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

Captain of Israel’s Host

Charles Wesley

Captain of Israel's host, and guide
Of all who seek the land above,
Beneath thy shadow we abide,
The cloud of thy protecting love;
Our strength, thy grace; our rule, thy word;
Our end, the glory of the Lord.

By thine unerring Spirit led,
We shall not in the desert stray;
We shall not full direction need
Nor miss our providential way;
As far from danger as from fear,
While love, almighty love, is near.

Confession of sin

Let us admit to God the sin which always confronts us.

A time of silence and self-examination may be kept.

Almighty God,
patient and of great goodness:
I confess to you,
I confess with my whole heart
my neglect and forgetfulness of your commandments,
my wrong doing, thinking, and speaking;
the hurts I have done to others,
and the good I have left undone.
O God, forgive me, for I have sinned against you;
and raise me to newness of life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

May the God of love and power
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The Word of God

Psalm 49

Refrain:
God will save my life from the power of the grave.

Listen to this, all you people!
Listen closely, all you citizens of the world—
people of every kind,
rich and poor alike!
My mouth speaks wisdom;
my heart’s meditation is full of insight.
I will pay close attention to a proverb;
I will explain my riddle on the lyre.

Why should I be afraid in times of trouble,
when the wrongdoing of my bullies engulfs me—
those people who trust in their fortunes
and boast of their fantastic wealth?
Wealth? It can’t save a single person!
It can’t pay a life’s ransom-price to God.
The price to save someone’s life is too high—
wealth will never be enough—
no one can live forever
without experiencing the pit.

Everyone knows that the wise die too,
just like foolish and stupid people do,
all of them leaving their fortunes to others.
Their graves are their eternal homes,
the place they live for all generations,
even if they had counties named after them!
People won’t live any longer because of wealth;
they’re just like the animals that pass away.

That’s how it goes for those who are foolish,
as well as for those who follow their lead, pleased with their talk.
Like sheep, they’re headed straight for the grave.
Death will be their shepherd—
but those who do right in their hearts will rule over them come morning!—
their forms wasting away in the grave
rather than having some dignified residence.
But God will save my life from the power of the grave,
because he will take me.

Don’t be overly impressed when someone becomes rich,
their house swelling to fantastic proportions,
because when they die, they won’t take any of it with them.
Their fantastic things won’t accompany them down under.
Though they consider themselves blessed during their lives,
and even thank you when you deal well with them,
they too will join the ancestors who’ve gone ahead;
they too will never see the light again.
Wealthy people? They just don’t understand;
they’re just like the animals
that pass away.

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:
God will save my life from the power of the grave.

Psalm prayer

Save us from envy, God our Redeemer,
and deliver us from the chains of wealth,
that, ransomed through your Son,
we may inherit the crown of everlasting life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading
Deuteronomy 11:1-15

So love the Lord your God and follow his instruction, his regulations, his case laws, and his commandments always. And know right now what your children haven’t known or yet witnessed:

The Lord your God’s discipline, his power, his mighty hand and outstretched arm;
the signs and the acts that he performed in the heart of Egyptian territory, against Egypt’s King Pharaoh and all his land;
what God did to the Egyptian army, to its horses and chariots—how he made the water of the Reed Sea flow over their heads when they chased after you, but the Lord destroyed them, and that’s how things stand right now;
what the Lord did for you in the desert, until you arrived at this place;
and what he did to Dathan and Abiram, the descendants of Eliab the Reubenite, when the ground opened up its mouth and swallowed them, their families, their tents, and every living thing they possessed in the presence of all Israel.
Your own eyes witnessed each of these powerful acts the Lord performed. So keep every part of the commandment that I am giving you today so that you stay strong to enter and take possession of the land that you are crossing over to possess, and so that you might prolong your life on the fertile land that the Lord swore to your ancestors to give to them and their descendants—a land full of milk and honey.

The land you are about to enter and possess is definitely not like the land of Egypt, where you came from, where you sowed your seed and irrigated it by hand like a vegetable garden. No, the land you are entering to possess is a land of hills and valleys, where your drinking water will be rain from heaven. It’s a land that the Lord cares for: the Lord’s eyes are on it constantly from the first of the year until the very end of the year.

Now, if you completely obey God’s commandments that I am giving you right now, by loving the Lord your God and by serving him with all your heart and all your being, then he will provide rain for your land at the right time—early rain and late rain—so you can stock up your grain, wine, and oil. He will also make your fields lush for your livestock, and you will eat and be satisfied.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Acts 27:1-12

When it was determined that we were to sail to Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were placed in the custody of a centurion named Julius of the Imperial Company. We boarded a ship from Adramyttium that was about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia. So we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, came with us. The next day we landed in Sidon. Julius treated Paul kindly and permitted him to go to some friends so they could take care of him. From there we sailed off. We passed Cyprus, using the island to shelter us from the headwinds. We sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, and landed in Myra in Lycia. There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship headed for Italy and put us on board. After many days of slow and difficult sailing, we arrived off the coast of Cnidus. The wind wouldn’t allow us to go farther, so we sailed under the shelter of Crete off Salmone. We sailed along the coast only with difficulty until we came to a place called Good Harbors, near the city of Lasea.

Much time had been lost, and the voyage was now dangerous since the Day of Reconciliation had already passed. Paul warned them, “Men, I see that our voyage will suffer damage and great loss, not only for the cargo and ship but also for our lives.” But the centurion was persuaded more by the ship’s pilot and captain than by Paul’s advice. Since the harbor was unsuitable for spending the winter, the majority supported a plan to put out to sea from there. They thought they might reach Phoenix in Crete and spend the winter in its harbor, which faced southwest and northwest.

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:

The universal church
Bishops, superintendents and all who lead the church
The leaders of the nations
The natural world and the resources of the earth
All who are in any kind of need

Other intercessions and supplications may be offered as the Holy Spirit leads.

Response

Loving God, we look to you.
Receive our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Lord, you have taught us
that all our doings without love are nothing worth:
send your Holy Spirit
and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of love,
the true bond of peace and of all virtues,
without which whoever lives is counted dead before you.
Grant this for your only Son Jesus Christ's sake,
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.