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.
Alleluia.
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.
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 Acts of the Apostles.
They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. When they had come opposite Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; so, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them. We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” And she prevailed upon us.
The Word of the
Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Seek the Lord while he wills to be found; *
call upon
him when he draws near.
Let the wicked forsake their ways *
and the evil ones
their thoughts;
And let them turn to the Lord, and he will have
compassion, *
and to our God, for he will richly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, *
nor your
ways my ways, says the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth, *
so
are my ways higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your
thoughts.
For as rain and snow fall from the heavens *
and
return not again, but water the earth,
Bringing forth life and giving growth, *
seed for
sowing and bread for eating,
So is my word that goes forth from my mouth; *
it
will not return to me empty;
But it will accomplish that which I have purposed, *
and
prosper in that for which I sent it.
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, 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.
That this evening may be
holy, good, and peaceful.
We entreat you, O Lord.
That your holy angels may
lead us in paths of peace and goodwill,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be pardoned
and forgiven for our sins and offenses,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That there may be peace to
your Church and to the whole world,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may depart this
life in your faith and fear, and not be condemned before the great
judgment seat of Christ,
We entreat you, O Lord.
That we may be bound
together by your Holy Spirit in the communion of all your saints,
entrusting one another and all our life to Christ,
We entreat you,
O Lord.
O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Most holy God, the source of all good desires, all right judgments, and all just works: Give to us, your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, so that our minds may be fixed on the doing of your will, and that we, being delivered from the fear of all enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through the mercies of Christ Jesus our Savior. Amen.
O God, you manifest in your servants the signs of your presence: Send forth upon us the spirit of love, that in companionship with one another your abounding grace may increase among us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray now for our own needs and those of others.
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.
May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Romans 15:13