Prayers of Confession on Ambition
Everyone: Holy God, we live our lives struggling in our own burdens and failing to trust You with all the things that hold us down.
Leader: Your Scripture says, “Come to Me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.”
Everyone: We chase material things and success that fades. We prioritize our schedules above our faith.
Leader: Your Scripture says, “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.”
Everyone: We live as if hope doesn’t exist. We fail to see the bigger picture of the needs of the world that You have called us to serve.
Leader: Your Scripture says, “He saved us and called us to a holy life – not because of anything we have done, but because of His own purpose and grace.”
Everyone: We carry grudges, avoid conflict, and live in dysfunctional relationships instead of seeking wholeness and reconciliation.
Leader: Your Scripture says, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you.”
Everyone: We don’t live as if Your promises are true. We don’t give You our whole lives and follow You in the gift of Your forgiveness.
Leader: Your Scripture says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but will have eternal life.”
Everyone: Help us to daily live in the gift of Your forgiveness. Help us to serve and live holy lives out of that gift. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
Gracious and loving God, we stand before You today as sinners in need of redemption and grace. So much of our time and energy goes into projecting positive images of ourselves. We want others to think that we are strong, smart, and independent. Our desire is for the people in our lives to see us as a “success.” And yet every single day we fail to do that which we know is right, and we continue to do that which we know is wrong. Forgive us and help us celebrate the fact that You loved us enough to sacrifice Your only Son on the cross and, as a result, we no longer need to impress You and others. We only need to follow the example that Christ set before us. Grant us the strength and courage to live and love each day as faithful followers. In Christ’s Name we pray. Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
O God of grace and truth: We confess it is all too easy for us to sacrifice convictions for convenience, standards for status, principles for promotion, absolutes for ambition. We are readily seduced by power and prestige, by pleasures and possessions. From what the world offers, we turn to You unfulfilled. Forgive our half-heartedness and our double-mindedness. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer. Renew and refresh us through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church