All Hallows Evening Prayer for Wednesday Evening (March 24, 2021)

 Evening Prayer

The Service of Light

Jesus Christ is the light of the world.
A light no darkness can extinguish.

Open this link in a new tab to hear David von Kampen’s choral arrangement of “Joyous Light of Glory.”

Joyous light of glory of the immortal Father:
Heavenly, holy, blessed Jesus Christ,
We have come to the setting of the Sun
And we look to the evening light.
We sing to God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
You are worthy of being praised
with pure voices forever.
O Son of God, O Giver of life,
The universe proclaims your glory,
your glory, your glory.

Thanksgiving

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

Blessed are you, O Lord our God,
the Shepherd of Israel,
their pillar of cloud by day,
their pillar of fire by night.
In these forty days you lead us
into the desert of repentance
that in this pilgrimage of prayer
we may learn to be your people once more.
In fasting and service you bring us back to your heart.
Open our eyes to your presence in the world
and free our hands to lead others
to the radiant splendour of your mercy.
Be with us in these journey days
for without you we are lost and will perish.
To you alone be dominion and glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.

Psalm 141 is sung and incense may be burned.

Open this link in a new tab to hear Randall De Bruyn’s arrangement of Psalm 141 from The Grail (England).

Like burning incense, O Lord, let my prayer rise up to you.
Like burning incense, O Lord, let my prayer rise up to you.

I have called to you, Lord, hasten to help me.
Hear my voice when I cry to you.
Let my prayer arise before you like incense.
the raising of my hands like the evening oblation.

Set, O Lord, a guard over my mouth,
keep watch, O Lord, at the door of my lips!
Do not turn my heart to things that are wrong,
to evil deeds with those who are sinners.

Never allow me to share in their feasting.
If the righteous strike or reprove me, it is a kindness;
but let the oil of the wicked n’er anoint my head.
Let my prayer be ever against their malice.

To you, Lord God, my eyes are turned;
in you I take refuge; spare my soul!
From the trap they have laid for me keep me safe;
Keep me from the snares of those who do evil.

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.

Like burning incense, O Lord, let my prayer rise up to you.

Silence is kept.

Let the incense of our repentant prayer ascend before you, O Lord, and let your loving kindness descend upon us, that with purified minds we may sing your praises with the Church on earth and the whole heavenly host, and may glorify you forever and ever. Amen.

The Psalms

Open this link in a new tab to hear Donald Fishel’s choral arrangement of Psalm 91, “Be With Me, Lord.”

Refrain:
Be with me, Lord,
when I am in trouble.
Be with me, Lord.
Be with me, Lord,
when I am in trouble.
Be with me, Lord.

1 You who dwell in the shelter, in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in his shadow of the Almighty,
say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God in whom I trust.”
Refrain

2 No evil shall befall you, no evil shall befall you,
nor affliction come near, come near your tent,
for to his angels he has given command about you,
that they guard you in all your ways.
Refrain

3 Upon their hands, upon their hands,
they shall bear you up, bear you up,
lest you dash your foot against a stone.
You shall tread upon the asp and the viper;
You shall trample down the lion and the dragon.
Refrain

4 Because he clings to me, I will deliver him;
I will set him on high
because he acknowledges my name.
He shall call upon me,
and I will answer him;
I will be with him in distress;
I will deliver him and glorify him.
Refrain

Silence is kept.

Keep us, good Lord,
under the shadow of your mercy
and, as you have bound us to yourself in love,
leave us not who call upon your name,
but grant us your salvation,
made known in the cross of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The Proclamation of the Word

The Reading

Ephesians 2:1-10 From Death to Life

You were dead through the trespasses and sins in which you once lived, following the course of this world, following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work among those who are disobedient. All of us once lived among them in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else. But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.

Silence is kept.

Homily

Only by God’s Grace

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God….”

In a culture that sets great store in pulling oneself up by one’s bootstraps, making a place for oneself in life by one’s own efforts without help from others, the idea that we are dependent upon God for our salvation must be rankling to some folks. I did some research into the origin of the phrase—to pull oneself up by one’s bootstraps. It has been traced to an article in a Mobile, Alabama newspaper in the early 1800s. The newspaper’s editor was poking fun at a Nashville, Tennessee man, Nimrod Murphree, who claimed to have invented a perpetual motion machine. “Probably Mr. Murphree has succeeded in handing himself over the Cumberland River, or a barn yard fence, by the straps of his boots.” In 1800s boots had straps to pull on when putting them on. Pulling on the straps of one’s boots would not get one over a fence, much less a river. In its original sense the phrase meant attempting to do something ridiculous and laughable. It had nothing to do with being self-reliant.

A LifeWay Research-Ligonier Ministries survey conducted in March 2020 found that a surprising number of Americans believed that they could establish a right relationship with God by their own efforts. Through their good behavior and good deeds, they could rack up points with God.

Our salvation, however, is God’s doing from beginning to end. We play a part but only because God enables us to do so. As the apostle Paul points to the attention of the church at Ephesus, its members were dead in their trespasses and sins. Out of his great love for them God raised them to new life with Jesus. God enabled them to recognize their need for a Saviour. God enabled them to turn from sin and trust in Jesus. God was enabling them to do the good deeds that he had prepared in advance to be their way of life.

