O Ruler of all.
DIALOGUE
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.
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Holy and gracious God,
I confess that I have sinned against you this day.
Some of my sin I know – the thoughts and words and deeds of which I am ashamed – but some is known only to you. In the name of Jesus Christ I ask forgiveness. Deliver and restore me, that I may rest in peace.
By the mercy of God we are united with Jesus Christ, in whom we are forgiven. We rest now in the peace of Christ and rise in the morning to serve.
THANKSGIVING FOR LIGHT
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
We give you thanks, O God, for in the beginning you called light into being, and you set lights in the sky to govern night and day.
In a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night you led your people into freedom.
Enlighten our darkness by the light of your Christ; may your Word be a lamp to our feet and light to our path; for you are merciful, and you love your whole creation, and with all your creatures we give you glory, through your Son Jesus Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.
COLLECT
Let us pray. Grant us O Lord, the lamp of charity which never fails, that it may burn in us and shed its light on those around us, and that by its brightness we may have a vision of that Holy City, where dwells the true and never-failing Light, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
PSALM 5 (together)
1Give ear to my words, O LORD;
give heed to my sighing.
2Listen to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you I pray.
3O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.
4For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil will not sojourn with you.
5The boastful will not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6You destroy those who speak lies;
the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful.
7But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house,
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in awe of you.
8Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
9For there is no truth in their mouths;
their hearts are destruction;
their throats are open graves;
they flatter with their tongues.
10Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of their many transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
11But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
so that those who love your name may exult in you.
12For you bless the righteous, O LORD;
you cover them with favor as with a shield.
Psalm 149 (together)
1Praise the LORD!
Sing to the LORD a new song,
his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
2Let Israel be glad in its Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.
3Let them praise his name with dancing,
making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.
4For the LORD takes pleasure in his people;
he adorns the humble with victory.
5Let the faithful exult in glory;
let them sing for joy on their couches.
6Let the high praises of God be in their throats
and two-edged swords in their hands,
7to execute vengeance on the nations
and punishment on the peoples,
8to bind their kings with fetters
and their nobles with chains of iron,
9to execute on them the judgment decreed.
This is glory for all his faithful ones.
Praise the LORD!
READING AND REFLECTION
Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.
Matthew 22:24-46
34When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, 35and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest? 37He said to him, " 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38This is the greatest and first commandment. 39And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 40On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
41Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them this question: 42What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he? They said to him, "The son of David." 43He said to them, "How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying,
44'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies under your feet" '?
45If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?" 46No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.
Word of God. Word of Life.
GOSPEL CANTICLE (together)
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for you, Lord, have looked with favor on your lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me bless’d:
you, the Almighty, have done great things for me
and holy is your name.
You have mercy on those who fear you,
from generation to generation.
You have shown strength with your arm
and scattered the proud in their conceit,
casting down the mighty from their thrones
and lifting up the lowly.
You have filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty.
You have come to the aid of your servant Israel,
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
APOSTLES’ CREED
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
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,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come 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.
PRAYERS
Let us pray.
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 this holy house, and for all who offer here their worship and praise, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For the health of the creation, for abundant harvests that all may share, and for peaceful times, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For public servants, the government, and those who protect us; for those who work to bring peace, justice, healing, and protection in this and every place, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those who are sick and suffering, particularly Alena, Jenna, Louis, Julie, Jean, John, Marcella, Michael, Philip, JoAnn, Sandy, Beth, Johnny, Meagan, Betty, Jane, Ron, Dione, Maria, Theresa, Margaret, Susan, Don, Tim, Mary, Ann Joyce, Greg, & Shelby, and for those who are in captivity, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For deliverance in the time of affliction, wrath, danger, and need, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For all servants of the church, for this assembly, and for all people who await from the Lord great and abundant mercy, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
In this time of national discord and conflict, be with us as we are engaged in national and local elections. We are weary, Lord, of the strife and we confess to you our participation in it. We ask your protecting hand upon all who are voting, all candidates, all election workers. Give wisdom to all. Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, have mercy.
A brief silence for additional petitions.
Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.
Giving thanks for all who have gone before us and are at rest, rejoicing in the communion of all the saints, we commend ourselves, one another, and our whole life to you, through Christ our Lord.
To you, O Lord.
Gracious God, we give you thanks for the day, especially for the good we were permitted to give and to receive; the day is now past and we commit it to you. We entrust to you the night; we rest securely, for you are our help, and you neither slumber nor sleep; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and forever. Amen.
BENEDICTION -- Four-Fold Benedictine Blessing
May God bless you with a restless discomfort about easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships,
so that you may seek truth boldly and love deep within your heart.
May God bless you with holy anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
so that you may tirelessly work for justice, freedom, and peace among all people.
May God bless you with the gift of tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, or the loss of all that they cherish,
so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and transform their pain into joy.
May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you really can make a difference in this world,
so that you are able, with God’s grace, to do what others claim cannot be done.
by Sister Ruth Marlene Fox, OSB (1985)
POSTLUDE
To Be Your Presence ELW 546
To be your presence is our mission here,
To show compassion's face and list'ning ear,
To be your heart of mercy ever near,
Alleluia!
We are your heart, O Christ, your hands and voice,
To serve your people is our call and choice,
And in this mission we, the church, rejoice.
Alleluia!
