Friday evening August 5
Saturday evening
Thursday evening
Preparation
Opening response
O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are you, Lord God, creator of day and night:
to you be praise and glory for ever.
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.
Hymn
Come, Thou Omniscient Son of Man
Charles Wesley
Come, thou omniscient Son of man,
Display thy sifting power;
Come with thy Spirit's winnowing fan,
And throughly purge thy floor.
The chaff of sin, the accursed thing,
Far from our souls be driven!
The wheat into thy garner bring,
And lay us up for heaven.
Look through us with thine eyes of flame,
The clouds and darkness chase;
And tell me what by sin I am,
And what I am by grace.
Whatever offends thy glorious eyes,
Far from our hearts remove;
As dust before the whirlwind flies,
Disperse it by thy love.
Then let us all thy fullness know,
From every sin set free;
Saved, to the utmost saved below,
And perfected by thee
Confession of sin
The Lord is compassionate and merciful,
very patient, and full of faithful love.
He doesn’t deal with us according to our sin
or repay us according to our wrongdoing.
Because as high as heaven is above the earth,
that’s how large God’s faithful love is for those who honor him.
Silence is kept for reflection.
Holy God,
Holy and strong,
Holy and immortal,
have mercy upon us.
As far as east is from west—
that’s how far God has removed our sin from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
that’s how the Lord feels compassion for those who honor him.
Let my whole being bless the Lord.
Let everything inside me bless his holy name.
Let my whole being bless the Lord,
and never forget all his good deeds.
The Word of God
Psalm 69
Refrain:
Let heaven and earth praise God!
Save me, God,
because the waters have reached my neck!
I have sunk into deep mud.
My feet can’t touch the bottom!
I have entered deep water;
the flood has swept me up.
I am tired of crying.
My throat is hoarse.
My eyes are exhausted with waiting for my God.
More numerous than the hairs on my head
are those who hate me for no reason.
My treacherous enemies,
those who would destroy me, are countless.
Must I now give back
what I didn’t steal in the first place?
God, you know my foolishness;
my wrongdoings aren’t hidden from you.
Lord God of heavenly forces!—
don’t let those who hope in you
be put to shame because of me.
God of Israel!—
don’t let those who seek you
be disgraced because of me.
I am insulted because of you.
Shame covers my face.
I have become a stranger to my own brothers,
an immigrant to my mother’s children.
Because passion for your house has consumed me,
the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me!
I wept while I fasted—
even for that I was insulted.
When I wore funeral clothes,
people made fun of me.
Those who sit at the city gate muttered things about me;
drunkards made up rude songs.
But me? My prayer reaches you, Lord,
at just the right time.
God, in your great and faithful love,
answer me with your certain salvation!
Save me from the mud!
Don’t let me drown!
Let me be saved from those who hate me
and from these watery depths!
Don’t let me be swept away by the floodwaters!
Don’t let the abyss swallow me up!
Don’t let the pit close its mouth over me!
Answer me, Lord, for your faithful love is good!
Turn to me in your great compassion!
Don’t hide your face from me, your servant,
because I’m in deep trouble.
Answer me quickly!
Come close to me!
Redeem me!
Save me because of my enemies!
You know full well the insults I’ve received;
you know my shame and my disgrace.
All my adversaries are right there in front of you.
Insults have broken my heart.
I’m sick about it.
I hoped for sympathy,
but there wasn’t any;
I hoped for comforters,
but couldn’t find any.
They gave me poison for food.
To quench my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
Let the table before them become a trap,
their offerings a snare.
Let their eyes grow too dim to see;
make their insides tremble constantly.
Pour out your anger on them—
let your burning fury catch them.
Let their camp be devastated;
let no one dwell in their tents.
Because they go after those you’ve already struck;
they talk about the pain of those you’ve already pierced.
Pile guilt on top of their guilt!
Don’t let them come into your righteousness!
Let them be wiped out of the scroll of life!
Let them not be recorded along with the righteous!
And me? I’m afflicted.
I’m full of pain.
Let your salvation keep me safe, God!
I will praise God’s name with song;
I will magnify him with thanks
because that is more pleasing to the Lord than an ox,
more pleasing than a young bull with full horns and hooves.
Let the afflicted see it and be glad!
