Wednesday evening July 4

Thursday evening
Tuesday evening

Preparation

Opening response

Favor us, Lord, and deliver us.
Lord, come quickly and help us.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night:
to you be praise and glory forever.
As darkness falls you renew your promise
to reveal among us the light of your presence.
By the light of Christ, your living Word,
dispel the darkness of our hearts
that we may walk as children of light
and sing your praise throughout the world.
Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Blessed be God forever.

That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful,
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As our evening prayer rises before you, O God,
so may your mercy come down upon us
to cleanse our hearts
and set us free to sing your praise
now and forever.
Amen.

Hymn

Baptized into thy name, mysterious one in three

Charles Wesley
           
Baptized into thy name,
Mysterious One in Three,
Our souls and bodies claim,
A sacrifice to thee;
And let us live our faith to prove,
The faith which works by humble love.

O that our light may shine,
And all our lives express
The character divine,
The real holiness;
And then receive us up, to adore
The triune God forevermore.

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 119:129-152

Refrain: 
Access to your words gives light.

Your laws are wonderful!
    That’s why I guard them.
Access to your words gives light,
    giving simple folk understanding.
I open my mouth up wide, panting,
    because I long for your commandments.
Come back to me and have mercy on me;
    that’s only right for those who love your name.
Keep my steps steady by your word;
    don’t let any sin rule me.
Redeem me from the people who oppress me
    so I can keep your precepts.
Shine your face on your servant,
    and teach me your statutes.
Rivers of tears stream from my eyes
    because your Instruction isn’t being kept.

Lord, you are righteous,
    and your rules are right.
The laws you commanded are righteous,
    completely trustworthy.
Anger consumes me
    because my enemies have forgotten what you’ve said.
Your word has been tried and tested;
    your servant loves your word!
I’m insignificant and unpopular,
    but I don’t forget your precepts.
Your righteousness lasts forever!
    Your Instruction is true!
Stress and strain have caught up with me,
    but your commandments are my joy!
Your laws are righteous forever.
    Help me understand so I can live!

I cry out with all my heart:
    “Lord, answer me so I can guard your statutes!”
I cry out to you, “Save me
    so I can keep your laws!”
I meet the predawn light and cry for help.
    I wait for your promise.
My eyes encounter each hour of the night
    as I think about your word.
Listen to my voice, according to your faithful love.
    Lord, make me live again, according to your justice.
The people who love to plot wicked schemes are nearby,
    but they are so far from your Instruction!
But you, Lord, are nearby too,
    and all your commandments are true.
Long ago I learned from your laws
    that you had established them 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.

Refrain: 
Access to your words gives light.

Psalm prayer

Lord, you are just
and your commandments are eternal;
teach us to love you with all our heart
and our neighbour as ourselves,
for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading
Nehemiah 13:15-31

In those days I saw people in Judah using the winepresses on the Sabbath. They were also collecting piles of grain and loading them on donkeys, as well as wine, grapes, figs, and every kind of load, and then bringing them to Jerusalem on the Sabbath. I warned them at that time against selling food.

In addition, people from Tyre who lived in the city were bringing in fish and all kinds of merchandise and selling them to the people of Judah on the Sabbath. This happened in Jerusalem itself!

So I scolded the officials of Judah: “What is this evil thing that you are doing?” I asked. “You are making the Sabbath impure! This is just what your ancestors did, and God brought all this evil upon us and upon this city. And now you are bringing more wrath upon Israel by making the Sabbath impure!”

So when it began to grow dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath, I gave orders that the doors should be shut. I also ordered that they shouldn’t be reopened until after the Sabbath. To make sure that no load would come into the city on the Sabbath, I stationed some of my own men at the gates. Once or twice the traders and sellers of all kinds of merchandise spent the night outside Jerusalem. But I warned them: “Why are you spending the night by the wall? If you do that again, I will lay hands on you!” At that point, they stopped coming on the Sabbath. I also commanded the Levites to purify themselves and to come and guard the gates in order to keep the Sabbath day holy.

Remember this also in my favor, my God, and spare me according to the greatness of your mercy.

Also in those days I saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or the language of various peoples; they couldn’t speak the language of Judah.

So I scolded them and cursed them, and beat some of them, and pulled out their hair. I also made them swear a solemn pledge in the name of God, saying, “You won’t give your daughters to their sons in marriage, or take their daughters in marriage for your sons or yourselves. Didn’t Israel’s King Solomon sin on account of such women? Among the many nations there was no king like him. He was well loved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel. Yet foreign wives led even him into sin! Should we then listen to you and do all this great evil, acting unfaithfully toward our God by marrying foreign women?”

Now one of the sons of Joiada son of the high priest Eliashib was a son-in-law of Sanballat the Horonite. So I chased him away from me.

Remember them, my God, because they have defiled the priesthood and the covenant of the priests and the Levites!

So I purified them of everything foreign and established the services of the priests and Levites with specific duties for each person. I also provided for the wood offering at appointed times as well as for the early produce.

Remember me, my God, for good.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
2 Corinthians 2:5-17

But if someone has made anyone sad, that person hasn’t hurt me but all of you to some degree (not to exaggerate). The punishment handed out by the majority is enough for this person. This is why you should try your best to forgive and to comfort this person now instead, so that this person isn’t overwhelmed by too much sorrow. So I encourage you to show your love for this person.

This is another reason why I wrote you. I wanted to test you and see if you are obedient in everything. If you forgive anyone for anything, I do too. And whatever I’ve forgiven (if I’ve forgiven anything), I did it for you in the presence of Christ. This is so that we won’t be taken advantage of by Satan, because we are well aware of his schemes.

When I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, the Lord gave me an opportunity to preach. But I was worried because I couldn’t find my brother Titus there. So I said good-bye to them and went on to Macedonia.

But thank God, who is always leading us around through Christ as if we were in a parade. He releases the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere through us. We smell like the aroma of Christ’s offering to God, both to those who are being saved and to those who are on the road to destruction. We smell like a contagious dead person to those who are dying, but we smell like the fountain of life to those who are being saved.

Who is qualified for this kind of ministry? We aren’t like so many people who hustle the word of God to make a profit. We are speaking through Christ in the presence of God, as those who are sincere and as those who are sent from God.

Silence may be kept.

Gospel canticle
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)

Refrain:
You show mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors you as God.

With all my heart I glorify the Lord!
In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior.
He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant.
Look! From now on, everyone will consider me highly favored
because the mighty one has done great things for me.
Holy is his name.
He shows mercy to everyone,
from one generation to the next,
who honors him as God.
He has shown strength with his arm.
He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations.
He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty-handed.
He has come to the aid of his servant Israel,
remembering his mercy, 
just as he promised to our ancestors, 
to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever.

Luke 1:46-55

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 show mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors you as God.

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

Thanksgiving and intercession

Thanksgiving may be made for the day.

Intercessions are offered
for peace
for individuals and their needs

Prayers may include the following concerns:

The social services
All who work in the criminal justice system
Victims and perpetrators of crime
The work of aid agencies throughout the world
Those living in poverty or under oppression

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

Response

God of grace,
hear our prayer.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Almighty and everlasting God,
by whose Spirit the whole body of the church
      is governed and sanctified:
hear our prayer which we offer for all your faithful people,
that in their vocation and ministry
they may serve you in holiness and truth
to the glory of your name;
through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
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 grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with us all evermore.
Amen.