OPENING SENTENCES
I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son." Luke 15:18, 19
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
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.
Lord, open our lips. *
And our mouths shall proclaim your praise!
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy: Come let us adore him.
MORNING PSALM
Psalm 56
Have mercy on me, O God,
for my enemies are hounding me; *
all day long they assault and oppress me.
They hound me all the day long; *
truly there are many who fight against me, O Most High.
Whenever I am afraid, *
I will put my trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust and will not be afraid, *
for what can flesh do to me?
All day long they damage my cause; *
their only thought is to do me evil.
They band together; they lie in wait; *
they spy upon my footsteps;
because they seek my life.
Shall they escape despite their wickedness? *
O God, in your anger, cast down the peoples.
You have noted my lamentation;
put my tears into your bottle; *
are they not recorded in your book?
Whenever I call upon you, my enemies will be put to flight; *
this I know, for God is on my side.
In God the LORD, whose word I praise,
in God I trust and will not be afraid, *
for what can mortals do to me?
I am bound by the vow I made to you, O God; *
I will present to you thank-offerings;
For you have rescued my soul from death and my feet
from stumbling, *
that I may walk before God in the light of the living.
Lord Jesus Christ, victim for our sins, you trusted in your Father's protection and kept silent when you were tormented. Give us that same confidence, that we may gladly suffer with you and for you, offering the Father our sacrifice of praise and walking before him in the light of the living; and to you be the 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
Miserere Mei Deus
MORNING LESSONS
For those not receiving Evening Prayer emails, the lectionary OT & NT Lessons for today are Jeremiah 1:11-19; Romans 1:1-15.
John 4:27-42
Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you want?” or, “Why are you speaking with her?” Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people, “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” They left the city and were on their way to him. Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” So the disciples said to one another, “Surely no one has brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work.Do you not say, ‘Four months more, then comes the harvest’? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting. The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I have ever done.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word.They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world.”
Silence for reflection
CONCLUDING PRAYER
In the morning, pray for:
the day and its tasks
the world and its needs
the Church and her life
Conclude with the Lord's Prayer and/or the following Collect for Lent:
O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Let us bless the Lord. *
Thanks be to God!