You who seek God—
let your hearts beat strong again
because the Lord listens to the needy
and doesn’t despise his captives.
Let heaven and earth praise God,
the oceans too, and all that moves within them!
God will most certainly save Zion
and will rebuild Judah’s cities
so that God’s servants can live there and possess it.
The offspring of God’s servants will inherit Zion,
and those who love God’s name will dwell there.
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:
Let heaven and earth praise God!
Psalm prayer
Thirsting on the cross,
your Son shared the reproach of the oppressed
and carried the sins of all;
in him, O God, may the despairing find you,
the afflicted gain life
and the whole creation know its true king,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Old Testament reading
Proverbs 3:27-4:19
Don’t withhold good from someone who deserves it,
when it is in your power to do so.
Don’t say to your neighbor, “Go and come back;
I’ll give it to you tomorrow,” when you have it.
Don’t plan to harm your neighbor
who trusts and lives near you.
Don’t accuse anyone without reason,
when they haven’t harmed you.
Don’t envy violent people
or choose any of their ways.
Devious people are detestable to the Lord,
but the virtuous are his close friends.
The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
but he blesses the home of the righteous.
He mocks mockers,
but he shows favor to the humble.
The wise gain respect,
but fools receive shame.
Hear, children, fatherly instruction;
pay attention to gain understanding.
I’ll teach you well.
Don’t abandon my instruction.
When I was a son to my father,
tender and my mother’s favorite,
he taught me and said to me:
“Let your heart hold on to my words:
Keep my commands and live.
Get wisdom; get understanding.
Don’t forget and don’t turn away from my words.
Don’t abandon her, and she will guard you.
Love her, and she will protect you.
The beginning of wisdom:
Get wisdom!
Get understanding before anything else.
Highly esteem her, and she will exalt you.
She will honor you if you embrace her.
She will place a graceful wreath on your head;
she will give you a glorious crown.”
Listen, my son, and take in my speech,
then the years of your life will be many.
I teach you the path of wisdom.
I lead you in straight courses.
When you walk, you won’t be hindered;
when you run, you won’t stumble.
Hold on to instruction; don’t slack off;
protect it, for it is your life.
Don’t go on the way of the wicked;
don’t walk on the path of evil people.
Avoid it! Don’t turn onto it;
stay off of it and keep going!
They don’t sleep unless they do evil;
they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble.
They eat the bread of evil,
and they drink the wine of violence.
The way of the righteous is like morning light
that gets brighter and brighter till it is full day.
The path of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they don’t know where they will stumble.
Silence may be kept.
New Testament reading
Mark 4:21-34
Jesus said to them, “Does anyone bring in a lamp in order to put it under a basket or a bed? Shouldn’t it be placed on a lampstand? Everything hidden will be revealed, and everything secret will come out into the open. Whoever has ears to listen should pay attention!”
He said to them, “Listen carefully! God will evaluate you with the same standard you use to evaluate others. Indeed, you will receive even more. Those who have will receive more, but as for those who don’t have, even what they don’t have will be taken away from them.”
Then Jesus said, “This is what God’s kingdom is like. It’s as though someone scatters seed on the ground, then sleeps and wakes night and day. The seed sprouts and grows, but the farmer doesn’t know how. The earth produces crops all by itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full head of grain. Whenever the crop is ready, the farmer goes out to cut the grain because it’s harvesttime.”
He continued, “What’s a good image for God’s kingdom? What parable can I use to explain it? Consider a mustard seed. When scattered on the ground, it’s the smallest of all the seeds on the earth; but when it’s planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all vegetable plants. It produces such large branches that the birds in the sky are able to nest in its shade.”
With many such parables he continued to give them the word, as much as they were able to hear. He spoke to them only in parables, then explained everything to his disciples when he was alone with them.
Silence may be kept.
Gospel canticle
The Magnificat (The Song of Mary)
Refrain:
God, you have done great things and holy is your name.
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:
God, you have done great things and holy is your name.
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
Response
Lord, hear your people
and answer our prayers.
Silence may be kept.
Collect of the day
Let your merciful ears, Lord,
be open to the prayers of your humble servants;
and that they may obtain their petitions
make them to ask such things as shall please you;
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 grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with us all evermore.
Amen.