Thursday morning October 12

Friday morning
Wednesday morning

Preparation

Opening response

Lord, open our lips
and our mouth will proclaim 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

Angels Your March Oppose

Charles Wesley
           
Angels your march oppose,
Who still in strength excel,
Your secret, sworn, eternal foes,
Countless, invisible.
With rage that never ends
Their hellish arts they try;
Legions of dire malicious fiends,
And spirits enthroned on high.

From thrones of glory driven
By flaming vengeance hurled
They throng the air, and darken heaven,
And rule this lower world.
But shall believers fear?
But shall believers fly?
Or see the bloody cross appear,
And all their power defy?

Jesus’ tremendous name
Puts all our foes to flight:
Jesus, the meek, the angry Lamb,
A Lion is in fight.
By all hell’s host withstood,
We all hell’s host overthrow;
And conquering them, through Jesus’ blood,
We still to conquer go.

Our Captain leads us on;
He beckons from the skies,
And reaches out a starry crown,
And bids us take the prize:
“Be faithful unto death;
Partake my victory;
And thou shalt wear this glorious wreath.
And thou shalt reign with me.”

Confession of sin

When we cry out to the Lord in our distress,
he will save us from our desperate circumstances.

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 thank the Lord for his faithful love,
and his wondrous works for all people.

Let us offer thanksgiving sacrifices
and declare what God has done in songs of joy.

cf Psalm 107

The Word of God

Psalm 78:1-39

Refrain:
How awesome are your works, Lord!

Listen, my people, to my teaching;
    tilt your ears toward the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth with a proverb.
    I’ll declare riddles from days long gone—
        ones that we’ve heard and learned about,
        ones that our ancestors told us.
We won’t hide them from their descendants;
    we’ll tell the next generation
    all about the praise due the Lord and his strength—
    the wondrous works God has done.
He established a law for Jacob
    and set up Instruction for Israel,
        ordering our ancestors
        to teach them to their children.
This is so that the next generation
    and children not yet born will know these things,
        and so they can rise up and tell their children
    to put their hope in God—
        never forgetting God’s deeds,
        but keeping God’s commandments—
    and so that they won’t become like their ancestors:
    a rebellious, stubborn generation,
        a generation whose heart wasn’t set firm
        and whose spirit wasn’t faithful to God.
The children of Ephraim, armed with bows,
    retreated on the day of battle.
They didn’t keep God’s covenant;
    they refused to walk in his Instruction.
They forgot God’s deeds
    as well as the wondrous works he showed them.
But God performed wonders in their ancestors’ presence—
    in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.
God split the sea and led them through,
    making the waters stand up like a wall.
God led them with the cloud by day;
    by the lightning all through the night.
God split rocks open in the wilderness,
    gave them plenty to drink—
    as if from the deep itself!
God made streams flow from the rock,
    made water run like rivers.
But they continued to sin against God,
    rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
They tested God in their hearts,
    demanded food for their stomachs.
They spoke against God!
    “Can God set a dinner table in the wilderness?” they asked.
“True, God struck the rock
    and water gushed and streams flowed,
        but can he give bread too?
        Can he provide meat for his people?”
When the Lord heard this, he became furious.
        A fire was ignited against Jacob;
    wrath also burned against Israel
        because they had no faith in God,
        because they didn’t trust his saving power.
God gave orders to the skies above,
    opened heaven’s doors,
    and rained manna on them so they could eat.
        He gave them the very grain of heaven!
Each person ate the bread of the powerful ones;
    God sent provisions to satisfy them.
God set the east wind moving across the skies
    and drove the south wind by his strength.
He rained meat on them as if it were dust in the air;
    he rained as many birds as the sand on the seashore!
God brought the birds down in the center of their camp,
    all around their dwellings.
So they ate and were completely satisfied;
    God gave them exactly what they had craved.
But they didn’t stop craving—
    even with the food still in their mouths!
So God’s anger came up against them:
    he killed the most hearty of them;
        he cut down Israel’s youth in their prime.
But in spite of all that, they kept sinning
    and had no faith in God’s wondrous works.
So God brought their days to an end,
    like a puff of air,
    and their years in total ruin.
But whenever God killed them, they went after him!
    They would turn and earnestly search for God.
They would remember that God was their rock,
    that the Most High was their redeemer.
But they were just flattering him with lip service.
    They were lying to him with their tongues.
Their hearts weren’t firmly set on him;
    they weren’t faithful to his covenant.
But God, being compassionate,
    kept forgiving their sins,
    kept avoiding destruction;
    he took back his anger so many times,
    wouldn’t stir up all his wrath!
God kept remembering that they were just flesh,
    just breath that passes and doesn’t come back.

