Officiant Lord,
open our lips.
People And
our mouth shall proclaim your praise.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Alleluia.
Come, let us sing to
the Lord; *
let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before
his presence with thanksgiving *
and raise a loud shout to him
with psalms.
For the Lord is a
great God, *
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the
caverns of the earth, *
and the heights of the hills are his also.
The sea is his, for
he made it, *
and his hands have molded the dry land.
Come, let us bow
down, and bend the knee, *
and kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For he is our
God,
and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his
hand. *
Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!
Let God arise, and
let his enemies be scattered; *
let those who hate him flee before
him.
Let them vanish like
smoke when the wind drives it away; *
as the wax melts at the
fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
But let the
righteous be glad and rejoice before God; *
let them also be merry
and joyful.
Sing to God, sing
praises to his Name;
exalt him who rides upon the heavens;
*
YAHWEH is his Name, rejoice before him!
Father of orphans,
defender of widows, *
God in his holy habitation!
God gives the
solitary a home and brings forth prisoners into freedom; *
but the
rebels shall live in dry places.
O God, when you went
forth before your people, *
when you marched through the
wilderness,
The earth shook, and
the skies poured down rain,
at the presence of God, the God of
Sinai, *
at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
You sent a gracious
rain, O God, upon your inheritance; *
you refreshed the land when
it was weary.
Your people found
their home in it; *
in your goodness, O God, you have made
provision for the poor.
The Lord gave the
word; *
great was the company of women who bore the tidings:
“Kings with
their armies are fleeing away; *
the women at home are dividing
the spoils.”
Though you lingered
among the sheepfolds, *
you shall be like a dove whose wings are
covered with silver,
whose feathers are like green gold.
When the Almighty
scattered kings, *
it was like snow falling in Zalmon.
O mighty mountain, O
hill of Bashan! *
O rugged mountain, O hill of Bashan!
Why do you look with
envy, O rugged mountain,
at the hill which God chose for his
resting place? *
truly, the LORD will dwell there for ever.
The chariots of God
are twenty thousand,
even thousands of thousands; *
the Lord
comes in holiness from Sinai.
You have gone up on
high and led captivity captive;
you have received gifts even from
your enemies, *
that the LORD God might dwell among them.
Blessed be the Lord
day by day, *
the God of our salvation, who bears our burdens.
He is our God, the
God of our salvation; *
God is the LORD, by whom we escape death.
God shall crush the
heads of his enemies, *
and the hairy scalp of those who go on
still in their wickedness.
The Lord has said,
“I will bring them back from Bashan; *
I will bring them
back from the depths of the sea;
That your foot may
be dipped in blood, *
the tongues of your dogs in the blood of
your enemies.”
They see your
procession, O God, *
your procession into the sanctuary, my God
and my King.
The singers go
before, musicians follow after, *
in the midst of maidens playing
upon the hand-drums.
Bless God in the
congregation; *
bless the LORD, you that are of the fountain of
Israel.
There is Benjamin,
least of the tribes, at the head;
the princes of Judah in a
company; *
and the princes of Zebulon and Naphtali.
Send forth your
strength, O God; *
establish, O God, what you have wrought for us.
Kings shall bring
gifts to you, *
for your temple’s sake at Jerusalem.
Rebuke the wild
beast of the reeds, *
and the peoples, a herd of wild bulls with
its calves.
Trample down those
who lust after silver; *
scatter the peoples that delight in war.
Let tribute be
brought out of Egypt; *
let Ethiopia stretch out her hands to God.
Sing to God, O
kingdoms of the earth; *
sing praises to the Lord.
He rides in the
heavens, the ancient heavens; *
he sends forth his voice, his
mighty voice.
Ascribe power to
God; *
his majesty is over Israel;
his strength is in the
skies.
How wonderful is God
in his holy places! *
the God of Israel giving strength and power
to his people!
Blessed be God!
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the First Book of Kings.
At that place he came to a cave, and spent the night there. Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He answered, “I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He answered, “I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” Then the LORD said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place. Whoever escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall kill; and whoever escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall kill. Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”
The
Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Arise, shine, for
your light has come, *
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon
you.
For behold, darkness
covers the land; *
deep gloom enshrouds the peoples.
But over you the
Lord will rise, *
and his glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream
to your light, *
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will
always be open; *
by day or night they will never be shut.
They will call you,
The City of the Lord, *
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Violence will no
more be heard in your land, *
ruin or destruction within your
borders.
You will call your
walls, Salvation, *
and all your portals, Praise.
The sun will no more
be your light by day; *
by night you will not need the brightness
of the moon.
The Lord will be
your everlasting light, *
and your God will be your glory.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
A Reading from the Gospel According to John.
When Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself. When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were terrified. But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.
The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Then some boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.”
The
Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Blessed be the Lord,
the God of Israel; *
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for
us a mighty savior, *
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy
prophets he promised of old,
that he would save us from our
enemies, *
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show
mercy to our fathers *
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he
swore to our father Abraham, *
to set us free from the hands of
our enemies,
Free to worship him
without fear, *
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of
our life.
You, my child, shall
be called the prophet of the Most High, *
for you will go before
the Lord to prepare his way,
To give his people
knowledge of salvation *
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender
compassion of our God *
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
To shine on those
who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, *
and to guide our
feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
I
believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and
earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He
was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the
Virgin Mary.
He 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,
and is seated at
the right hand of the Father.
He 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.
Officiant The
Lord be with you.
People And
also with you.
Officiant Let
us 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.
Save us from the time of trial,
and
deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the
glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
V. Save
your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance;
R. Govern
and uphold them, now and always.
V. Day
by day we bless you;
R. We
praise your name for ever.
V. Lord,
keep us from all sin today;
R. Have
mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
V. Lord,
show us your love and mercy;
R. For
we put our trust in you.
V. In
you, Lord, is our hope;
R. And
we shall never hope in vain.
Almighty God, you have poured upon us the new light of your incarnate Word: Grant that this light, enkindled in our hearts, may shine forth in our lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
O God, the King eternal, whose light divides the day from the night and turns the shadow of death into the morning: Drive far from us all wrong desires, incline our hearts to keep your law, and guide our feet into the way of peace; that, having done your will with cheerfulness during the day, we may, when night comes, rejoice to give you thanks; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen.
Almighty
God, Father of all mercies,
we your unworthy servants give you
humble thanks
for all your goodness and loving-kindness
to us
and to all whom you have made.
We bless you for our creation,
preservation,
and all the blessings of this life;
but above all
for your immeasurable love
in the redemption of the world by our
Lord Jesus Christ;
for the means of grace, and for the hope of
glory.
And,
we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies,
that with
truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise,
not only with
our lips, but in our lives,
by giving up our selves to your
service,
and by walking before you
in holiness and
righteousness all our days;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
to
whom, with you and the Holy Spirit,
be honor and glory throughout
all ages. Amen.
Let
us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:20,21