Tuesday morning December 25

Wednesday morning
Monday morning

Preparation

Opening response

Lord, open our lips

and our mouth will proclaim your praise.

You laid the foundation of the earth

and the heavens are the work of your hands.

Prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, sovereign God,

creator of heaven and earth,

to you be praise and glory forever.

As your living Word, eternal in heaven,

assumed the frailty of our mortal flesh,

may the light of your love be born in us

to fill our hearts with joy as we sing:

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

All Glory to God and Peace Upon Earth

Charles Wesley

All glory to God, and peace upon earth,

Be published abroad at Jesus’ birth;

The forfeited favor of heaven we find

Restored in the Savior and Friend of mankind.

Then let us behold Messiah the Lord,

By prophets foretold, by angels adored;

Our God’s incarnation with angels proclaim,

And publish salvation in Jesus’ name.

Our newly born King by faith we have seen

And joyfully sing his goodness to men,

That all men may wonder at what we impart,

And thankfully ponder his love in their heart.

What moved the Most High so greatly to stoop,

He comes from the sky our souls to lift up;

That sinners forgiven, might sinless return

To God and to heaven; their maker is born.

Immanuel’s love let sinners confess,

Who comes from above, to bring us His peace;

Let every believer his mercy adore,

And praise him forever, when time is no more.

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 110

What the Lord says to my master:

“Sit right beside me

until I make your enemies

a footstool for your feet!”

May the Lord make your mighty scepter

reach far from Zion!

Rule over your enemies!

Your people stand ready

on your day of battle.

“In holy grandeur, from the dawn’s womb, fight!

Your youthful strength is like the dew itself.”

The Lord has sworn a solemn pledge and won’t change his mind:

“You are a priest forever in line with Melchizedek.”

My master, by your strong hand,

God has crushed kings on his day of wrath.

God brings the nations to justice,

piling the dead bodies, crushing heads throughout the earth.

God drinks from a stream along the way,

then holds his head up high.

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.

Psalm prayer

Lord Jesus, divine Son and eternal priest,

inspire us with the confidence of your final conquest of evil,

and grant that daily on our way

we may drink of the brook of your eternal life

and so find courage against all adversities;

for your mercy’s sake.

Psalm 117

Praise the Lord, all you nations!

Worship him, all you peoples!

Because God’s faithful love toward us is strong,

the Lord’s faithfulness lasts forever!

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.

Psalm prayer

Gracious God,

we praise you for your faithfulness

and pray that every nation may find your blessing

in the face of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Silence may be kept.

Old Testament reading
Isaiah 62:1-5

For Zion’s sake I won’t keep silent,

and for Jerusalem’s sake I won’t sit still

until her righteousness shines out like a light,

and her salvation blazes like a torch.

Nations will see your righteousness,

all kings your glory.

You will be called by a new name,

which the Lord’s own mouth will determine.

You will be a splendid garland in the Lord’s hand,

a royal turban in the palm of God’s hand.

You will no longer be called Abandoned,

and your land will no longer be called Deserted.

Instead, you will be called My Delight Is in Her,

and your land, Married.

Because the Lord delights in you,

your land will be cared for once again.

As a young man marries a young woman,

so your sons will marry you.

With the joy of a bridegroom because of his bride,

so your God will rejoice because of you.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Matthew 1:18-25

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. When Mary his mother was engaged to Joseph, before they were married, she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband was a righteous man. Because he didn’t want to humiliate her, he decided to call off their engagement quietly. As he was thinking about this, an angel from the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child she carries was conceived by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you will call him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Now all of this took place so that what the Lord had spoken through the prophet would be fulfilled:

Look! A virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son,

And they will call him, Emmanuel.

(Emmanuel means “God with us.”)

When Joseph woke up, he did just as an angel from God commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he didn’t have sexual relations with her until she gave birth to a son. Joseph called him Jesus.

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:

The church, especially in places of conflict

The Holy Land, for peace with justice and reconciliation

Refugees and asylum seekers

Homeless people

Families with young children

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 God,

you have given us your only-begotten Son

to take our nature upon him

and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin:

grant that we, who have been born again

and made your children by adoption and grace,

may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit;

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

Rejoicing in the presence of God here among us, 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

May the Lord, when he comes, find us watching and waiting.

Amen.