Wednesday evening August 29
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
Who Is This Gigantic Foe
Charles Wesley
Who is this gigantic foe,
That proudly stalks along,
Overlooks the crowd below,
In brazen armor strong?
Loudly of his strength he boasts;
On his sword and spear relies;
Meets the God of Israel’s hosts,
And all their force defies.
Tallest of the earth-born race,
They tremble at his power;
Flee before the monster’s face,
And own him conqueror.
Who this mighty champion is,
Nature answers from within,
He is my own wickedness,
My own besetting sin.
In the strength of Jesus’ name,
I with the monster fight;
Feeble and unarmed I am,
But Jesus is my might;
Mindful of his mercies past,
I trust the same to prove;
Still my helpless soul I cast
On his redeeming love.
From the bear and lion’s paws,
He hath delivered me;
He will still maintain my cause,
And still my helper be;
God in my defense shall stand,
Jesus on my side I have;
From the proud Goliath’s hand
He now my soul shall save.
With my sling and stone I go
To fight the Philistine;
God hath said it shall be so,
And I shall conquer sin;
On his promise I rely,
My trust is in the Lord,
Sure to win the victory,
For he hath spoke the word.
In the strength of God I rise,
I run to meet my foe;
Faith the word of power applies,
And lays the giant low;
Faith in Jesus’ conquering name,
Slings the sin-destroying stone;
Points the word’s unerring aim,
And brings the monster down.
Rise, ye men of Israel, rise!
Your rooted foe pursue;
Shout his praises to the skies,
Who conquers sin for you;
Jesus doth for you appear,
He his conquering grace affords;
Saves you, not with sword and spear,
The battle is the Lord’s.
Every day the Lord of hosts,
His mighty power displays;
Stills the proud Philistine’s boast,
The threatening Gittite slays;
Israel’s God, let all below
Conqueror over sin proclaim,
O that all the earth might know,
The power of Jesus’ name!
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 136
Refrain:
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
Give thanks to the Lord because he is good.
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
Give thanks to the God of all gods—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of all lords—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the only one
who makes great wonders—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the one who made the skies with skill—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the one who shaped the earth on the water—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the one who made the great lights—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
The sun to rule the day—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
The moon and the stars to rule the night—
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
Give thanks to the one who struck down the Egyptians’ oldest offspring—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the one who brought Israel out of there—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
With a strong hand and outstretched arm—
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
Give thanks to the one who split the Reed Sea in two—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the one who brought Israel through—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
And tossed Pharaoh and his army into the Reed Sea—
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
Give thanks to the one who led his people through the desert—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Give thanks to the one who struck down great kings—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
And killed powerful kings—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Sihon, the Amorite king—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Og, king of Bashan—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
Handing their land over as an inheritance—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
As an inheritance to Israel, his servant—
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
God remembered us when we were humiliated—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
God rescued us from our enemies—
God’s faithful love lasts forever.
God is the one who provides food for all living things—
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
Give thanks to the God of heaven—
God’s faithful love lasts 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:
God’s faithful love lasts forever!
Psalm prayer
Remember us, God, and shape our history,
form our inward eyes
to see the shadow of the life-giving cross
in the turbulence of our time;
for his sake who died for all,
Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Haggai 2:10-23
On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month in the second year of Darius, the Lord’s word came to Haggai the prophet:
This is what the Lord of heavenly forces says:
Go ahead and ask the priests for a ruling:
“If someone lifts holy meat into the hem of one’s garment and that hem touches bread, stew, wine, oil, or any kind of food, will it be made holy?”
And the priests responded, “No.”
Haggai said,
“If an unclean person touches any of these things, will it become unclean?”
And the priests responded, “It will be unclean.”
Then Haggai responded:
Thus has this people and this nation become to me, says the Lord,
and everything that they do with their hands.
Whatever they offer is unclean.
So now, take it to heart from this day forward.
Before stone was placed on stone in the Lord’s temple,
when one came to the granary for twenty measures,
there were only ten;
and when one came to the wine vat for fifty measures,
there were only twenty.
I struck you—everything you do with your hands—
with blight and mildew and hail;
but you didn’t return to me.
So take it to heart from this day forward,
from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month.
Take it to heart from the day when the foundation for the Lord’s temple was laid.
Is the seed yet in the granary—
or the vine, the fig tree, or the pomegranate—
or has the olive tree not borne fruit?
From this day forward, I will bless you.
And the Lord’s word came to Haggai a second time on the twenty-fourth of the month, saying:
Speak to Judah’s governor Zerubbabel:
I am about to make the heavens and the earth quake.
I will overthrow the thrones of the kingdoms;
I will destroy the strength of the nations.
I will overthrow chariot and rider;
horses and riders will fall.
Each one will fall by the sword of his companion.
On that day, says the Lord of heavenly forces:
I will take you, Zerubbabel, Shealtiel’s son, my servant, says the Lord;
I will make you like a signet ring
because I have chosen you, says the Lord of heavenly forces.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Mark 8:27-9:1
Jesus and his disciples went into the villages near Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”
They told him, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others one of the prophets.”
He asked them, “And what about you? Who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Christ.” Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Then Jesus began to teach his disciples: “The Human One must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and the legal experts, and be killed, and then, after three days, rise from the dead.” He said this plainly. But Peter took hold of Jesus and, scolding him, began to correct him. Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, then sternly corrected Peter: “Get behind me, Satan. You are not thinking God’s thoughts but human thoughts.”
After calling the crowd together with his disciples, Jesus said to them, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. All who want to save their lives will lose them. But all who lose their lives because of me and because of the good news will save them. Why would people gain the whole world but lose their lives? What will people give in exchange for their lives? Whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this unfaithful and sinful generation, the Human One will be ashamed of that person when he comes in the Father’s glory with the holy angels.” Jesus continued, “I assure you that some standing here won’t die before they see God’s kingdom arrive in power.”
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 God,
who called your church to bear witness
that you were in Christ reconciling the world to yourself:
help us to proclaim the good news of your love,
that all who hear it may be drawn to you;
through him who was lifted up on the cross,
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.