A Service of Prayer for the Beginning of Day, (Wednesday, August 26, 2020)

 Hannah was barren and prayed for a child. The Lord heard her voice and gave her a child. When her son Samuel was was three years old, she gave him to the Lord. When she did, “Hannah prayed and said, ‘My heart exults in the LORD; my strength is exalted in my God. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in my victory. There is no Holy One like the LORD, no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. Talk no more so very proudly, let not arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.              1 Samuel 2:1-3

Today’s lessons and message focus on the love and devotion the believer has for God and God’s provision of strength and refuge for the believer. Today we focus on the declaration that the Lord is our Rock and on an unnamed woman’s devotion and love for Jesus.

DIALOGUE

O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall declare your praise.
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

Alleluia.

PSALMODY

Give glory to God, our light and our life.
Oh, come, let us worship him.
Oh, come, let us sing to the Lord; let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
In his hand are the caverns of the earth; the heights of the hills are also his.
The sea is his, for he made it; and his hands have molded the dry land.
Oh, come, let us bow down and bend the knee, and kneel before the Lord, our maker.
For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.

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

Give glory to God, our light and our life. 
Oh, come, let us worship him.

Psalm 18:1-3, 20-32

I love you, O LORD, my strength.
The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer,
my God, my rock in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
so I shall be saved from my enemies.
The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he recompensed me.
For I have kept the ways of the LORD,
and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For all his ordinances were before me,
and his statutes I did not put away from me.
I was blameless before him,
and I kept myself from guilt.
Therefore the LORD has recompensed me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

With the loyal you show yourself loyal;
with the blameless you show yourself blameless;
 with the pure you show yourself pure;
and with the crooked you show yourself perverse.
For you deliver a humble people,
but the haughty eyes you bring down.
 It is you who light my lamp;
the LORD, my God, lights up my darkness.
 By you I can crush a troop,
and by my God I can leap over a wall.
This God—his way is perfect;
the promise of the LORD proves true;
he is a shield for all who take refuge in him.

For who is God except the LORD?
And who is a rock besides our God?—
 the God who girded me with strength,
and made my way safe.

Your testimonies are very sure, and holiness befits your house, O Lord, forever and forevermore.

HYMN
How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds 

1. How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
in a believer's ear!
It soothes our sorrows, heals our wounds,
and drives away all fear.

2. It makes the wounded spirit whole
and calms the heart's unrest;
'tis manna to the hungry soul
and to the weary, rest.

3. Dear name! The rock on which I build,
my shield and hiding place;
my never-failing treasury, filled
with boundless stores of grace.

4. O Jesus, shepherd, guardian, friend,
my prophet, priest, and king,
my Lord, my life, my way, my end,
accept the praise I bring.

Text: John Newton, 1725-1807, alt.

READINGS
Isaiah 28:14-22

Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers
who rule this people in Jerusalem.
Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,
and with Sheol we have an agreement;
when the overwhelming scourge passes through
it will not come to us;
for we have made lies our refuge,
and in falsehood we have taken shelter”;
therefore thus says the Lord GOD,
See, I am laying in Zion a foundation stone,
a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation:
“One who trusts will not panic.”
And I will make justice the line,
and righteousness the plummet;
hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,
and waters will overwhelm the shelter.
Then your covenant with death will be annulled,
and your agreement with Sheol will not stand;
when the overwhelming scourge passes through
you will be beaten down by it.
As often as it passes through, it will take you;
for morning by morning it will pass through,
by day and by night;
and it will be sheer terror to understand the message.
For the bed is too short to stretch oneself on it,
and the covering too narrow to wrap oneself in it.
For the LORD will rise up as on Mount Perazim,
he will rage as in the valley of Gibeon;
to do his deed—strange is his deed!
and to work his work—alien is his work!
Now therefore do not scoff,
or your bonds will be made stronger;
for I have heard a decree of destruction
from the Lord GOD of hosts upon the whole land.

Silence for meditation.

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets,
but in these last days God has spoken to us by the Son.

GOSPEL
Matthew 26:6-13

Now while Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment, and she poured it on his head as he sat at the table. But when the disciples saw it, they were angry and said, “Why this waste? For this ointment could have been sold for a large sum, and the money given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? She has performed a good service for me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. By pouring this ointment on my body she has prepared me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever this good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.”

Silence for meditation.

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets,
but in these last days God has spoken to us by the Son.

MESSAGE

In today’s group of Old Testament lessons I see the irony between the unfaithful and the faithful children of God. The unfaithful have forgotten their part of their covenant with their Lord and don’t follow in God’s ways. Instead, they bind themselves to the way of death and destruction. They do what they want at the expense of others, take refuge in lies, shelter in falsehoods, and they scoff at those who remain faithful, just, true to God’s ways.

