❖ Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name;
your kingdom come;
your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.
Amen.
❖ Prayer of Intercession
I pray, O God, pour out upon me your Holy Spirit—the Spirit of prayer—that I may ever love and desire to pray; being daily free to approach you, with all confidence in the name of my Lord Jesus Christ; to bow before you in every time of need, as a child well beloved, O most beloved Father, you who are really a Father unto all your children in heaven and on earth. Grant that I may always lift up unto you holy hands, without fear or doubt, and in full assurance that all my prayers and sighs which come from the heart, are truly heard. Grant also that when my help delays I shall be patient, not dictating to you either time or measure, but to wait and abide your own good time; for you have pleasure in them that fear and put their trust in your mercy. Finally, O God, rule and remind me by your Holy Spirit that I may daily and frequently meditate upon the hour of my death and be momentarily prepared, while I pray sincerely for a blessed departure hence. Amen.
[William Loehe]
❖ Scripture Reading
• Exodus 23
• John 2
• Job 41
• 2 Corinthians 11
❖ Prayer for Illumination
Divine Spirit, illumine to me the words of the Lord.
Show me the wealth of glory that lies beneath the old familiar stories.
Teach me the depths of meaning hidden in the songs of Zion.
Raise me to the heights of aspiration that is reached by the wings of the prophet.
Lift me to the summit of faith that is trod by the feet of the apostle.
Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. Amen.
[George Matheson]
❖ Catechism
Westminster Shorter Catechism
Question 39
❖ Athanasian Creed, Part 2
Whoever desires to be saved should above all hold to the catholic faith. Anyone who does not keep it whole and unbroken will doubtless perish eternally. Now this is the catholic faith:
that we worship one God in Trinity and the Trinity in unity, neither confounding their persons nor dividing the essence…
The Father was neither made nor created nor begotten from anyone.
The Son was neither made nor created; he was begotten from the Father alone.
The Holy Spirit was neither made nor created nor begotten;
he proceeds from the Father and the Son.
Accordingly, there is one Father, not three fathers;
there is one Son, not three sons;
there is one Holy Spirit, not three holy spirits.
None in this Trinity is before or after, none is greater or smaller;
in their entirety the three persons are coeternal and coequal with each other.
So in everything, as was said earlier, the unity in Trinity, and the Trinity in unity, is to be worshiped.
Anyone then who desires to be saved should think thus about the Trinity.
❖ Assurance of Pardon
The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
[1 Timothy 1:15–17]
❖ Confession of Sin
O Lord my God, light of the blind, and strength of the weak; yes, also light of those that see, and strength of the strong—hearken unto my soul, and hear it crying out of the depths. Woe is me! . . . Lord, help us to turn and seek you; for not as we have forsaken our Creator have you forsaken your creation. Let us turn and seek you, for we know you are here in our heart, when we confess to you, when we cast ourselves upon you, and weep in your bosom, after all our rugged ways; and you gently wipe away our tears, and we weep the more for joy; because you, Lord—not man of flesh and blood—but you, Lord, who made us, remake and comfort us. Amen.
[Augustine]
❖ Reading of the Law
As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
[John 15:9–12]
❖ Adoration
Almighty God, Father of all mercies, as your unworthy servants, we give you most humble and heartfelt thanks for all your goodness and loving kindness to us and to all people. We bless you for our creation, preservation and all the blessings of this life, but above all, for your precious 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 that you would give us that due sense of all your mercies that our hearts may be sincerely thankful and that we may show forth your praise not only with our lips but in our lives, by giving up ourselves 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 all honor and glory world without end. Amen.
[Book of Common Prayer]
❖ Call to Worship
Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,
who stand by night in the house of the Lord!
Lift up your hands to the holy place
and bless the Lord!
May the Lord bless you from Zion,
he who made heaven and earth!
[Psalm 134:1–3]
❖ Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name;
your kingdom come;
your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.
Amen.
❖ Prayer of Intercession
Grant me, O most loving Lord, to rest in you above all creatures, above all health and beauty, above all glory and honor, above all power and dignity, above all knowledge and subtlety, above all riches and art, above all fame and praise, above all sweetness and comfort, above all hope and promise, above all gifts and favors that you can give and impart to us, above all jubilee that the mind of man can receive and feel; finally, above all angels and archangels, and above all heavenly host, above all things visible and invisible, and above all that you are not, O my God. Amen.
[Thomas à Kempis]
❖ Scripture Reading
• Exodus 22
• John 1
• Job 40
• 2 Corinthians 10
❖ Prayer for Illumination
O, make your Word a swift Word,
passing from the ear to the heart,
from the heart to the lip and conversation;
that, as the rain returns not empty,
so neither may your Word,
but accomplish that for which it is given. Amen.
[George Herbert]
❖ Catechism
Westminster Shorter Catechism
Question 38
❖ Athanasian Creed, Part 1
Whoever desires to be saved should above all hold to the catholic faith. Anyone who does not keep it whole and unbroken will doubtless perish eternally. Now this is the catholic faith:
that we worship one God in Trinity and the Trinity in unity, neither confounding their persons nor dividing the essence.
For the person of the Father is a distinct person,
the person of the Son is another,
and that of the Holy Spirit still another.
But the divinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is one, the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.
Such as the Father is, such is the Son and such is the Holy Spirit.
The Father is uncreated, the Son is uncreated, the Holy Spirit is uncreated.
The Father is immeasurable, the Son is immeasurable, the Holy Spirit is immeasurable.
The Father is eternal, the Son is eternal, the Holy Spirit is eternal.
And yet there are not three eternal beings; there is but one eternal being.
So too there are not three uncreated or immeasurable beings;
there is but one uncreated and immeasurable being.
Similarly, the Father is almighty, the Son is almighty, the Holy Spirit is almighty.
Yet there are not three almighty beings; there is but one almighty being.
Thus, the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God.
Yet there are not three gods; there is but one God.
Thus, the Father is Lord, the Son is Lord, the Holy Spirit is Lord.
Yet there are not three lords; there is but one Lord.
Just as Christian truth compels us to confess each person individually as both God and Lord,
so catholic religion forbids us to say that there are three gods or lords.