Merry Christmas! Day Two

Second day there of. And so a blessed St. Stephen's. The St. Stephen's Divine Service will be held at St. Paul's this evening at 6:00 p.m. From the Hymn of the Day assigned for this feast:

The martyr first, whose eagle eye
Could pierce beyond the grave,
Who saw his master in the sky
And called on Him to save.
Like Him with pardon on His tongue
In midst of mortal pain,
He prayed for those who did the wrong -
Who follows in his train?

A noble army, men and boys,
The matron and the maid,
Around the Savior's throne rejoice,
In robes of light arrayed.
They climbed the steep ascent of heav'n
Through peril, toil, and pain.
O God, to us may grace be given
To follow in their train!
LSB 661:2,4

Heavenly Father, in the midst of our sufferings for the sake of Christ grant us grace to follow the example of the first martyr, Stephen, that we also may look to the One who suffered and was crucified on our behalf and pray for those who do us wrong... [From the Collect for the Day]