In contrast the faithful turn to the Lord and declare that the Lord is their rock, refuge, and strength. They recognize the goodness of God—God’s righteousness and justice, loyalty and purity. They love the Lord and seek to follow the Lord’s ways of justice and righteousness. They seek and see God’s activity in their lives. 

Isaiah tells us that the Lord is “laying in Zion a foundation stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation.”  It is a stone of justice and righteousness. This stone will take the measurement of the righteous and in turn will be their sure foundation when the storm sweeps through. In the end, those who do not listen—the scoffers and unfaithful with their covenants of death will be exposed and swept away!

In the Matthew reading we also see an interesting contrast between Jesus’ disciples and an unnamed woman who anoints Jesus’ head with expensive oil as though he were a king. The disciples, those whom Jesus chose, taught, and mentored scoff and ridicule the woman calling her wasteful and pointing out the money for the expensive oil could have been used for the poor. They do not see the entirety of Jesus’ message of love. Yet ironically, the woman seems to get it. For you see, this unnamed woman shows Jesus reverence, devotion, and love to her Maser by anointing his head with oil and thus preparing him for his death. This unnamed woman’s insight about Jesus and her love for him stand in sharp contrast to the attitude of Jesus’ own disciples, especially Judas, who see her action as a waste of good money that could be given to the poor. Only Jesus sees the timeliness of her action as preparation for his burial.

Judas, who had been one of the Twelve and exposed to Jesus’ teaching and healing activities, betrays him for money, whereas the unnamed woman has just lavished upon Jesus’ head an alabaster jar of expensive ointment. It is difficult for us to make sense out of Judas’ attitude toward her and what he does. Yet the action of the unnamed woman is in the long run more important as a positive model of Christian faith. We don’t know much about her. She is simply a model of enthusiastic love for Jesus. Her devotion leads her to do precisely the right thing at the right time. While the officials and Judas search for an “opportune time” to hand Jesus over, she finds the opportune time to anoint Jesus for burial.

We live in a world where we see God’s people doing all kinds of things that are antithetical to his message. Our role is not to judge, but rather to be beacons of light, justice, and love in a world that remains to be so broken. May the Lord shine in and through us, help us to do want is just and good, and empower us to love all who come our way.

In Christ, 
Pastor Harkness

THE GOSPEL CANTICLE

Refrain:
In the tender compassion of our God the Dawn from on high shall break upon us.

Blessed are you, Lord, the God of Israel,
you have come to your people and set them free.
You have raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of your servant David. Refrain

Through your holy prophets, you promised of old
to save us from our enemies, from the hands of all who hate us;
you promised to show mercy to our forebears
and to remember your holy covenant. Refrain

This was the oath you swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship you without fear,
holy and righteous before you, all the days of our life. Refrain

And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way,
to give God's people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins. Refrain

In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace. Refrain

PRAYERS

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

Let us pray,

Mighty God of mercy, we thank you for the resurrection dawn, bringing the glory of our risen Lord who makes every day new.
Especially we thank you—
for the sustaining goodness of your creation . . .
for the new creation in Christ and all gifts of healing and forgiveness . . .
for the gifts of relationship with others . . .
for the communion of faith in your church . . .

Merciful God of might, renew this weary world, heal the hurts of all your children, and bring about your peace for all in Christ Jesus, the living Lord.
Especially we pray—
for those who govern nations of the world  . . .
for the people of our country, for the restoration of peace, and for justice . . .
for the people in countries ravaged by strife or warfare . . .
for all who work for peace and international harmony . . .
for all who strive to save the earth from carelessness and destruction . . 
for the church of Jesus Christ in every land . . .

Almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us in safety to this new day. Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin nor be overcome in adversity. In all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

LORD’S PRAYER

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,
forever and ever. 
Amen

Let us bless the Lord
Thanks be to God.

BENEDICTION

Almighty God, the Father,  ☩  the Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve us. Amen

HYMN
I Will Call Upon the Lord

I will call upon the Lord
who is worthy to be praised.
So shall I be saved from my enemies.
I will call upon the Lord.

The Lord liveth, and blessed be the Rock,
and let the God of my salvation be exalted.
The Lord liveth, and blessed be the Rock, 
and let the God of my salvation be exalted.

Text: Michael O’Shields

© 1981 Sound III and All Nations Music; assigned to MCA Music Publishing and The Lorenz Corporation

Copyright © 2020 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SB125183.