St. Paul’s Lutheran Church
Alliance, Ohio
Wednesday, February 18, 2026
7:00 PM
PRELUDE
“Savior, When in Dust to You” Gerald Near
FIRST READING Joel 2:1-2, 12-17 1Blow the
trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants
of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is
coming, it is near—2a day of
darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness spread
upon the mountains a great and powerful army comes; their like has never been
from of old, nor will be again after them in ages to come.
12Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 13rend your hearts and not
your clothing. Return to the Lord,
your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in
steadfast love, and relents from punishing. 14Who knows whether he will not turn and
relent, and leave a blessing behind him,
a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord, your God? 15Blow the trumpet in Zion; sanctify a fast;
call a solemn assembly; 16gather the
people. Sanctify the congregation; assemble the aged; gather the children,
even infants at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride
her canopy. 17Between the
vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep. Let them say, “Spare your
people, O Lord, and do not
make your heritage a mockery, a byword among the nations. Why should it be said
among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ ”
Psalm 51:1-17 1Have mercy on me, O God, according to your | steadfast love; in your great compassion blot out | my offenses.
2Wash me through and
through | from my wickedness, and cleanse me | from my sin.
3For I know | my offenses, and
my sin is ever before me.
4Against you only have I
sinned and done what is evil | in your sight; so
you are justified when you speak and
right | in your judgment.
5Indeed, I was born | steeped in
wickedness, a sinner from my | mother’s womb.
6Indeed, you delight in
truth | deep within me, and would have me know wisdom | deep within.
7Remove my sins with
hyssop, and I | shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be purer than snow.
8Let me hear | joy and gladness;
that the body you have broken | may rejoice.
9Hide your face | from my sins, and
blot out | all my wickedness.
10Create in me a
clean | heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
11Cast me not away | from your
presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
12Restore to me the joy
of | your salvation and sustain me with your bountiful Spirit.
13Let me teach your
ways | to offenders, and sinners shall be restored to you.
14Rescue me from
bloodshed, O God of | my salvation, and my tongue shall
sing | of your righteousness.
15O Lord, o- | pen my lips, and
my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
16For you take no delight
in sacrifice, or | I would give it. You are not
pleased | with burnt offering.
17The sacrifice of God is
a | troubled spirit; a troubled and broken heart, O God, you will | not despise.
SECOND READING 2 Corinthians 5:20b--6:10
20bWe entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21For our sake he made him
to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of
God. 6:1As we work together with
him, we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. 2For he says, “At an
acceptable time I have listened to you, and on a day of salvation I have helped
you.” See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation! 3We are putting no
obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our
ministry, 4but as
servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way: through great
endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5beatings, imprisonments,
riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6by purity, knowledge,
patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love, 7truthful speech, and the
power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the
left; 8in honor and
dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We are treated as impostors, and yet
are true; 9as unknown,
and yet are well known; as dying, and see—we are alive; as punished, and yet
not killed; 10as
sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having
nothing, and yet possessing everything.
GOSPEL: Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21
[Jesus said to the disciples:] 1"Beware of
practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you
have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2"So whenever you give alms, do not
sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the
streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have
received their reward. 3But when you
give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your alms may be
done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 5"And whenever you
pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the
synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly
I tell you, they have received their reward. 6But whenever you pray,
go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret;
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 16"And whenever you
fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces
so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have
received their reward. 17But when you
fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18so that your fasting may
be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who
sees in
secret will reward you.19"Do not store up
for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where
thieves break in and steal; 20but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and
steal. 21For where your treasure
is, there your heart will be also."
SERMON Pastor Muse
HYMN Our Father, We Have Wondered #606
APOSTLES CREED
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen
+ Kneel or sit (The minister leads the confession.)
Most holy and merciful God,
we confess to you and to one another, and before
the whole company of heaven, that we have sinned by our fault, by our own
fault,
by our own most grievous fault, in thought,
word, and deed,
by what we have done and by what we have left
undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart, and
mind, and strength. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We have not
forgiven others as we have been forgiven.
Have mercy on us, O God.
We have shut our ears to your call to serve as
Christ served us. We have not been true to the mind of Christ. We have grieved
your Holy Spirit.
Have mercy on us, O God.
Our past unfaithfulness, the pride, envy,
hypocrisy, and apathy that have infected our lives, we confess to you.
Have mercy on us, O God.
Our self-indulgent appetites and ways, and our
exploitation of other people, we confess to you.
Have mercy on us, O God.
Our negligence in prayer and worship, and our
failure to share the faith that is in us, we confess to you.
Have mercy on us, O God.
Our neglect of human need and suffering, and our
indifference to injustice and cruelty, we
confess to you.
Have mercy on us, O God.
Our false judgments, our uncharitable thoughts
toward our neighbors, and our prejudice and contempt toward those who differ
from us, we confess to you.
Have mercy on us, O God.
Our waste and pollution of your creation, and
our lack of concern for those who come after us, we confess to you.
Have mercy on us, O God.
Restore us, O God, and let your anger depart
from us.
Hear us, O God, for your mercy is great.
Sit Imposition of Ashes
Accomplish in us, O God, the work of your
salvation,
that we may show forth your glory in the world.
By the cross and passion of your Son, of Savior,
bring us with all your saints to the joy of his
resurrection.
Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all
our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by
the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life.
Amen.
PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH
GREETING OF PEACE
OFFERING
CHANCEL CHOIR (7:00) Cast Thy Burden on the Lord
PRAYER
WORDS OF INSTITUTION
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
THE DISTRIBUTION OF COMMUNION, POST COMMUNION
PROCLAMATION
POST COMMUNION PRAYER
BENEDICTION
hymn Be Thou My Vision #793
DISMISSAL
