Prayers of Confession for COVID-19

Holy and Merciful God,

We acknowledge that this crisis has exposed our idols. We accept that we have placed our trust and hope in stability, in consistency, and technology. And now, as we recognize our lack of control over this disease, help us turn to you: the only true source of stability in a world that is constantly changing. Help wean us off of the idols of this world, that we might see your goodness and strength as our goodness and strength. Comfort us with a peace that surpasses anything we could understand.

Amen.

We are called to be a people of hope
So often – and especially this year – we feel hopeless.
We question God’s love for us, God’s goodness, and God’s plan for his creation.
So lets acknowledge our hopelessness and bring our concerns before God

Eternal God
Too often we do not trust your ways
We wonder if you are distant and uncaring
We question whether your goodness is enough

Too often we don’t find our hope in you
But we hope in our own abilities to get through
Or we don’t have hope at all

Burst from the heavens and come down to us God
Refresh us with your Holy Spirit
Shatter our shallow expectations of your work
And make us people of hope once more
AmenGracious God, we find ourselves in circumstances we have not chosen, and we scurry to find any sense of normalcy. We know that You are the Rock, yet we lean on other foundations; We know that You are sovereign, but we seek security in our own control;

Jacob Traeger

We know that You give comfort, but we elevate comforts of our own design; We know that You satisfy, but we keep scrolling; We know that You set us free, but addictions grip us tightly; We know that You call us to rest, but we keep struggling. By grace, forgive us. In mercy, meet us. By Your Holy Spirit, equip us to walk in the newness of life-with-Christ, In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church

Gracious God,

We come before you today scared. Scared for our health, scared for our jobs, scared for our loved ones. Help us Lord, not to dwell in our fears, but rather to turn to you, trusting that you are indeed the God who rescues. You sent your Son, not simply to send us to heaven, but to help us live as new creations, not living in fear, but free to love and serve as you love and serve us. Help us Lord in this crisis not to be greedy, not to hoard and simply think of ourselves. But help us to reflect the life and love of your Son Jesus Christ, that those who do not know you will see something different in us. That just as the early church demonstrated its radical love in their care for the victims of the plague, that we might serve sacrificially as well.

Amen.

Holy God,

We recognize that when crisis strikes, the natural impulse is to turn inward, to take care of ourselves above our neighbors. We hoard the essentials we think will keep us safe, even if that means leaving our neighbor without. Lord, forgive us for our selfishness. Jesus, we pray that you might give us a supernatural strength and fortitude, to live like you in these difficult and trying times. We do not know what the future holds, but we do know that you will be with us every step of the way. Help us to lean on you, knowing that you are the Author and Protector of our faith and our lives.

Stuart Strachan Jr.