Good evening and welcome to Evening Prayer

The Lord almighty grant us a quiet night and a perfect end.
Amen.

Our help is in the name of the Lord
who made heaven and earth

That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful,
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As our evening prayer rises before you, O God,
so may your mercy come down upon us
to cleanse our hearts
and set us free to sing your praise
now and for ever.
Amen.

Presence

Dear Jesus, today I call on you in a special way.
Mostly I come asking for favours.
Today I’d like just to be in Your presence.
Let my heart respond to Your Love.

Freedom

There are very few people
who realise what God would make of them
if they abandoned themselves into his hands,
and let themselves be formed by his grace. (Saint Ignatius)
I ask for the grace to trust myself totally to God’s love.

Consciousness

When I return to my everyday tasks,
remind me, Lord,
that you are always there beside me.
I need never despair.

THE WORD OF GOD

Matthew 15:1-2, 10-14

Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said,
‘Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders?
For they do not wash their hands before they eat.’
Jesus called the crowd to him and said to them,
‘Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person,
but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.
‘ Then the disciples approached and said to him,
‘Do you know that the Pharisees took offence when they heard what you said?’
He answered, ‘Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.
Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind.
And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.’

WORDS OF WISDOM

Years ago, a friend made us a gift, a calligraphed beginning
of a prayer attributed to Pierre Teilhard de Jardin:
“Above all, trust in the slow work of God.”
From a central spot in our dining room, these words reached out
to me often while raising a large family and working with kids.
The prayer calls to me now as the heat of July and August
arrives on the tails of righteous anger, fires of social unrest,
and the terrible toll and world-wide anxiety surrounding Covid-19.
What can we parents, grandparents, educators, pastors,
ordinary humans do for our world’s children?

We can turn to our Mother, the Earth, to soothe, amuse,
and educate us in the truly slow work of God…
Carry babies out to sing good night to the stars, explore streams,
paths, and backyards where ants can be followed in their steady
march to provide for their families…
Find wild places, care for house-bound flower pots, grow veggies…
Collect buttercups and smooth, multi-hued stones…

Walk silently, even bravely…Splash noisily in streams and puddles…
Look up at the remarkably blue sky revealing benefits
of reduced emissions in a slower world…Look down…
Look everywhere… Breathe deeply, exercise wonder…
Find a three-year-old to lead the way… Invite a teen…Be amazed.
Maria Montessori, long ago, understood the power of wonder to anchor,
soothe and motivate children. We can, too. Indeed, we must. 

Mary Ann Welter

PRAYERS AND INTERCESSIONS

We pray for the world… 

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.

We pray for the universal church of Christ…

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer. 

We pray for one another and all those known to us…

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer.

As our Saviour taught us, so we pray

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.

Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.

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Silence….

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Visit this place, O Lord, we pray,
and drive far from it the snares of the enemy;
may your holy angels dwell with us and guard us in peace,
and may your blessing be always upon us;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

See that you are at peace among yourselves, my children,
and love one another.
Follow the example of the wise and good
and God will comfort you and help you,
both in this world
and in the world which is to come.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

THE BLESSINGS

Aboriginal Australia – source YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NecHyALupw0

Goodnight and God bless…by the grace of God tomorrow will be a better day!

Revd. Ernesto Lozada-Uzuriaga