Opening Prayers/Prayers of Adoration on Goodness
Almighty Father, giver of every good and perfect gift, who has made the light of your truth shine in our hearts: Make us to walk as children of light in all goodness and righteousness, that we may have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
W. Walsham How, Language adapted for Modern Worship by Stuart Strachan Jr.
Wonderful Counselor, open our ears
So we may hear your song
God is with us, God is near
Mighty God, open our eyes
So we may see you at work
For goodness, truth, and justice
Everlasting Father, open our hearts
So we may release our worry,
Our loneliness, and our striving
Prince of Peace, open our hands
So we may take yours and each other’s
And walk together the path of grace
Amen
Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia (based on Isaiah 9:6) © 2022, www.revlisad.com
Almighty God, Father of all mercies,
we, your unworthy servants, give you humble thanks
for all your goodness and loving-kindness
to us and to all whom you have made.
We bless you for our creation, preservation,
and all the blessings of this life,
but above all for your immeasurable love
in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ,
for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory.
And, we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies
that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise,
not only with our lips, but in our lives,
by giving up ourselves to your service,
and by walking before you
in holiness and righteousness all our days,
through Jesus Christ, our Lord,
to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit,
be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.
Book of Common Prayer
(Prayer of Adoration)
O Lord, Our Lord,
how excellent is Your Name in all the earth!
When we are faithless – You are faithful.
When we wander – You come after us.
When we’re alone – You draw near to us.
When we are caught up in circumstances
that seek to undo us –
You take what we see as evil and work it for good,
For in Your grace and power,
You work all things for the good of those who love You
and are called according to Your purpose.
(Prayer of Confession)
Yet, while Your love is consistent, eternal and strong,
Our love is fickle, finite and easily swayed.
So, we confess today
that we have not loved You as You deserve,
with our whole selves –
heart, mind, soul, body and strength.
Nor have we loved our neighbors as we love ourselves.
We know Your good will for us, and we shun it.
We think our ways are better than Your ways,
and our wisdom wiser than Yours.
We are wrong!
So, hear now our silent confession of those things
we are too ashamed to say aloud
and too uncomfortable to share with anyone but You …
(Pause) … AMEN.
Wilderness Prayer
Inspired by Deuteronomy 8:2-3,14-16
God of the Ages
Our Deliverer and Provider
We bow in humility before your grace
You feed us with the divine
Your word
Your body
You quench our thirst with living water
A stream in the desert
You guide our feet through snares and snakes
You free us from slavery to sin and self and shame and death
You lead us the long way to holiness and home
Grow in us wholehearted allegiance
that our blessing and devotion may never waver
that we may always recognize and trust your desire to do us good
Amen
Wilderness Prayer © 2017 by Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia, www.revlisad.com
Lord – You are good …and Your goodness knows no bounds.
When we were lost, You sought us out,
found us and brought us home.
When we were alone, You came near to us,
and You gave us a new circle of friends and family.
Each breath we take, each sunrise we see,
Each heartbeat we feel and each song we sing or hear –
All are gifts from You.
(Prayer of Confession)
Yet, we’ve grown complacent in Your blessings:
Taking them for granted, rather than as signs of Your grace;
Keeping them for ourselves, rather than using them to bless others.
Forgive our selfish hearts and closed fists.
Forgive our self-importance
that leads us to take ourselves too seriously,
to take You too lightly and to forget others altogether.
Forgive us what we’re too embarrassed to name out loud,
As you hear the silent confessions of our hearts and the whispers of our souls … [Silence] AMEN.
(Prayer of Adoration)
Great God our Father: You are good and You are strong.
You are faithful and true,
and You won’t tempt or lie to us.
In a world that appeals to our sinful cravings
and dominated by spin:
You alone are worthy of our trust, loyalty and love.
You alone have loved us with such an everlasting love
as to give Your Son or us.
You alone never abandon us, living with and within us
by Your Holy Spirit.
(Prayer of Confession)
Yet, we so easily trade Your truth for a lie,
and substitute our lusts for Your love.
We blame others for our errors and for our wanton sin.
We close our eyes to the truth about who we are
and run from the truth of who You are.
Forgive us for choosing to love and live for the world:
by following our own cravings,
giving into the lust of our eyes, and
boasting of who we are,
what we’ve done and what we’ve got.
Hear us as we say,
in whispers too soft for any one else to hear but You,
the sin we’re too ashamed to let anyone else know
but You who know all about us and love us anyway.
Hear our silent confessions of sin: (PAUSE)
God, our heavenly Father –
from whom all families gain purpose, direction and life:
When we need bread, you don’t give a stone;
and when we ask for fish, you don’t give a snake;
for you are good, you are strong and you are loving.
As your children we come to you asking, seeking
and knocking and you respond:
“Come, child – and open your heart.”
Generous God our Father – who gives us all good gifts:
Gifts of life, love and, relationships;
gifts of work and leisure, effort and rest;
and, most of all, gifts of Your Son and our salvation,
your Spirit’s presence and power.
You do all things well.
By your love and strength you work
all things together for the good of those
who love you and hear you call our names.
You are good and you are strong.
You are holy and you are loving.
However, we’re but a slight reflection of you;
and sometimes more a shadow than an image of you.
While your goodness seeks to bless others—
ours is on a constant quest to bless ourselves.
While your strength strives to create life and hope—
ours is, too often, the source of destruction to both.
We are neither holy nor loving—
except in that we wholly love ourselves
rather than wholly loving you and others.
Forgive us for what in us obscures your image
rather than displays it so that all can know you through us.
Forgive also what we now confess quietly in the silence,
too embarrassed to confess them aloud before one another.
(Silence) … AMEN.