Midweek Advent Worship, Week 4

 

MIDWEEK PRAYER

Magnificat: My Soul Magnifies the Lord

Week 4 December 23, 2020

 

OPENING DIALOGUE

In this Advent time of waiting and watching,

the words of the angel Gabriel break into our world:

“Greetings! The Lord is with you.

Do not fear, for nothing will be impossible with God.”

We respond with Mary to the angel’s message:

“Here am I, the servant of the Lord;

let it be with me according to your word.”

We join with Elizabeth to greet the mother of our Lord:

“Blessed are you among women,

and blessed is the fruit of your womb.”

We echo Mary’s song of praise:

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”

In this Advent time of waiting and watching, let us pray:

Gracious God, you come to us in new and surprising ways.

You make the impossible possible.

Help us, like Mary, to answer your call,

that the light of Christ may spread to all the world.

In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

 

HYMN : Light one candle to watch for Messiah ELW 240

YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se8EOErrkvg&ab_channel=AllSaintsLutheranChurch

 

 READING: Jeremiah 33:14-16

A reading from Jeremiah

 ¹⁴ The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. ¹⁵ In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. ¹⁶ In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”

 

Word of God, word of life. Thanks be to God.

 PSALM: Psalm 85 and song, My soul magnifies the Lord

YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSAVvBUh-Kc&ab_channel=MaryRuth72

 READING: Luke 1:46-55

A reading from Luke.

⁴⁶ And Mary said,

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷     and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸ for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.
    Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
    and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ His mercy is for those who fear him
    from generation to generation.
⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm;
    he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
⁵² He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
    and lifted up the lowly;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
    and sent the rich away empty.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
    in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵ according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
    to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”

 

The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.

 REFLECTION

The topic for today is the promises of God and how those promises are fulfilled. The Magnificat itself is filled with those promises already fulfilled: God has shown strength, scattered the proud, brought down the powerful, filled the hungry, and so forth.

God makes promises throughout the Old Testament, and then Jesus makes promises in the Gospels. I notice that the promises are made to an individual, like Abraham and Sarah, like David, and here to Mary.

But the promises are not intended for just one person; they are given to one person but intended for the whole people, for all Israel, for all believers. The promises are made so we can have hope that God is paying attention to us and wants us to believe that good things are to come.

Of course, we also notice that it often takes years or decades or sometimes centuries for divine promises to be fulfilled. The promises of God are for the long term, not necessarily the immediate future.

Since we may never see the fulfillment of God’s promises, why should we trust in them? We have learned that God is reliable because God’s promises have been fulfilled in the past.

We have also learned that the promises Jesus made are intended to be fulfilled through Spirit, and through our human hands and feet.

It is with our assistance – our donations of food and towels and soap – that hungry people are fed and given dignity.

It is with our voices, our advocacy, that unfair laws and practices are changed.

It is even through the power of a single vote that the powerful are thrown down from their seats of power.

It is through the wisdom and creativity of scientists, guided by Spirit, that we will one day be free of this virus, and those that will come in the future will be conquered as well.

Let’s stay hopeful that God’s promises to be with us always, to protect us, to give us good things, will come to those who believe. Amen

 

SCRIPTURE DIALOGUE

The one who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.”

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!

 

 PRAYERS

A list of prayer concerns is gathered.

Each portion of the prayers ends with these or similar words.

  O God for whom we long, show us your mercy.

LORD’S PRAYER

Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us pray as Jesus taught 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, forever and ever. Amen.

 

SENDING SONG: Blessed be the God of Israel ELW 250

YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNradHcvnVs&ab_channel=ChoirmasterZack

 

BLESSING

Let us bless the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

The God through whom all things are possible grant you grace, mercy, and peace. Amen.

GROUP CHECK-IN

Next time: January 6, Epiphany

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Scripture from NRSV © 1989