Good Evening, Lord!
Words of Comfort
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you,
because he trusts in you. (Isa. 26:3 ESV)
Prayer of Confession
Now, O Lord, when the day’s work is done, I turn again to
you. From you everything comes, in you everything exists, and in you everything
is complete. In the morning I began with your blessing, all day you kept me in
your grace, and now I pray that you would grant me rest and peace. I would cast
all my cares upon you and leave the results of the day in your hands. Please
prosper everything that was done today in accordance with your will, and
forgive all the wrong that was done. What good I have done today; let all the
credit go to you. If I have done any harm, absolve it, overrule it, and wash it
away by your almighty power.
O Lord, I remember before you tonight all the workers of the
world:
·
Those who work
with their hands and their minds.
·
Those who work
in cities or out of doors.
·
Those working
out of the home, and those working in the home.
·
Employers and
employees.
·
Those who make
decisions and those who execute the decisions.
·
Those whose
work is dangerous.
·
Those whose
work is monotonous or extremely physical.
·
Those who are
unemployed, underemployed, and struggling to make ends meet.
·
Those whose
work is service to the poor, healing for the sick, or the proclamation of the
Gospel of Christ.
O Christ, who came to be served, but to serve, have mercy on
all who labor faithfully to serve the common good. O Christ, who fed the hungry
multitude with loaves and fish, have mercy on all who work to earn their daily
bread. O Christ, who calls all who are weary and heavy laden to yourself, have
mercy on all whose work is beyond their strength. And to you, with the Father
and the Holy Spirit, be all the glory and the praise. Amen.[1]
Catechism Reflections
Confession
What sins
should we confess?
Before God we should plead guilty of all sins, even those we
are not aware of, as we do in the Lord’s Prayer; but before the pastor we
should confess only those sins which we know and feel in our hearts.
Which are these?
Consider your place in life according to the Ten
Commandments: Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, or
worker? Have you been disobedient, unfaithful, or lazy? Have you been
hot-tempered, rude, or quarrelsome? Have you hurt someone by your words or
deeds? Have you stolen, been negligent, wasted anything, or done any harm?
Questions for Meditation
What does this reading teach you?
What does this reading lead you to be thankful for?
What behavior, thought, or attitude does this reading
challenge? What sin does it lead you to confess?
How might you pray for God to have a richer impact on your
life through this reading?
Petitions of the Lord’s Prayer
The Fourth
Petition “Give us this day our daily bread.”
Heavenly Father, You give daily bread to everyone without
our prayers, even to all evil people, but we pray in this petition that You
would lead us to realize this so that we receive our daily bread with
thanksgiving. Make us mindful of all that You give us that has to do with the
support and needs of the body, such as food, drink, clothing, shoes, house,
home, land, animals, money, goods, a devout husband or wife, devout children,
devout workers, devout and faithful rulers, good government, good weather, peace,
health, self-control, good reputation, good friends, faithful neighbors, and
help us to always give thanks to You; in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Verse of Benediction
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and
the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Cor. 13:14 ESV)
[1] This prayer is modernized
from John Baillie, A Diary of Private Prayer, 1949 – an evening prayer for the
22nd day of the month. Baillie wrote wonderful prayers for the morning and
evening of each day of the month. They have inspired, educated, and assisted
many in their prayer lives. It was updated in 2014 by Susanna Wright. That edition
is available from Amazon here.
I personally prefer the 1949 edition with the older style of language. Those
can still be found if you search for it.
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