Prayers of Confession on Putting God in a Box

Please forgive us, O Lord, for we often forget how powerful you are. You are the potentate of time, yet we think we rule our lives. We are sorry for creating images of you that are smaller than reality. Please show yourself to us as we silently confess our sins to you now…

Submitted by Austin D. Hill

Forgive us, O God, when we limit you –
When we remake you in our image,
When we claim our causes as your own,
When we box you in,
And explain you away,
And in our attempts at understanding, whittle away all mystery.
Forgive us for our human impulses, and change us:
Awaken us to your blinding glory,
Confound us by your love,
Shower us with grace so that we will be made new,
Recreated in your image,
Grateful for all that we cannot know.
In the name of Christ, who brought us closer to you, we pray. Amen.

Beth Merrill Neel, Blog: ‘Hold Fast to What Is Good’.  Used with permission.

Almighty God, we, too often, live in fear. Fear drives our self-preservation, our self-centered decisions, and prevents us from comprehending the wonder of your presence among us. Like Peter, we would desire to build a box in which to adore you in a way that assuages our fear, increases our control, and defines our comprehension of who we think you are. The metamorphosis on the Mt. of Transfiguration is too terrifying for us. While we repose amazed at the immanence of the incarnation in the birth of God, we are repelled by the transcendent, mind-altering glory of the transfiguration. Forgive us for the way in which we limit our understanding and allegiance to you by our fear of your glorious preeminence. We prefer a tamed god rather than one whose Shekinah comes with pillars of fire by night and clouds by day, of a brother who walks with us with dirty feet and soiled clothes rather than one whose garments brilliantly gleam with the radiance of the Father God. Today, may we live in freedom to follow this glorious God-Man whose radiance shines amidst the gloom and darkness of sin, immanent and transcendent in life, death, and resurrection. Amen.  

Scott Bullock  

Divine Creator, your ways are above our ways. No matter how hard we try, you will always confound us. Too often we try to reduce you into something we can fully comprehend, or something we can control. Lord of all, please give us humility as we come to you in silent confession…

Submitted by Austin D. Hill

God of all times and places, we confess that we try to limit our exposure to you. We try to limit your presence to a tidy little box, safely tucked away where we can pull you out as needed. We try to limit your influence to our spare time, anything that is left over after we do the truly important things. Remind us, O God, that you are bigger than any box and more important than anything else we place before you. Amen.

Cody Sandahl