Thursday Evenings at All Hallows (October 22, 2026)

Welcome to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows.

In this evening’s message we look at the reasons a Christian should persevere in prayer.

GATHER IN GOD’S NAME

Open this link in a new tab to hear Thomas Matthews’ prelude on the hymn tune ORIENTIS PARTIBUS from The Bristol Collection of Contemporary Hymn Tune Preludes V. 3.

Silence

Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; let the whole earth
stand in awe of him. Psalm 96:9

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth
is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God is faithful and
just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:8-9

Let us now confess our sins to almighty God.

Silence

Almighty and most merciful Father,
we have strayed from your ways like lost sheep.
We have followed too much
the devices and the desires of our own hearts.
we have offended against your holy laws,
we have left undone what we ought to have done,
and we have done what we ought not to have done.
Yet, good Lord, have mercy on us;
restore those who are penitent,
according to your promises declared
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Grant, most merciful Father, for his sake,
that we may live a godly, righteous, and sober lives,
to the glory of your holy name. Amen.

Merciful Lord,
grant to your faithful people pardon and peace,
that we may be cleansed from all our sins,
and serve you with a quiet mind;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Open our lips, O Lord;
And we shall declare your praise.
O God, make speed to save us.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
Glory to God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit:
as in the beginning, so now, and for ever. Amen.
Let us praise the Lord.
The Lord’s name be praised.

Open this link in a new tab to hear The Grail’s “In the Silent Hours of Night” (Psalm 134).

In the silent hours of night,
In the silent hours of night,
Bless the Lord,
Bless the Lord.

In the silent hours of night,
In the silent hours of night,
Bless the Lord,
Bless the Lord.

1 O come bless the Lord,
All you servants of the Lord,
Who stand by night in the courts
of the house of the Lord.

In the silent hours of night,
In the silent hours of night,
Bless the Lord,
Bless the Lord.

2 Lift up your hands to the holy place,
Come, bless the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion,
He who made heaven and earth.

In the silent hours of night,
In the silent hours of night,
Bless the Lord,
Bless the Lord.

3 Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
And to the Holy Spirit:
As it was in the beginning,
Is now, and will be forever. Amen.

In the silent hours of night,
In the silent hours of night,
Bless the Lord,
Bless the Lord.

Blessèd are you, Lord our God,
our creator and sustainer:
in the darkness we look to your light
and we place ourselves and all your household
under your protection through the night.
Blessèd be God for ever! Amen.


Open this link in a new tab to Sir HenrybWalford Davies’ Anglican chant setting of Psalm 121 (Levavi oculos).

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills :
from whence cometh my help.

2 My help cometh even from the Lord :
who hath made heaven and earth.

3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved :
and he that keepeth thee will not sleep.

4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel :
shall neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord himself is thy keeper :
the Lord is thy defence upon thy right hand;

6 So that the sun shall not burn thee by day :
neither the moon by night.

7 The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil :
yea, it is even he that shall keep thy soul.

8 The Lord shall preserve thy going out, and thy coming in :
from this time forth for evermore.

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

Silence

Lord, ever watchful and faithful,
we look to you to be our defence
and we lift our hearts to know your help;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD

A reading from the Gospel according to Luke.
Luke 18:1-8

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: ‘In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, “Grant me justice against my adversary.”

‘For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, “Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!”’

And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?’

May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory.

Silence

Open this link in a new tab to hear Owen Alstott’s “My Soul Proclaims the Greatness of the Lord” (Magnificat).

1 My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
My spirit sings to God, my saving God,
Who on this day above all others favored me
And raised me up, a light for all to see.

2 Through me great deeds will God make manifest,
And all the earth will come to call me blest.
Unbounded love and mercy sure will I proclaim
For all who know and praise God's holy name.

3 God's mighty arm, protector of the just,
Will guard the weak and raise them from the dust.
But mighty kings will swiftly fall from thrones corrupt.
The strong brought low, the lowly lifted up.

4 Soon will the poor and hungry of the earth
Be richly blest, be given greater worth.
And Israel, as once foretold to Abraham,
Will live in peace throughout the promised land.

5 All glory be to God, Creator blest,
To Jesus Christ, God's love made manifest,
And to the Holy Spirit, gentle Comforter,
All glory be, both now and ever more.

Why Should a Christian Persevere in Prayer?

Jesus has a way of concluding a parable with a tantalizing question or remark. For example, in this evening’s reading, Luke 18:1-8, he concludes the parable of the unjust judge and the inopportune widow with this question, “…when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” It suggests that there is more to the parable than persisting in prayer and praying for justice. It points to a connection between faith and prayer.

I am not suggesting that whether God answers our prayers depend upon how much faith we possess and exercise, a view that you may hear expressed when someone’s prayer seemingly goes unanswered. “You didn’t have enough faith,” that person may be told. “Your faith was weak.” The measure of our faith, however, does not determine God’s answer to our prayers as if God weighs our faith on a scale in deciding whether or not to grant what we are asking.

Faith is tied to prayer in that we must first believe that God exists, that God is benevolent, and that God answers prayer in order to pray. It is faith that causes us to seek God in prayer. We do not turn to someone for help unless we first believe that they can help us. It was her belief that she would be healed by touching his robe which brought the woman with a hemorrhage to the one who could heal her—Jesus, not her faith that did the healing (Mark 5:25–34, Matthew 9:20–22; Luke 8:43–48). This is a truth that people are apt to miss.

It is faith that enables us to persist in prayer. We recognize that although we may not receive an immediate answer to our prayer, it does not mean that God is ignoring us. God exists outside of time. To God, the past, the present, and the future are one. God can see what we cannot see. This includes how a particular answer to a prayer will affect our lives and the lives of others.

In not immediately answering a prayer, God may be giving us time to think about what we are asking. Was it a thoughtless, spur of the moment request? Did we think about the consequences of what we are asking? Was it something that aligned with God’s will as revealed in The Bible, particularly in Jesus’ teaching and life? Did we ask with wrong motives for something that we could spend on our pleasures when we got it? (James 4:3)

God who sees what we cannot see may delay in answering our prayer because it is wrong time to grant our request. God also recognizes that in time we may come to the realization that what we are asking for, we no longer want or need.

It is important to remember that faith is not something that we come by naturally. We are not born with faith. Faith is a product of God’s grace, the Holy Spirit working in us. The Holy Spirit quickens faith to life in us and enables us to believe in God’s existence, God’s benevolence, and God’s willingness and ability to answer prayer.

God’s grace is not a one time thing. It does not jump start us like we might a motor vehicle with low battery and then leave us to run on our own power. We need God’s grace to persevere in living the life of a disciple of Jesus Christ. This truth brings to mind a passage in the Prayer Book Catechism, the short catechism in what is widely considered the classical Anglican Prayer Book, The Book of Common Prayer of 1662, one of the Anglican Church’s historic formularies. The passage is wedged between the section on our duty towards God and our duty towards our neighbour and the section on the Lord’s Prayer. It states:

“My good child, know this, that thou art not able to do these things of thyself, nor to walk in the commandments of God, and to serve him, without his special grace; which thou must learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer.”

This brief passage draws to our attention that we cannot persevere in living the life of a disciple of Jesus Christ.without God’s special, gracious help and that we must ask for this help daily in prayer. It links perseverance in our walk with Christ, another way of saying living the life of a disciple of Jesus Christ, with our perseverance in prayer. We are to pray each day for fresh supply of God’s grace to enable us to both to will and do what is pleasing and acceptable to God. This includes growing in our trust in God and our reliance upon his goodwill and favour toward us.

In his Gospel, in John 5:1-8, John the Evangelist records these words of Jesus.

‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

‘I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

Prayer is also one of the ways we abide in Christ. (Abiding in his words, fashioning and framing our lives according to his teaching, is another way we abide in him.) As the 19th century bishop of Liverpool, John Charles Ryle, wisely observed, we cannot have a relationship with someone else unless we regularly have conversations with them. We cannot have a relationship with Christ unless we commune with him in prayer. If Christ is to be more than a passing acquaintance, we must regularly seek him prayer. This goes beyond making requests to the Father through him, it means sharing our joys and sorrows, our hopes and fears, and more with him as we would a companion and a friend. Indeed, he is our companion and friend, united to us by the Holy Spirit, and always at our side, not an imaginary friend of our childhood, but a very real divine Presence.

The more we seek Christ in prayer, the more we will grow in our relationship with him and the more we will come to know him and the Father who sent him.

Jesus’ encouragement to his disciples to always pray and not to give up are words that we should indeed take to heart, words that we should think about seriously and which we should act upon in such a way that living according to them becomes a part of our lives. Bear in mind that one to whom we are praying is not an unjust judge who must be pestered into relenting but God whose very nature is love.

Silence

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father
almighty;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
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 MINISTRY OF PRAYER

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

Let us pray.

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.

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

Lord, show us your mercy,
and grant us your salvation.
Keep our nation under your care,
and guide us in justice and truth.
Clothe your ministers with righteousness,
and make your chosen people joyful.
Lord, save your people,
and bless your inheritance.
Give peace in our time, O Lord,
for you are our help and strength.
Create in us dean hearts, O God,
and renew us by your Holy Spirit.

Almighty and merciful God, of your bountiful goodness keep us
from everything that may hurt us, that we may be ready in body
and soul cheerfully to accomplish whatever you want us to do;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Eternal God, from whom all holy desires, all good purposes,
and all just works proceed: give to your servants that peace
which the world cannot give, that our hearts may be set to
obey your commandments, and that free from the fear of our
enemies we may pass our time in trust and quietness;
through the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.

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.

Open this link in a new tab to hear James Montgomery’s “Prayer Is the Soul's Sincere Desire”

1 PRAYER is the soul's sincere desire,
Uttered or unexpressed;
The motion of a hidden fire
That trembles in the breast.

2 Prayer is the burden of a sigh,
The falling of a tear,
The upward glancing of an eye
When none but God is near.

3 Prayer is the simplest form of speech
That infant lips can try;
Prayer the sublimest strains that reach
The Majesty on high.

4 Prayer is the contrite sinner's voice,
Returning from his ways,
While angels in their songs rejoice,
And cry, 'Behold, he prays!'

5 Prayer is the Christian's vital breath,
The Christian's native air,
His watchword at the gates of death:
He enters heaven with prayer.

6 The saints in prayer appear as one
In word, and deed, and mind,
While with the Father and the Son
Sweet fellowship they find.

7 O thou by whom we come to God,
The Life, the Truth, the Way,
The path of prayer thyself hast trod:
Lord, teach us how to pray.

Silence is kept.

Those present may offer their own prayers and thanksgivings, either silently or aloud.

Gracious God,
you have given us much today;
grant us also a thankful spirit.
Into your hands we commend ourselves
and those we love.
Be with us still, and when we take our rest
renew us for the service of your Son Jesus Christ.
Amen.

In darkness and in light,
in trouble and in joy,
help us, heavenly Father,
to trust your love,
to serve your purpose,
and to praise your name,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Open this link in a new tab to hear Percy Dearmer’s “Jesus, Good Above All Other.”

1 Jesus, good above all other,
gentle child of gentle mother,
in a stable born our brother,
give us grace to persevere.

2 Jesus, cradled in a manger,
for us facing every danger,
living as a homeless stranger,
make we thee our King most dear.

3 Jesus, for thy people dying,
risen Master, death defying,
Lord in heaven, thy grace supplying,
keep us to thy presence near.

4 Jesus, who our sorrows bearest,
all our thoughts and hopes thou sharest,
thou to us the truth declarest;
help us all thy truth to hear.

5 Lord, in all our doings guide us;
pride and hate shall ne'er divide us;
we'll go on with thee beside us,
and with joy we'll persevere.

THE SENDING FORTH OF GOD’S PEOPLE

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 John A. Behnke’s “Benediction.”

The Lord bless you
The Lord keep you
The Lord make his face to shine upon you
And be gracious
And be gracious
The Lord look upon you with favor
And give you peace.
The Lord bless you
The Lord keep you
The Lord make his face to shine upon you
And be gracious
And be gracious
The Lord look upon you with favor
And give you peace.
Amen. Amen.

Amen. Amen.