Evening Prayer, October 21, 2020, 7 p.m.

The livestream may be found here.

EVENING PRAYER for Wednesday after 20 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 33

 

¹ Rejoice in the | Lord, you righteous;*

                it is good for the just | to sing praises.

² Praise the Lord | with the harp;*

                play to him upon the psalter- | y and lyre.

³ Sing for him | a new song;*

                sound a fanfare with all your skill up- | on the trumpet.

⁴ For the word of the | Lord is right,*

                and all his | works are sure.

⁵ He loves righteous- | ness and justice;*

                the lovingkindness of the Lord fills | the whole earth.

⁶ By the word of the Lord were the | heavens made,*

                by the breath of his mouth all the heav- | enly hosts.

⁷ He gathers up the waters of the ocean as | in a water-skin*

                and stores up the depths | of the sea.

⁸ Let all the earth | fear the Lord;*

                let all who dwell in the world stand in | awe of him.

⁹ For he spoke, and it | came to pass;*

                he commanded, and | it stood fast.

¹⁰ The Lord brings the will of the na- | tions to naught;*

                he thwarts the designs | of the peoples.

¹¹ But the Lord's will stands | fast forever,*

                and the designs of his heart from | age to age.

¹² Happy is the nation whose God | is the Lord!*

                Happy the people he has chosen to | be his own!

¹³ The Lord looks | down from heaven,*

                and beholds all the people | in the world.

¹⁴ From where he sits enthroned he | turns his gaze*

                on all who dwell | on the earth.

¹⁵ He fashions all the | hearts of them*

                and understands | all their works.

¹⁶ There is no king that can be saved by a | mighty army;*

                a strong man is not delivered by | his great strength.

¹⁷ The horse is a vain hope | for deliverance;*

                for all its strength it | cannot save.

¹⁸ Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon | those who fear him,*

                on those who wait up- | on his love,

¹⁹ to pluck their | lives from death,*

                and to feed them in | time of famine.

²⁰ Our soul waits | for the Lord;*

                he is our help | and our shield.

²¹ Indeed, our heart rejoic- | es in him,*

                for in his holy name we | put our trust.

²² Let your lovingkindness, O Lord, | be upon us,*

                as we have put our | trust in you.

Lord God, through your Son you made the heavens and earth; through him you continue to accomplish the intentions of your heart. Make your chosen people witnesses of your truth among the nations and heralds of your glory in the heavens; for the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 

 

Hymn                                                Come, Holy Ghost, Our Souls Inspire

                                                                              Lutheran Book of Worship 473

 

 READING                                                                          1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

 

¹Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,
  To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
  Grace to you and peace.
  ²We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly ³remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁴For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you, ⁵because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake. ⁶And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, ⁷so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. ⁸For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it. ⁹For the people of those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, ¹⁰and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming.

 

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

 

A LITANY for the CONVERSION OF ALL PEOPLE is said.

 

O God, the Father in heaven, have mercy on us.

O God the Son, redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.

O God, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, have mercy on us.

O holy and blessed Trinity, three in one and one in three: have mercy on us.

 

From having other gods before Thee, the only God; Good Lord, deliver us.

From blasphemy of Thy holy name with our lips or in our hearts; /R

From neglect of Thy presence in the assembly of Thy people, by irregular attendance or wandering thoughts; /R

From want of reverence to parents and others that have authority over us; /R

From malice and hatred, from party spirit and vindictiveness; /R

From all impurity, whether in thought, word and deed; /R

From falsehood and injustice in contracts and promises, from false pretense and theft; /R

From sneering and disparagement, from exaggeration and slander; /R

From idleness, from all discontent with our own position, and from envy and covetousness: /R

 

By the mystery of Thy holy incarnation; Help us, good Lord.

By Thy birth and subjection to the Law; /R

By Thine obedience to Thy parents and by the toil of Thy poverty; /R

By Thy baptism, fasting and temptation; /R

By Thine endurance of contradiction and by Thy compassion for Thy enemies; /R

By Thy watching in prayer, Thine agony and bloody sweat; /R

By Thy cross and Passion, by Thy death and burial; /R

By Thy glorious resurrection and ascension; /R

By Thy heavenly intercession and the gift of the Holy Spirit: /R

 

We poor sinners do beseech Thee; Hear us, good Lord.

To provide Thy church with all that is needful for the accomplishment of Thy work in the conversion of souls; /R

To increase the number of those who labor in Thy vineyard; /R

To stir up the zeal of all Thy people for the promotion of every good work; /R

To supply whatever is wanting to Thy church and to amend whatever is amiss in her; /R

To raise up among us a deeper sense of truth and justice in commercial dealings one toward another; /R

To strengthen in the habits of industry all who are called to manual labor; /R

To make employers more careful on behalf of those who serve them; /R

To fill with Thy true knowledge all who are engaged in the education of youth; /R

To cleanse our cities from all impurity, revelry, and unseemliness; /R

To extend the knowledge of Christ to those who have it now; /R

To bless all existing missions and to increase their number; /R

To have mercy upon all who are in error and to bring them into the way of Thy truth; /R

To make all nations to be at peace with one another; /R

To fulfill Thy promise that, lifted up from the earth, Thou wilt draw all men unto Thee; /R

To hasten the day of Thine appearing and to give us meanwhile earnest love and longing for the same; We beseech Thee to hear us, good Lord.

 

Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world;

Have mercy on us, and grant us Thy peace.

                                                                   (Herbert Lindemann, The Daily Office)

 

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.

 

Hymn                                                        To You, Before the Close of Day                            LBW 277

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