Prayers of Confession on Goodness
Heavenly Father
We confess before you and before one another that we do not always trust your goodness.
We are worried about losing control of our lives, and we are scared of what taking up our cross
would mean. Give us confidence in your love for us, so that we are not afraid of rejection by others. Give us faith in your forgiveness so that we can admit our mistakes and be free of the desire to seem like we get everything right.
Give us faith in your forgiveness so that we can treat our leaders with love and mercy. And give us the courage to take up our cross and walk the difficult path of justice, mercy and humility.
Empower us with your Holy Spirit to live as your sons and daughters.
Through Jesus Christ we pray.
Amen.
Jacob Traeger
Almighty God, you created us good, but by our sin, we have corrupted that goodness. Through our sinful nature, our default way of life is rejection of you, living for self, and doing what’s easiest. We are sorry for assuming we can save ourselves. Please show us our absolute need for you as we silently confess our sins to you now…
Austin D. Hill
Lord, only You are significant enough to deserve glory. So why do we desire glory for ourselves? Lord, to know You is to have eternal life. So why are we satisfied with worldly wisdom and living in the moment? Through Jesus, we receive the love of the Father. So why do we hunger for the love of the world? Our desires are no longer trustworthy guides to goodness, and what seems natural to us no longer corresponds to Your design. Lord, Forgive us for our failures, overhaul the desires of our hearts, and grant us greater trust in Jesus, our Savior. Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
Faithful God, we confess that we try to carry more than you ask and work hard to have our way. Help us to see and believe your goodness. Help us to lean into you and to trust that your strength will hold. Then, may our lives be a picture for others of you are faithful love.
Submitted by Laura Murray
Heavenly Father, we confess that we often place our hopes in the powers that we see in the world, allowing ourselves to be lifted and brought down by people and institutions that are flawed and fleeting. We also confess that we do not always seek the goodness and opportunity that you may allow those powers to bear. Help us to become faithful citizens who focus on your Kingdom while seeking your will in our own. Hear our prayers as we continue our confession in silence…
Submitted by Allen Thompson
Lord, you tell us in your word that when we know the good we ought to do and fail to do it, we are in sin. Can we truly know the extent of our need for your grace? Are we conscious of the multitude of missed opportunities and instances where we failed to respond to your call? We take this moment to pause and consider together our need for your forgiveness. We silently confess to you the times when we have failed to go where you have sent us…
Time of silent reflection and confession..
Submitted by Austin D. Hill
We praise You for Your goodness and love. Forgive and correct the wrong we have done. We have turned from the way of Your Son Jesus, and we have not cared for our neighbors. We have permitted pride to blind and anger to burn. We have failed to live the new life You have given us. We come to You with little to offer except our sin, and we seek Your mercy through Jesus Christ our Lord. In His name we pray. Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
(Prayer of Adoration)
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.
Eternal and loving Father, You comfort, support, and encourage us. Your goodness and kindness go beyond our understanding. Your grace is richer and deeper than we can begin to comprehend. Yet despite Your gracious love and faithful care, we seek to go our own way and to trust our own resources. Time after time, we choose our plans over Your will. Over and over again, our pride, self-reliance, and self-centeredness lead us astray. We confess we are sinners in need of forgiveness. We admit we are flawed, broken people in need of mercy. Through the person and work of Jesus Christ, forgive us for all the times we have failed You. Cleanse our hearts, and make them fresh and new. Renew our minds for Your Kingdom’s sake. Empower us to be Your Son’s disciples for His glory. We pray through Jesus Christ our Lord, in the power of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
Gracious God, on Sundays we come to this place and you fill us up with your goodness and light and we are renewed. But when we go out into the world, we fall short in so many ways. We confess that we are easily influenced by temptations and we fall prey to all kinds of sins. We are broken people who constantly lose focus on the cross of Christ. Forgive us for taking for granted the gift of the sacrifice of Your Son on our behalf. Thank you for being the Good Shepherd who always brings us back. Please transform our hearts and lives to live every day in the image of Your Son, Jesus. In Whose name we pray, Amen.
Heavenly Father, we confess that in our pursuit of good, we often miss opportunities to bring you honor and glory. We try to address our shortcomings by compensating for them, rather than by orienting around your will. We seek what seems higher to us rather than what is holy to you. Help us to first seek your Kingdom, and to put your glory ahead of our own. Hear our prayers as we continue our confession in silence…
Submitted by Allen Thompson
Dear Lord, we praise You and thank You for Your goodness and grace for creating us and putting us in the world; Truly, You have supplied us with all we need and more in order to live the abundant life with You. Our cup overflows. Nevertheless, we confess we do not live as redeemed sinners. We still hesitate to trust in Your loving plan for our lives. Our overwhelming concern revolves around our own needs rather than those of others. We say we love You with our lips when our hearts are often far from You. We humbly ask for Your forgiveness. Help us to turn toward You and receive Your pardon, Your strength, and Your hope. This we receive with great gratitude. In Christ’s Name, we pray. Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
Gracious God,
our hearts are often divided between what is good and what is evil.
Not one of us is pure in heart yet we long to have a whole heart.
Submitted by Laura Murray
Lord of Hosts, we remember the words of your servant, James: whoever knows the good they ought to do and does not do it, sins. Oh Lord, have mercy on us. Too often we have failed to act when the world needed us. Too often we have ignored the voices of the marginalized. Too often we have failed to proclaim the truth in love. Please forgive us for our inaction. In the silence, we consider the people we could have served but chose to ignore. We confess those memories to you now…
Austin D. Hill
Almighty and Merciful God, the Fountain of all goodness, who knows the thoughts of our hearts, we confess to you that we have sinned against you, and done evil in your sight. Wash us, we pray, from the stains of our past sins, and give us grace and power to put away all hurtful things; so that, being delivered from the bondage of sin, we may bring forth the worthy fruit of repentance.
O Eternal Light, shine into our hearts. O Eternal Goodness, deliver us from evil. O Eternal Power, be our support. Grant that with all our hearts, and minds, and strength, we may ever more seek your face. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Albinus Flaccus Alcuinus, Language Modernized by Stuart Strachan Jr.
Gracious God, we know Your Word, and value Your love, but we don’t find it natural to trust Your purposes, especially when tests and trials interrupt our plans. When we doubt Your goodness, forgive us. When we question Your loving presence, forgive us. Remind us of the trials and tests You faced, taking our sin to the cross so that we might be reconciled to You now and forever. Renew us in the grace and strength of the Holy Spirit, through Christ our Lord we pray, Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
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