Evening Prayer

Wednesday after  the Fourth Sunday in Lent

Yours is the day, O God, yours also the night; you established the moon and the sun. You fixed all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter.

Psalm 74:15,16

Confession of Sin

Let us confess our sins against God and our neighbor.

Most merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
have mercy on us and forgive us;
that we may delight in your will,
and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.

Invitatory and Psalter                              BCP p. 117

Officiant O God, make speed to save us.
People
   O Lord, make haste to help us.

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.

O Gracious Light

O gracious light, pure brightness of the everliving Father in heaven, O Jesus Christ, holy and blessed!  Now as we come to the setting of the sun, and our eyes behold the vesper light, we sing your praises, O God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices, O Son of God, O Giver of Life, and to be glorified through all the worlds.

Psalm 119: Ayin                                       BCP p. 773

I have done what is just and right; *
do not deliver me to my oppressors.

Be surety for your servant’s good; *
let not the proud oppress me.

My eyes have failed from watching for your salvation *
and for your righteous promise.

Deal with your servant according to your loving-kindness *
and teach me your statutes.

I am your servant; grant me understanding, *
that I may know your decrees.

It is time for you to act, O LORD, *
for they have broken your law.

Truly, I love your commandments *
more than gold and precious stones.

I hold all your commandments to be right for me; *
all paths of falsehood I abhor.

Psalm 119: Pe                                           BCP p. 774

Your decrees are wonderful; *
therefore I obey them with all my heart.

When your word goes forth it gives light; *
it gives understanding to the simple.

I open my mouth and pant; *
I long for your commandments.

Turn to me in mercy, *
as you always do to those who love your Name.

Steady my footsteps in your word; *
let no iniquity have dominion over me.

Rescue me from those who oppress me, *
and I will keep your commandments.

Let your countenance shine upon your servant *
and teach me your statutes.

My eyes shed streams of tears, *
because people do not keep your law.

Psalm 119: Sadhe                                     BCP p. 774

You are righteous, O LORD, *
and upright are your judgments.

You have issued your decrees *
with justice and in perfect faithfulness.

My indignation has consumed me, *
because my enemies forget your words.

Your word has been tested to the uttermost, *
and your servant holds it dear.

I am small and of little account, *
yet I do not forget your commandments.

Your justice is an everlasting justice *
and your law is the truth.

Trouble and distress have come upon me, *
yet your commandments are my delight.

The righteousness of your decrees is everlasting; *
grant me understanding, that I may live.

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.

The Lesson                                             1 Cor. 12:1-11

A Reading from the First Letter to the Corinthians.

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says “Let Jesus be cursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit. Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.

 

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

12. A Song of Creation       Song of the Three Young Men, 35-65

Invocation

Glorify the Lord, all you works of the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

I    The Cosmic Order

Glorify the Lord, you angels and all powers of the Lord, *
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.

Sun and moon and stars of the sky, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, every shower of rain and fall of dew, *
all winds and fire and heat.

Winter and Summer, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O chill and cold, *
drops of dew and flakes of snow

Frost and cold, ice and sleet, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O nights and days, *
O shining light and enfolding dark.

Storm clouds and thunderbolts, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

II    The Earth and its Creatures

Let the earth glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O mountains and hills, and all that grows upon the earth, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O springs of water, seas, and streams, *
O whales and all that move in the waters.

All birds of the air, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O beasts of the wild, *
and all you flocks and herds.

O men and women everywhere, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

III    The People of God

Let the people of God glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O priests and servants of the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O spirits and souls of the righteous, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

You that are holy and humble of heart, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Doxology

Let us glorify the Lord: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

The Apostles’ Creed                                BCP p. 96

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.

The Prayers

 

Officiant The Lord be with you.
People
   And also with you.
Officiant
Let us pray.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven,
            hallowed be thy Name,
            thy kingdom come,
            thy will be done,
            on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
            as we forgive those
            who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
            but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
            and the power, and the glory,
            for ever and ever. Amen.

Suffrages A

V.        Show us your mercy, O Lord;
R.
         And grant us your salvation.
V.
        Clothe your ministers with righteousness;
R.
         Let your people sing with joy.
V.
        Give peace, O Lord, in all the world;
R.
         For only in you can we live in safety.
V.
        Lord, keep this nation under your care;
R.
         And guide us in the way of justice and truth.
V.
        Let your way be known upon earth;
R.
         Your saving health among all nations.
V.
        Let not the needy, O Lord, be forgotten;
R.
         Nor the hope of the poor be taken away.
V.
        Create in us clean hearts, O God;
R.
         And sustain us with your Holy Spirit.

The Collect of the Day

Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world: Evermore give us this bread, that he may live in us, and we in him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Cyril, Bishop of Jerusalem, 386

Strengthen, O God, your church in the sacraments of your grace, that we, in union with the teaching and prayers of your servant Cyril of Jerusalem, may enter more fully into your Paschal mystery; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

A Collect for Protection

O God, the life of all who live, the light of the faithful, the strength of those who labor, and the repose of the dead: We thank you for the blessings of the day that is past, and humbly ask for your protection through the coming night. Bring us in safety to the morning hours; through him who died and rose again for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission

O God and Father of all, whom the whole heavens adore: Let the whole earth also worship you, all nations obey you, all tongues confess and bless you, and men and women everywhere love you and serve you in peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us pray for our own needs and those of others.

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom                     BCP p. 102

Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.

 

Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

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.

2 Corinthians 13:14