OPENING SENTENCES

The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. John 4:23

CONFESSION OF SIN

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.

Silence for reflection

He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. Amen.

Lord, open our lips. *
And our mouths shall proclaim your praise!

MORNING PSALM
PSALM 88

O LORD, my God, my Savior, *
by day and night I cry to you.

Let my prayer enter into your presence; *
incline your ear to my lamentation.

For I am full of trouble; *
my life is at the brink of the grave.

I am counted among those who go down to the Pit; *
I have become like one who has no strength;

Lost among the dead, *
like the slain who lie in the grave,

Whom you remember no more, *
for they are cut off from your hand.

You have laid me in the depths of the Pit, *
in dark places, and in the abyss.

Your anger weighs upon me heavily, *
and all your great waves overwhelm me.

You have put my friends far from me;
you have made me to be abhorred by them; *
I am in prison and cannot get free.

My sight has failed me because of trouble; *
LORD, I have called upon you daily;
I have stretched out my hands to you.

Do you work wonders for the dead? *
will those who have died stand up and give you thanks?

Will your loving-kindness be declared in the grave? *
your faithfulness in the land of destruction?

Will your wonders be known in the dark? *
or your righteousness in the country where all
is forgotten?

But as for me, O LORD, I cry to you for help; *
in the morning my prayer comes before you.

LORD, why have you rejected me? *
why have you hidden your face from me?

Ever since my youth, I have been wretched and at the
point of death; *
I have borne your terrors with a troubled mind.

Your blazing anger has swept over me; *
your terrors have destroyed me;

They surround me all day long like a flood; *
they encompass me on every side.

My friend and my neighbor you have put away from me, *
and darkness is my only companion.

Lord Jesus, author of our salvation and redeemer of all, for us you descended to the dead and broke the grip of death. Hear the prayers of your family, and lift us from our slavery in evil, that we may be set free to see your Father's glory now and forever.

Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit; *
as it was in the beginning
is now and shall be for ever. Amen.

MORNING SONG

I Shall Not Want - Audrey Assad

MORNING LESSONS

For those not receiving Evening Prayer emails, the lectionary OT & NT Lessons for today are 2 Kings 9:17-37; 1 Corinthians 7:1-9.

MATTHEW 6:7-15

“When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words.Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

“Pray then in this way: 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 also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Silence for reflection

CONCLUDING PRAYER

This week, pray especially for:

for churches in Philadelphia, that they may be faithful in their witness and attentive to the Spirit
for the aged and infirm, for the widowed and orphans, and for the sick and the suffering

Conclude with the Lord's Prayer and/or the following Collect:

Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us bless the Lord. *
Thanks be to God!