Thursday morning July 5

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

Behold! I Come With Joy to Do

Charles Wesley
           
Behold! I come with joy to do
The Master’s blessed will;
My Lord in outward works pursue,
And serve his pleasure still.
Thus faithful to my Lord’s commands,
I choose the better part,
And serve with careful Martha’s hands,
But loving Mary’s heart.

Though careful, without care I am,
Nor feel my happy toil,
Preserved in peace by Jesus’ name,
Supported by his smile:
Rejoicing thus my faith to show,
His service my reward;
While every work I do below,
I do it to the Lord.

O! That the world the art might know
Of living thus to thee;
And find their heaven begun below,
And here thy glory see;
Walking in all the works prepared
To exercise their grace,
They gain at last their full reward, 
And see thy glorious face.

Confession of sin

Seek the Lord when he can still be found;
call him while he is yet near.
Let the wicked abandon their ways
and the sinful their schemes.
Let them return to the Lord so that he may have mercy on them,
to our God, because he is generous with forgiveness.

cf Isaiah 55

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

Lord God,
we have sinned against you;
we have committed evil in your sight.
We are sorry and repent.
Have mercy on us according to your faithful love.
Wash us completely clean of our guilt; purify us from our sin.
Put a new, faithful spirit deep inside us,
and return the joy of your salvation to us
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

cf Psalm 51

May the Father of all mercies
cleanse us from our sins,
and restore us in his image
to the praise and glory of his name,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Bless the Lord,
because he has listened to our request for mercy.
Therefore our hearts will rejoice
and we will thank him with our song.

cf Psalm 28:7,9

The Word of God

Psalm 115

Refrain:
The Lord remembers us and will bless us.

Not to us, Lord, not to us—
    no, but to your own name give glory
        because of your loyal love and faithfulness!

Why do the nations say,
    “Where’s their God now?”
Our God is in heaven—
    he can do whatever he wants!
Their idols are just silver and gold—
    things made by human hands.
    They have mouths, but they can’t speak.
    They have eyes, but they can’t see.
    They have ears, but they can’t hear.
    They have noses, but they can’t smell.
    They have hands, but they can’t feel.
    They have feet, but they can’t walk.
    They can’t even make a noise in their throats!
Let the people who made these idols
    and all who trust in them
    become just like them!

But you, Israel, trust in the Lord!
    God is their help and shield.
Trust in the Lord, house of Aaron!
    God is their help and shield.
You who honor the Lord, trust in the Lord!
    God is their help and shield.
The Lord remembers us and will bless us:
    God will bless the house of Israel;
    God will bless the house of Aaron;
God will bless those who honor the Lord—
    from the smallest to the greatest.

May the Lord add to your numbers—
    both you and your children.
May you be blessed by the Lord,
    the maker of heaven and earth!
The highest heaven belongs to the Lord,
    but he gave the earth to all people.
The dead don’t praise the Lord,
    nor do those who go down to silence.
But us? We will bless the Lord
    from now until forever from now!

Praise the Lord!

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:
The Lord remembers us and will bless us.

Psalm prayer

Living God,
defend us from the idols which our hearts enthrone,
that we may not go down into silence
but be raised to our heaven of heavens
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading
1 Samuel 2:27-36

Now a man of God came to Eli and said, “This is what the Lord says: I revealed myself very clearly to your father’s household when they were slaves in Egypt to the house of Pharaoh. I chose your father from all of Israel’s tribes to be my priest, to go up onto my altar, to burn incense, and to wear the priestly vest in my presence. I also gave all of the Israelites’ food offerings to your father’s household. Why then do you kick my sacrifices and my offerings—the very ones I commanded for my dwelling place? Why do you respect your sons more than me, getting fat off the best parts of every offering from my people Israel? Because of all that, this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: I had promised that your household and your father’s household would serve me forever. But now—this is what the Lord declares: I’ll do no such thing! No. I honor those who honor me, and whoever despises me will be cursed. The days are coming soon when I will eliminate both your children and the children of your father’s household. There won’t be an old person left in your family tree. You’ll see trouble in my dwelling place, though all will go well for Israel. But there will never be an old person in your family tree. One of your descendants whom I don’t eliminate from serving at my altar will cry his eyes out and be full of grief. Any descendants in your household will die by the sword. And what happens to your two sons Hophni and Phinehas will be a sign for you: they will both die on the same day. Then I will establish for myself a trustworthy priest who will act in accordance with my thoughts and desires. I will build a trustworthy household for him, and he will serve before my anointed one forever. Anyone left from your household will come and beg him for a bit of silver or a loaf of bread, saying: ‘Please appoint me to some priestly duty so I can have a scrap of bread to eat.’”

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Luke 20:9-19

Jesus told the people this parable: “A certain man planted a vineyard, rented it to tenant farmers, and went on a trip for a long time. When it was time, he sent a servant to collect from the tenants his share of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants sent him away, beaten and empty-handed. The man sent another servant. But they beat him, treated him disgracefully, and sent him away empty-handed as well. He sent a third servant. They wounded this servant and threw him out. The owner of the vineyard said, ‘What should I do? I’ll send my son, whom I love dearly. Perhaps they will respect him.’ But when they saw him, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Let’s kill him so the inheritance will be ours.’ They threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”

When the people heard this, they said, “May this never happen!”

Staring at them, Jesus said, “Then what is the meaning of this text of scripture: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone? Everyone who falls on that stone will be crushed. And the stone will crush the person it falls on.” The legal experts and chief priests wanted to arrest him right then because they knew he had told this parable against them. But they feared the people.

Silence may be kept.

Gospel canticle
The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah)

Refrain:
You have shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and remembered your holy covenant.

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 shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and remembered your holy covenant.

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

Father, hear our prayer,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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