Now the Day Is Over (ELW 570)
Devotion
1 Now the day is over;
night is drawing nigh;
shadows of the evening
steal across the sky.
2 Jesus, give the weary
calm and sweet repose;
with your tend'rest blessing
may our eyelids close.
3 Comfort ev'ry suff'rer
watching late in pain;
those who plan some evil,
from their sin restrain.
4 Through the long night-watches
may your angels spread
their bright wings above me,
watching round my bed.
5 When the morning wakens,
then may I arise
pure and fresh and sinless
in your holy eyes.
6 Glory to the Father,
glory to the Son,
and to you, blest Spirit,
while the ages run.
Text: Sabine Baring-Gould, 1834-1924, alt.
Summer has come to an end, and tomorrow Minnesota's State Fair will also close. Our yards are torn up but they can be replanted. We have seen our neighbors more in the last 12 days than in all of last year. We have new stories to tell. We are tired, and it is time to rest.
We ask for rest this day, be it in worship as we dwell in the Word or as we rest from our labors over Labor Day weekend. For some this weekend marks the imminent return to school, for others an extra day off. This hymn sings God's blessing upon us not only in weariness but in suffering and in sin. The morning will come and we will arise with it, refreshed for a new day in which to encounter new people, new decisions, new life.
God sends us out and gathers us in. A day is given and it ends. A vocation, even one as unexpected as parking cars, is given and comes to an end. Through it all, God brings us rest, comfort, and a new day of grace.
Prayer
Loving Redeemer, thank you for giving us your Word to dwell in. Bring us rest and renewal this day, so that we can delight in the surprises of how we might serve our neighbor in the days to come. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.