Evening Prayer for Wednesday after the Second Sunday after the Epiphany, January 20, 2021 at 10:00 a.m.


(Fabian, Bishop and Martyr of Rome, 250)

The Invitatory and Psalter

V: O God, make speed to save us.
R: 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

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.

O Gracious Light Phos hilaron

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.

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 Psalm or Psalms Appointed

Psalm 119: Daleth  Adhæsit pavimento
25    My soul cleaves to the dust; *
give me life according to your word. 
26   I have confessed my ways, and you answered me; *
instruct me in your statutes. 
27   Make me understand the way of your commandments, *
that I may meditate on your marvelous works. 
28   My soul melts away for sorrow; *
strengthen me according to your word. 
29   Take from me the way of lying; *
let me find grace through your law. 
30   I have chosen the way of faithfulness; *
I have set your judgments before me. 
31   I hold fast to your decrees; *
O LORD, let me not be put to shame. 
32   I will run the way of your commandments, *
for you have set my heart at liberty. 

Psalm 119: He  Legem pone
33   Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes, *
and I shall keep it to the end. 
34   Give me understanding, and I shall keep your law; *
I shall keep it with all my heart. 
35   Make me go in the path of your commandments, *
for that is my desire. 
36   Incline my heart to your decrees *
and not to unjust gain. 
37   Turn my eyes from watching what is worthless; *
give me life in your ways. 
38   Fulfill your promise to your servant, *
which you make to those who fear you. 
39   Turn away the reproach which I dread, *
because your judgments are good. 
40   Behold, I long for your commandments; *
in your righteousness preserve my life. 

Psalm 119: Waw  Et veniat super me
41   Let your loving-kindness come to me, O LORD, *
and your salvation, according to your promise. 
42   Then shall I have a word for those who taunt me, *
because I trust in your words. 
43   Do not take the word of truth out of my mouth, *
for my hope is in your judgments. 
44   I shall continue to keep your law; *
I shall keep it for ever and ever. 
45   I will walk at liberty, *
because I study your commandments. 
46   I will tell of your decrees before kings *
and will not be ashamed. 
47   I delight in your commandments, *
which I have always loved. 
48   I will lift up my hands to your commandments, *
and I will meditate on your statutes.

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

A reading from Mark 4:1-20

Again he began to teach beside the sea. Such a very large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the sea and sat there, while the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. He began to teach them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up quickly, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched; and since it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. Other seed fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.” And he said, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!” When he was alone, those who were around him along with the twelve asked him about the parables. And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside, everything comes in parables; in order that ‘they may indeed look, but not perceive, and may indeed listen, but not understand; so that they may not turn again and be forgiven.'” And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. These are the ones on the path where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: when they hear the word, they immediately receive it with joy. But they have no root, and endure only for a while; then, when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are those sown among the thorns: these are the ones who hear the word, but the cares of the world, and the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, and it yields nothing. And these are the ones sown on the good soil: they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.”

Here ends the Reading.

The Song of Mary  Magnificat
Luke 1:46-55

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, 
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior; * 
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: * 
the Almighty has done great things for me, 
and holy is his Name. 
He has mercy on those who fear him * 
in every generation. 
He has shown the strength of his arm, * 
he has scattered the proud in their conceit. 
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, *
and has lifted up the lowly. 
He has filled the hungry with good things, * 
and the rich he has sent away empty. 
He has come to the help of his servant Israel, * 
for he has remembered his promise of mercy, 
The promise he made to our fathers, * 
to Abraham and his children for ever.

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 Apostles’ Creed

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

V: The Lord be with you.
R: And also with you.
Let us pray.

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed by 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 

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 by your Holy Spirit

A Collect for Fabian, Bishop and Martyr of Rome 

Almighty God, you called Fabian to be a faithful pastor and servant of your people, and to lay down his life in witness to your Son: Grant that we, strengthened by his example and aided by his prayers, may in times of trial and persecution remain steadfast in faith and endurance, for the sake of him who laid down his life for us all, Jesus Christ our Savior; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A Prayer for the President of the United States and all in Civil Authority

O Lord our Governor, whose glory is in all the world: We commend this nation to thy merciful care, that being guided by thy Providence, we may dwell secure in thy peace. Grant to the President of the United States, the Governor of this State, and to all in authority, wisdom and strength to know and to do thy will. Fill them with the love of truth and righteousness, and make them ever mindful of their calling to serve this people in thy fear; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen

A Prayer in Times of Conflict

O God, you have bound us together in a common life. Help us, in the midst of our struggles for justice and truth, to confront one another without hatred or bitterness, and to work together with mutual forbearance and respect; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A Prayer for Mission

Keep watch, dear Lord, with those who work, or watch, or weep this night, and give your angels charge over those who sleep. Tend the sick, Lord Christ; give rest to the weary, bless the dying, soothe the suffering, pity the afflicted, shield the joyous; and all for your love’s sake. Amen.

You may add your own intercessions and thanksgivings here, either silently or aloud.

A Prayer of St. Chrysostom

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.

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

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The New Revised Standard Version Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible or account for fifty percent (50%) of the total work in which they are quoted.

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s

%d bloggers like this: