Evening Prayer Thursday, 18 February 2021
A reading from Psalm 25
1 In you, Lord my God,
I put my trust.
2 I trust in you;
do not let me be put to shame,
nor let my enemies triumph over me.
3 No-one who hopes in you
will ever be put to shame,
but shame will come on those
who are treacherous without cause.
4 Show me your ways, Lord,
teach me your paths.
5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Saviour,
and my hope is in you all day long.
6 Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love,
for they are from of old.
7 Do not remember the sins of my youth
and my rebellious ways;
according to your love remember me,
for you, Lord, are good.
8 Good and upright is the Lord;
therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
9 He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them his way.
10 All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful
towards those who keep the demands of his covenant.
Psalm 25: 1–10 NIV®
A reading from John’s first letter
3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.
Light and darkness, sin and forgiveness
5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
1 John 1: 3–10
Dear Lord, grant us the confidence always to trust in you, always to walk in your light.
As we begin a new Lenten journey, help us to examine our inmost thoughts,
to re-appraise them and see where we are not being true to you.
Grant us the true humility that will enable us to discern your will,
and to follow your path rather than our own wilful ways, however hard that may seem.
When we say we repent of our sins and ask for your forgiveness,
may we be truly sorry and determine how we are going to change our ways,
decide a plan of action, put it into practice and frequently review our progress.
Above all, help us to root out self-deception in all aspects of our lives.
We ask for your blessing on our Lent studies, that they may bear fruit,
and that we may move forward to a new way of living according with what we learn from you.
We pray that we practise true penitence in this season of Lent;
not by ostentatiously ‘giving up’ minor self-indulgences,
but by showing our gratitude to you by sharing your bountiful gifts with those in greatest need of them.
We praise you and thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus Christ. May we walk in the light of his ways.
Bless and guard all those who work so hard to provide us all with all our needs in these difficult days.
We give grateful thanks for the dedication of all those who work for our health service.
As well as the font-line doctors, nurses, pathologists, paramedics and other health professionals,
we express gratitude for all the support staff like hospital porters, receptionists, engineers
and all those who work behind the scenes to keep the health service running smoothly.
We pray for your Church, both here in Milton Keynes and throughout the world.
As the body of your disciples we pray that it speaks out with a prophetic voice,
challenging all discrimination and abuse of power by those with authority,
and championing the needs of the poor, the vulnerable
and those hidden in the shadows of the margins of their societies.
Finally, we pray for ourselves. We ask that you will meet our needs as is best for us and others.
Guard and protect us and all those that we love whether near or far from us.
Amen
So, we say the Grace to one another, whether together or far apart:
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit
be with us all, evermore.
Amen
