January 8th, 2007 at 12:04 am
At night when putting kids to sleep we say a little bedtime prayer, then the Lord’s Prayer, and finally a general prayer asking for a blessing for specific people.
Most of the time the bedtime prayer is said this way, as in a doll each kid got as a present soon after they were born:
Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
And angels watch me through the night,
And keep me ’til the morning light.
Sometimes, though, I’ll lapse, and say the version I learned as a kid, with the last two lines, “If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” That version according to Wikipedia dates out of the 18th century, though nothing is cited. I suspect the Anglicans were involved. 
The second version is a little stronger theologically. Death has no power for the Christian. Falling asleep in the Lord is a good thing. If tonight’s my time, fine; otherwise, tomorrow is a new day.
So I think to myself, fine, the kids are getting a little older, maybe we can try something else. I had heard of Compline, the prayer at the close of the day.
In my prayer book, “The Lord Will Answer”, Close of the Day on p. 474 has an invocation, a reading, a canticle with the Nunc Dimittis, the Lord’s Prayer, prayers for others, and a concluding collect, all said. It sounds like a bit much for 4-year-olds, but this will be useful soon.
The Compline in LSB 253 is meant to be done at church. It is more complex and interesting. More of the parts are set to music; I should see what that Nunc Dimittis sounds like in B-flat. 
The most interesting thing about this service though, is on 254. A Leader (marked with L, so not necessarily a pastor) gives a general confession by himself, and the congregation gives a general absolution to him. The congregation then gives a general confession, and the Leader announces that the Lord has granted forgiveness.
I don’t have an LW or a TLH on hand to compare this with. Is this possibly-lay confession and absolution an innovation? If I remember, perhaps I’ll ask the Kantor in Houston.
The collect from my prayer book is from Luther’s Small Catechism, and it seems like a good bedtime prayer to memorize and teach:
I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day; and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
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January 8th, 2007 at 7:42 am
I really like that bedtime prayer! My own two children, when they were young, prayed the version of “if I should die before I wake” and I guess it could be a little frightening for little ones. I use the newer version with the twins, however!
January 8th, 2007 at 11:14 am
Dan, my family and I have sang compline before bed in the past. We did it out of LW. It is a good thing for a family to do. I encourage it!
Scott
January 8th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
Did you ever read On a Pale Horse by Piers Anthony? A mortal man unwittingly becomes the Grim Reaper, and becomes aware of a small boy who is afraid to pray “if I should die before I wake.” So he calls the boy on the phone and promises him that Death will never come for him while he’s sleeping. Yes, it’s weird.
January 8th, 2007 at 2:06 pm
Linda: Thanks. There is value in being consistent at the girls’ early age. I don’t want to tell them, “you’re doing it wrong.” That was the big reason I was looking for something new, to give them something additional.
Scott: Sweet. I’ll have a little fun learning the new tunes. I’ll probably have to memorize it, as one of my daughters is a sheet music kleptomaniac!
Barb: No, but I find that incident humorous.
January 8th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
We use Luther’s evening prayer (the one at the end of your post), and we pause after “graciously keep me this night” to include prayers for others. Our daughter is just over a year old, and this seems like a good length for her (who am I kidding, my attention span is even shorter than hers!
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January 14th, 2007 at 12:39 am
[...] Yours truly submits Prayers at Close of the Day, which has been a good discussion on Compline, the LSB’s Compline service, and Luther’s evening prayer from the Catechism. The interchurch basketball league that I referee for also offers the opportunity to give a five minute speech at halftime. I offer Halftime Message: This Man Receives Sinners! in an effort to discuss Christ, what he has done, and why. [...]
January 18th, 2007 at 9:05 pm
The “absolutions” in both cases are not true absolution. The LSB version is very similar to what is found in the Brotherhood Prayer Book (an english translation of a German Lutheran breviary using gregorian chant) and also what is found in the Roman Antiphonale Monasticum (Pre-vatican II book for the offices). The liturgist, if he be ordained, confesses his sins to God and his brothers. We do not pronounce him forgiven, but instead we say “[may] almighty God have mercy upon thee, forgive thee thy sins, and bring thee to everlasting life.” In the same way, the liturgist (if he be ordained) would respond to our confession. At the end of the day we will confess our sins and rest on the hope and promise of God to forgive our sins. No one is doing anything wrong here. Perhaps we would prefer the sure comfort of absolution from one acting “in the stead and by the command of Christ”. For that we have our private confession time. Compline is different, and that’s alright.