Prayers of Confession on Lent
Adapted from Psalm 32:1-7
Pastor: Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven; whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
All: For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.
Pastor: I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.
All: Therefore, let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found; surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him. You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.
Submitted by Dustin Ray
In this season of Lent, O God, unsettle us.
Increase in us that sense of gnawing that arises
from the incongruity between our lives and
the life to which you call us, and
transform us in newness. Amen.
A Prayer Of Letting Go
O God, help us to use this season of Lent
to examine our attachments,
and to sense where You invite us
to live more simply and deeply.
Shine the light of Your love
into the private corners of our lives
where we have acquired so much clutter
that it has begun to restrict our freedom.
Grant us the strength to free ourselves
from appetites and needs that drive us
into taking, having and wanting
more than we need or have time for.
Teach us that in letting go we become free,
rather than deprived,
generous rather than covetous,
and spacious rather than restricted.
We offer You our Lenten observance,
and today we place our feet
on the road to Easter, and walk
the Way that You have walked before us. AMEN
Ann Siddall, Stillpoint Spirituaity Centre
God of grace, we look to your son, today, who began his journey to the cross. As we trace his footsteps to Jerusalem, please give us your grace. For we know that we are called to follow Jesus, to carry our own crosses, to go where you lead. But we fail to follow you so often. Lord, please renew our resolve to follow you as we silently confess our sins to you now.
Time of silent reflection.
Submitted by Austin D. Hill
Almighty and merciful God, the fountain of all goodness, who knows the thoughts of our hearts:
We confess that we have sinned against you.
Wash us, we implore you, from the stains of our past sins.
Give us grace and power to put away all offenses,
Being delivered from the bondage of sin, may we bring forth fruits worthy of repentance, and at last enter into your promised joy;
Through the mercy of your blessed One, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Alcuin, adapted.
Jesus, cleanser of temples and souls,
at this mid-point in the Lenten journey,
look deep within our hearts and our lives,
and clear away all that holds us back.
May our minds, spirits and bodies
be a Temple that is open to Your presence:
and may our words and our actions be transparent
to Your love and truth.
We pray that this church community,
will be purified in its life and mission,
so that all that we do in and from here
may reveal Your Gospel to others.
In a moment of silence we sit before You,
and name those things for which we seek
Your cleansing and healing,
so that we may be more faithful disciples.
Silent Prayer
Amen.
Ann Siddall, Stillpoint Spirituaity Centre
O God, whose blessed Son did fast forty days and nights in preparation for his holy mission; beget in us, we beseech thee, the same desire which was in him to learn and do thy will. Forbid that through indulgence of the flesh we should dim our vision of thee and render ourselves unfit for thy service.
Give us grace to master our bodies and bring them into subjection to thy good purpose for us. Teach us by prayer and fasting to win self-control, that we may count ourselves wholly to thee and enter more and more into thy blessed kingdom through him who for our sake consecrated himself, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Ernest Fremont Tittle, A Book of Pastoral Prayers, Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, 1951.
Christianity began in a culture where “desert” and “wilderness” were familiar environments, both respected and feared as the place where angels and demons might be found. In wild, desolate places God’s people have been shaped by their struggles, and have found that rocks have yielded water, and manna has appeared on the ground.
Beware of the comfort of our lives, where we grow complacent and over -confident, and where discernment is limited to choosing which products to buy. Our journey may be into an inner desert: a place where motivation and desire is purified, and we find ourselves refined and strengthened in spirit. Jesus, whose formation included wilderness, will be at our side to pray for us, will wipe away our tears, and place bread into the hands which have clutched at stones.
Ann Siddall, Stillpoint Spirituality Centre
Repent and Return, a prayer of confession
Based on Joel 2:1-2, 12-17
ONE VOICE: Joel 2:13
Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful
ALL:
We drift away from our true home
We forget we are Your beloved
We forget we are not God
Rend our hearts, O God, as we repent and return
ONE VOICE: Joel 2:13
Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful
ALL:
We succumb to the temptations of money, sex, and power
We ignore the cries of our sisters and brothers
We focus only on ourselves
Rend our hearts, O God, as we repent and return
Time of silent confession
ONE VOICE:
Remember who you truly are
Let God be God in your life
Begin again with God
ALL:
No despair, for there is mercy
No fear, for there is grace
We return with all our heart
Lead us home, Lord
Lead us home
Repent and Return © 2016 Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia
Wilderness Prayer
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
Test our hearts
Have we exalted ourselves?
Have we forgotten you?
time of silent reflection and confession
Reveal the truth to us, O God
Exposed by your unrelenting light
Wiped clean with your Wilderness Wind
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
Looking for More Liturgical Elements?
Check out our Calls to Worship on Lent