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.

Refrain:
How awesome are your works, 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 Chronicles 13:1-14:1

Abijah became king over Judah in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam. He ruled for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Micaiah; she was Uriel’s daughter from Gibeah. When war broke out between Abijah and Jeroboam, Abijah went to fight with an army of four hundred thousand select troops against Jeroboam’s select forces numbering eight hundred thousand, who were arrayed in battle formation.

Abijah stood on the heights of Mount Zemaraim in Ephraim’s highlands and said:

“Listen to me, Jeroboam and all Israel! Surely you know that the Lord, Israel’s God, made an unbreakable covenant with David and his descendants that they would rule Israel forever. It was Jeroboam, Nebat’s son, the servant of Solomon, David’s son, who rebelled against his master. When some useless, worthless people joined his cause, they overpowered Rehoboam, Solomon’s son, who was too young and timid to resist them. And now do you intend to challenge the Lord’s royal rule, entrusted to David’s descendants? You may have a numerical advantage, as well as the gold calves Jeroboam made for you as gods. But you’ve banished the Lord’s priests, Aaron’s sons, along with the Levites, so that you could appoint your own priests as other countries do. Now anyone who shows up with a young bull and seven rams can become a priest of these phony gods!

“But us? The Lord is our God, and we haven’t abandoned him. Aaron’s descendants serve as the Lord’s priests, assisted in the work by the Levites. Every morning and every evening they offer entirely burned offerings and fragrant incense to the Lord, and set out bread in stacks upon a clean table. At night they light the lamps on the gold lampstand. Yes, while you are abandoning the Lord our God, we are doing what he requires. Listen! God is on our side, at our head, along with his priests, who are ready to sound the battle trumpets against you. So, Israelites, don’t fight against the Lord, the God of your ancestors, for you won’t succeed!”

Meanwhile, Jeroboam had sent troops around behind them for an ambush so that the main force was in front of Judah while the ambush was behind. When Judah looked around and suddenly realized that they were surrounded, they cried out to the Lord while the priests sounded the trumpets and raised the battle cry. When they raised the battle cry, God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. So the Israelites fled before Judah, and God gave Judah the victory. Abijah and his people struck them severely: five hundred thousand select warriors were killed. Israel was subdued on that occasion, and Judah succeeded because they relied on the Lord, the God of their ancestors. Abijah pursued Jeroboam and took these cities away from him: Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephron, along with their villages. Jeroboam failed to regain power during the time of Abijah. The Lord finally struck him down, and he died. Abijah, however, grew strong. He married fourteen wives; he had twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. The rest of Abijah’s deeds, what he did and what he said, are written in the account of the prophet Iddo.

Abijah lay down with his ancestors and was buried in David’s City. His son Asa succeeded him as king.

In Asa’s time, the land had peace for ten years.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Mark 14:43-52

Suddenly, while Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, came with a mob carrying swords and clubs. They had been sent by the chief priests, legal experts, and elders. His betrayer had given them a sign: “Arrest the man I kiss, and take him away under guard.”

As soon as he got there, Judas said to Jesus, “Rabbi!” Then he kissed him. Then they came and grabbed Jesus and arrested him.

One of the bystanders drew a sword and struck the high priest’s slave and cut off his ear. Jesus responded, “Have you come with swords and clubs to arrest me, like an outlaw? Day after day, I was with you, teaching in the temple, but you didn’t arrest me. But let the scriptures be fulfilled.” And all his disciples left him and ran away. One young man, a disciple, was wearing nothing but a linen cloth. They grabbed him, but he left the linen cloth behind and ran away naked.

Silence may be kept.

Gospel canticle
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Refrain:
You have raised up a mighty savior for us in your servant David’s house.

Bless the Lord God of Israel
because he has come to help and has delivered his people.
He has raised up a mighty savior for us in his servant David’s house,
just as he said through the mouths of his holy prophets long ago.
He has brought salvation from our enemies
and from the power of all those who hate us.
He has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
and remembered his holy covenant,
the solemn pledge he made to our ancestor Abraham.
He has granted that we would be rescued
from the power of our enemies
so that we could serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness in God’s eyes,
for as long as we live.
You, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way.
You will tell his people how to be saved
through the forgiveness of their sins.
Because of our God’s deep compassion,
the dawn from heaven will break upon us,
to give light to those who are sitting in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide us on the path of peace.”

Luke 1:68-79

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.

Refrain:
You have raised up a mighty savior for us in your servant David’s house.

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,
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,
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and 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.

Prayers

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

In faith we pray
We pray to you, our God.

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 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.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and forever.
Amen.

Conclusion

The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil, and keep us in eternal life.
Amen.