Sunday evening July 15

Monday evening
Saturday 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

Gracious Redeemer, Shake This Slumber 

Charles Wesley
           
Gracious Redeemer, shake
This slumber from my soul!
Say to me now, "Awake, awake!
And Christ shall make thee whole."
Lay to thy mighty hand!
Alarm me in this hour,
And make me fully understand
The thunder of thy power.

Give me on thee to call,
Always to watch and pray,
Lest I into temptation fall,
And cast my shield away;
For each assault prepared
And ready may I be,
Forever standing on my guard,
And looking up to thee.

O do thou always warn
My soul of evil near!
When to the right or left I turn,
Thy voice still let me hear;
"Come back! this is the way,
Come back, and walk herein!"
O may I hearken and obey,
And shun the paths of sin!

Confession of sin

When we cry out to the Lord in our distress,
he will save us from our desperate circumstances.

God will bring us out of darkness
and out of the shadow of death.

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

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

May the Father forgive us
by the death of his Son
and strengthen us
to live in the power of the Spirit
all our days.
Amen.

Let us thank the Lord for his faithful love,
and his wondrous works for all people.

Let us offer thanksgiving sacrifices
and declare what God has done in songs of joy.

cf Psalm 107

The Word of God

Psalm 66

Refrain:
God rules with power forever.

Shout joyfully to God, all the earth!
    Sing praises to the glory of God’s name!
        Make glorious his praise!
Say to God:
“How awesome are your works!
    Because of your great strength,
        your enemies cringe before you.
All the earth worships you,
    sings praises to you,
        sings praises to your name!” 
Come and see God’s deeds;
    his works for human beings are awesome:
He turned the sea into dry land
    so they could cross the river on foot.
        Right there we rejoiced in him!
God rules with power forever;
    keeps a good eye on the nations.
        So don’t let the rebellious exalt themselves. 
All you nations, bless our God!
    Let the sound of his praise be heard!
God preserved us among the living;
    he didn’t let our feet slip a bit.
But you, God, have tested us—
    you’ve refined us like silver,
    trapped us in a net,
    laid burdens on our backs,
    let other people run right over our heads—
    we’ve been through fire and water.
But you brought us out to freedom!
    So I’ll enter your house
        with entirely burned offerings.
    I’ll keep the promises I made to you,
        the ones my lips uttered,
        the ones my mouth spoke when I was in deep trouble.
I will offer the best burned offerings to you
    along with the smoke of sacrificed rams.
    I will offer both bulls and goats. 
Come close and listen,
    all you who honor God;
    I will tell you what God has done for me:
My mouth cried out to him
    with praise on my tongue.
If I had cherished evil in my heart,
    my Lord would not have listened.
But God definitely listened.
    He heard the sound of my prayer.
Bless God! He didn’t reject my prayer;
    he didn’t withhold his faithful love from me.

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 rules with power forever.

Psalm prayer

How generous is your goodness, O God,
how great is your salvation,
how faithful is your love;
help us to trust you in trial
and praise you in deliverance;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Old Testament reading
Job 4:1; 5:6-27

Then Eliphaz, a native of Teman, responded:

Surely trouble doesn’t come from dust,
    nor does distress sprout from the ground.
Surely humans are born to distress,
    just as sparks rise up.

But I would seek God,
        put my case to God,
    who does great things beyond comprehension,
    wonderful things without number;
    who provides rain over the earth’s surface,
    sends water to the open country,
    exalts the lowly,
        raises mourners to victory;
    who frustrates the schemes of the clever
        so that their hands achieve no success,
    trapping the wise in their cleverness
            so that the plans of the devious don’t succeed.
They encounter darkness during the day,
    and at noon they fumble about as at night.
Yet he rescues the orphan from the sword of their mouth,
    the needy from the grip of the strong;
        so the poor have hope
        and violence shuts its mouth.

Look, happy is the person whom God corrects;
    so don’t reject the Almighty’s instruction.
He injures, but he binds up;
    he strikes, but his hands heal.
From six adversities he will deliver you;
    from seven harm won’t touch you.
In famine he will ransom you from death;
    in war, from the power of the sword.
You will be hidden from the tongue’s sting,
    and you won’t fear destruction when it comes.
You will laugh at destruction and hunger;
    you won’t be afraid of wild beasts;
        for you will make an agreement with the stones of the field;
        and the beasts of the field will be at peace with you.
You will know that your tent is secure.
    You will examine your home and miss nothing.
You will know that you’ll have many children.
    Your offspring will be like the grass of the earth.
You will come to your grave in old age
    as bundles of grain stacked up at harvesttime.
Look, we’ve searched this out, and so it is;
    listen and find out for yourself.

Silence may be kept.

New Testament reading
Romans 15:14-29

My brothers and sisters, I myself am convinced that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and are able to teach each other. But I’ve written to you in a sort of daring way, partly to remind you of what you already know. I’m writing to you in this way because of the grace that was given to me by God. It helps me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. I’m working as a priest of God’s gospel so that the offering of the Gentiles can be acceptable and made holy by the Holy Spirit. So in Christ Jesus I brag about things that have to do with God. I don’t dare speak about anything except what Christ has done through me to bring about the obedience of the Gentiles. He did it by what I’ve said and what I’ve done, by the power of signs and wonders, and by the power of God’s Spirit. So I’ve completed the circuit of preaching Christ’s gospel from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum. In this way, I have a goal to preach the gospel where they haven’t heard of Christ yet, so that I won’t be building on someone else’s foundation. Instead, as it’s written, Those who hadn’t been told about him will see, and those who hadn’t heard will understand.

That’s why I’ve been stopped so many times from coming to see you. But now, since I don’t have any place to work in these regions anymore, and since I’ve wanted to come to see you for many years, I’ll visit you when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while I’m passing through. And I hope you will send me on my way there, after I have first been reenergized by some time in your company.

But now I’m going to Jerusalem, to serve God’s people. Macedonia and Achaia have been happy to make a contribution for the poor among God’s people in Jerusalem. They were happy to do this, and they are actually in debt to God’s people in Jerusalem. If the Gentiles got a share of the Jewish people’s spiritual resources, they ought to minister to them with material resources. So then after I have finished this job and have safely delivered the final amount of the Gentiles’ offering to them, I will leave for Spain, visiting you on the way. And I know that when I come to you I will come with the fullest blessing of Christ.

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 universal church
Bishops, superintendents and all who lead the church
The leaders of the nations
The natural world and the resources of the earth
All who are in any kind of need

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

Response

In faith we pray
We pray to you, our God.

Silence may be kept.

Collect of the day

Lord of all power and might,
the author and giver of all good things:
graft in our hearts the love of your name,
increase in us true religion,
nourish us with all goodness,
and of your great mercy keep us in the same;
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.