We are no different than the Ephesian believers. God’s favor and goodwill towards us, favor and goodwill which we neither deserve or merit, the power of God’s presence working in our lives, God’s grace is what saved us. How did God save us? Through faith. And from where did our faith come? From God.

We are not automatons, robots. God does give us a free will. However, it is God who enables us to exercise that free will. We have no power of our own to please God without the grace of God going before us with spiritual guidance and help, enabling us to cooperate with God. Without the grace of God working with us, we cannot keep cooperating with God once we have started to cooperate with him.

Because we are independent-minded, the thought of having to rely on God’s guidance and help may not sit well with us. We may get into our heads that we are playthings in the hands of God. But that is not the case.

We were so entangled in the web of sin that we were not only unable to free ourselves, but we were also unable to recognize the dreadful state that we were in.

When I talk about the web of sin, I am talking about the state of being estranged from God. While we may not have deliberately run over our neighbor’s annoying little brat of a kid or done something even more heinous, we are not on best terms with God. Our relationship with God is not what it should be nor what it could be. At the same time, we do not recognize how bad a shape that relationship is in.

Some of us may be thinking, “Why would I want to be on better terms with someone whom I am not sure exists?” That is one way to look at it. On the other hand, looking at it that way may show that we do not recognize the seriousness of the state that we are in.

Assume for a moment that God does indeed exist, that we have an awful relationship with God, and we can do nothing about it. God sees the fix that we are in and being a loving, merciful God takes steps to help us out of that fix. God’s attitude toward us is what is called grace. What God does to help us is also called grace. Having gotten us out of the fix, God does not leave us to our own devices. God keeps on offering his help to us. While our life may be less than perfect, we do enjoy a better relationship with God. Don’t you think that might be something worth having?

There is something to be said about living in harmony with our fellow human beings, living in harmony with nature. What about living in harmony with God?

Whether we realize it yet, God is working in our lives. God is working to restore the broken relationship between himself and us. Regardless of whether we believe in his existence, God keeps working in our lives.

The late Sam Shoemaker, an Episcopal priest who was the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, AA, offered this advice to university students and other young people. Surrender yourself as much as you can to as much of God as you understand. As you grow in your understanding of God, surrender more of yourself to your growing understanding. He would challenge them to read one of the gospels and to believe everything that it said for a period of thirty days and to act on what it said.

For most people coming to believe takes time. God does not abandon us during that time. He is present in our lives, drawing us to himself. He is there to offer his guidance and help. For that I am thankful.

Silence is kept.

The Gospel Canticle

Open this link in a new tab to hear Richard Hillert’s choral arrangement of the Magnificat.

My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior;

For He has regarded
the low estate of His handmaiden.

For behold henceforth
all generations will call me blessed.

For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name;

And His mercy is on those who fear Him
from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

He has put down the mighty from their thrones
and has exalted the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich He has sent empty away.

He has helped his servant Israel in remembrance of his mercy
as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity forever.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be world without end. Amen

Intercessions

Let us complete our evening prayer to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For peace from on high and our salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For the welfare of all churches and for the unity of the human family, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For (name), our bishop, and (name), our pastor, and for all ministers of the Gospel, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For our nation, its government, and for all who serve and protect us, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For this city (town, university, monastery…). For every city and community, and for all those living in them, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For the good earth which God has given us and for the wisdom and will to conserve it, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For the safety of travelers, the recovery of the sick, the care of the destitute and the release of prisoners, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For an angel of peace to guide and protect us, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For a peaceful evening and a night free from sin, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

For a Christian end to our lives and for all who have fallen asleep in Christ, let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.

In the communion of the Holy Spirit (of blessed Patrick, and of all the saints), let us commend ourselves and one another to the living God through Christ our Lord.
To you, O Lord.

Free Prayer

In silent or spontaneous prayer all bring before God the concerns of the day.

The Collect

Lighten our darkness, Lord, we pray:
and in your great mercy defend us
from all perils and dangers of this night;
for the love of your only Son
our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer is said.

And now, as our Saviour has taught us,
we are bold to say,

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,
the power, and the glory
for ever and ever.
Amen.

Dismissal

Open this link in a new tab to hear Molly Ijames’ choral arrangement of Jeff Nelson and Scott Wesley Brown’s hymn, “Grace Alone.”

Every promise we can make
Every prayer and step of faith
Every difference we can make
Is only by His grace.

Every mountain we will climb
Every ray of hope we shine
Every blessing left behind
Is only by His grace

Grace alone Which God supplies
Strength unknown He will provide
Christ in us, our cornerstone
We will go forth in grace alone.

Every soul we long to reach
Every heart we hope to teach
Everywhere we share His peace
Is only by His grace.
Is only by His grace.

Every loving word we say
Every tear we wipe away
Every sorrow turned to praise
Is only by His grace.

Grace alone Which God supplies
Strength unknown He will provide
Christ in us, our cornerstone
Cornerstone
We will go forth
We will go forth
We will go forth
We will go forth in grace alone.

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us praise the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Open this link in a new tab to hear Marty Haugen’s choral arrangement of Adam Tice’s “May God Keep and Bless You.”

May God keep and bless you,
and nothing distress you.
May God guard and guide you,
and friends walk beside you.

May God’s arms surround you,
and fear not confound you.
May God’s light shine through you,
and night not subdue you.

As you sleep and wake
may your prayers arise
as love songs for God,
whose love never dies,
whose love never dies.