Prayers of Confession on Sovereignty
Based on Psalm 2
King of kings and Lord of lords, today I am reminded of your preeminent sovereignty over all things, including me. Psalm 2 calls me to “kiss” you, to acknowledge your authority by submitting myself to you.
So, in obedience to your Word, I offer myself to you today. I surrender my agendas so that I might be devoted to your agenda. I confess my tendency to live as if I am the king of the universe. I commit myself to your glory and your ways. Wherever I am a leader, may I be, first and foremost, your follower, your servant.
I pray in the name of Jesus, the Son of God. Amen.
Adapted from Psalm 22:25-31
From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.
The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever!
All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord;
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.
For dominion belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
and I shall live for him.
Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord,
and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn,
saying that he has done it.
(Prayer of Adoration)
Lord of yesterday, today and tomorrow:
You alone rule the universe;
setting times and seasons according to Your will.
While nations and king come and go,
You, only, are King of kings and Lord of lords;
immortal and all-knowing,
never lacking power and wisdom.
You are strong; and you are good!
Therefore, we joyously and reverently call you God and King.
(Prayer of Confession)
Yet, in spite of all we know of You –
we are stubborn and rebellious still.
We think ourselves wise – disregarding Your truth.
We think ourselves strong – using violence to force our will.
We think ourselves right –writing-off others and refusing to
learn from them.
We think ourselves good – ignoring our corruption and evil;
pointing fingers and wagging tongues at others.
Forgive our arrogance minds, self-centeredness hearts
and ungracious spirits.
Take away our hearts of stone;
replace them with hearts of flesh,
hearts that best after Your own heart.
In silent moments, hear us confess what we’re too ashamed to name aloud – forgive and free us, Lord: (Silence)
Gracious God, You are sovereign and holy, compassionate and faithful. You created us to be in a loving relationship with You. You seek to shape us and guide us by Your perfect will. Yet, we rebel against Your will and seek our own way. We choose to follow our own desires, even when they are destructive. Our hearts are rebellious as we do what we think is right. You have called us to deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow You. Forgive us for missing the mark. Forgive us for slipping away. Forgive us for our sinful nature and action. Transform our lives by the power of Your Spirit. Redeem and restore us to glorify You.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
Adapted from the Brief Statement of Faith
In sovereign love, you O God created the world good
And make everyone equally in your image,
Male and female, of every race and people,
To live as one community.
But we rebel against you; we hide from you, our Creator.
Ignoring your commandments,
We violate your image in others and ourselves,
Accept lies as truth,
Exploit neighbor and nature,
And threaten death to the planet entrusted to our care.
We deserve your condemnation.
Let us continue to pray in silence, confessing our sins before God and asking for forgiveness.
Silent Prayer
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Submitted by Chip Hardwick
Almighty God, You have raised your Son Jesus from death to life, and crowned Him Lord of all. We confess that we have failed to bow before Him, or acknowledge His rule in our lives. Instead, we have followed the ways of the world, and failed to give Him the glory He deserves. Hear our confession, forgive us, and cleanse our hearts to worship You. Establish us as Your faithful people, who move and act in obedience and love, and in imitation of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church
Gracious God, sometimes I think that I can figure out all the consequences of my decisions. I can become overly impressed with what I perceive to be my strategic vision and analysis. Forgive me for my hubris, my arrogance, my foolishness.
Lord, please give me the humility before you, realizing that I cannot fully predict, much less control, the future.
Thank you, Lord, for the times when you redeem my mistakes, when you take the unintended and work it into your grand intentions for the world. Thank you for being a God who sees us, who is present, and who is ever merciful and gracious. Amen.
Merciful God, loving Father, you govern all things in heaven and on earth and make all things new through your almighty word. Transform our sinful nature and all that we do by the power of your Holy Spirit, that we may please you, and attain perfect joy. We silently confess our sins to you now…
Submitted by Austin D. Hill
Heavenly Father, it is astounding how many ways we find to doubt You. At times we doubt Your power and Your ability to do actual miracles in our lives. In other situations, we doubt that Your methods and solutions are indeed the best way to go. We fool ourselves into believing that our ways will be superior to Your ways. And, most importantly, we doubt that all You are doing for us is the result of a great love for us. Our heads believe in Your love, but our hearts are lagging behind. Have mercy upon us, Lord. Help us with our disbelief. Forgive us for looking through worldly eyes instead of asking You for heavenly vision. Thank You for Your endless grace and patience. More than anything, we want to walk in Your will. We pray all of this in the precious Name of Jesus. Amen.
Source Unknown
Gracious 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; 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
(Prayer of Adoration)
Good and Gracious Lord,
You hold us in the palm of Your strong hand,
working all things for our good and to Your glory.
There is no place we can go
that escapes your notice
and is hidden from your loving attention.
We are amazed by your power
and in awe of Your grace:
Your take what’s inadvertently or intentionally evil
and bend it to Your will and ways.
(Prayer of Confession)
We cover our sin.
Thinking we can hide from You.
we run, afraid you’ll find us out;
afraid that if you – or others – really knew us
no-one would love us.
We try to run our own lives,
and the lives of others,
attempting to be our own gods.
We love you too little,
we love others hardly at all,
and we love ourselves too much.
Hear our silent confession
and our whispers as we name our sin before You;
and, we pray, forgive us!
(Silence … 30-45 seconds)
(Prayer of Adoration)
Gracious God – our Father:
Sufficient and sovereign, yet, compassionate and kind;
You tell us the truth while the world lies to us;
You give us light and hope,
while all around us cast darkness and despair.
When we mess up our lives – you give us a new one.
When we lose our way – You find us and guide us home.
When we are cast out – You call us by name and take us in.
It’s no wonder we praise You.
It’s no wonder we love You.
(Prayer of Confession)
Yet sometimes we seek to steal Your glory,
to love ourselves and ignore You.
Forgive us – and in the quiet hear our heart’s confession
Of how we hurt others and dishonor You. (silence … )
Most holy God, we continuously lose sight of your sovereign rule over our world and in our lives, and our failing vision obscures every aspect of our lives. So we come to you for grace. Forgive us for losing sight of your grandeur. Forgive us for taking our sin lightly. We ask you to restore our vision of your eternal grandeur, and that you cover our sins by the perfect sacrifice of Christ. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.