welcome to canterbury cathedral at this time of evening prayer on this second sunday in easter tide we've come to a pebbly part of the garden to remind us that in our reflection we shall be continuing the story from john chapter 21 of jesus on the beach with his disciples and beginning to walk with them and have conversation following breakfast but first we begin evening prayer oh lord open thou our lips and our mouth shall show foresight praise o god make speed to save us o lord make haste to help us glory be to the father and to the son and to the holy ghost as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be world without end amen praise see the lord the lord's name be praised this is the 19th evening of the month and one of the four psalms set for this evening of the month is psalm 100 the jubilati day as it's known we sing it as a hymn in rhyming form all people that on earth do dwell sing to the lord with cheerful voice and i'm going to read it as the psalm 100 tonight oh be joyful in the lord holy lands serve the lord with gladness and come before his presence with a song be he sure that the lord he is god it is he that hath made us and not we ourselves we are his people and the sheep of his pasture oh go your way into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise be thankful unto him and speak good of his name for the lord is gracious his mercy is everlasting and his truth endureth from generation to generation glory be to the father and to the son and to the holy ghost as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be world without end amen continuing in john chapter 21 and starting from where we left off this morning at verse 20 as they are walking along peter turned and saw the disciple whom jesus loved following them the one who also had leaned back against jesus during the supper and had said lord who is it that is going to betray you when peter saw him he said to jesus lord what about this man jesus said to him if it is my will that he remain until i come what is that to you you follow me so the saying spread abroad among the brothers that his just this disciple was not to die yet jesus did not say to him that he was not to die but if it is my will that he remain until i come what is that to you this is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things and who has written these things and we know that his testimony is true now there are also many other things that jesus did were every one of them to be written i suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written peter looks round and finds john the son of zebedee one of those who were with the group of disciples in the little collection by the lakeside and he says lord what about him jesus having just described peter's vocation and told peter to follow him and jesus's answer is quite shall we say severe it means what his particular vocation is the other disciple is nothing to do with you for each vocation is unique every one of us has a particular task to fulfill and when we are called we are simply called to follow not to look at each other and say well what about him what about her these are almost the last words of this wonderful gospel but the vocation of john if that is the disciple we're referring to or peter are separate vocations and destinies both will serve their lord until death but their lives will be very very different for the moment here they are by the sea of galilee but their vocation will take them from their fishing and what was the original beginning back to jerusalem where james the brother of john will be cut down in the street in very early years of the church's mission but that is all still ahead for this evening as the first week of easter draws to a close we're asked to reflect on our own call what god is expecting of us as we hear the call to the first disciples and whatever that location for each one of us is then we shall need the grace of god to accomplish it even to envision it sometimes we shall lose sight of it it will be a journey but it's a journey to which we are called along the way there will be many companions and tonight when we give companionship at a distance by these means which i'm using with you now we pray for each other as our evening prayer continues with mary's song of obedience the canticle magnificat my soul doth magnify the lord and my spirit hath rejoiced in god my savior for he hath regarded the lowliness of his handmaiden for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed for he that is mighty hath magnified me and holy is his name and his mercy is on them that fear him throughout all generations he hath showed strength with his arm he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts he hath put down the mighty from their seat and has exalted the humble and meek he has filled the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent empty away he remembering his mercy has opened his servant israel as he promised to our forefathers abraham and his seed forever glory be to the father and to the son and to the holy ghost as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be world without end amen so we say our prayers having in mind all those whom we love those who tonight are suffering much because of the spread of the coronavirus or because of their own isolation in a locked-in state and distance from those whom they know and love we pray for all who are on our hearts lord have mercy upon us christ have mercy upon us lord have mercy upon us collect for this first sunday after easter almighty father who has given thine only son to die for our sins and to rise again for our justification grant us so to put away the leaven of malice and wickedness that we may always serve thee in pureness of living and truth through the merits of the same my son jesus christ our lord amen so as we remember each other in prayer we use the words our savior taught us in whatever way we would like and in whichever language 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 the power and the glory forever and ever are men moment of silence we make our own prayers for each other and those who we feel need our prayers this night almighty god who has given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplications unto thee and as promised that when two or three are gathered together in thy name thou wilt grant their requests fulfill now o lord the desires and petitions of thy servants as may be most expedient for them granting us in this world knowledge of thy truth and in the world to come life everlasting amen the god of peace who brought again from the dead our lord jesus that great shepherd of the sea by the blood of the eternal covenant make you perfect in every good work to do his will working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight and the blessing of god almighty the father the son and the holy spirit be upon you and upon all whom you love and would pray for this night and always amen