Jesus, you loved us in the beginning
and you loved us to the end.
Even on the night you were betrayed,
you took a towel, and washed our feet.
We confess that we are reluctant to think of you
doing such a humble task, least of all for us.
Like Peter, we protest.
Here’s a prayer for the corners of my mind
littered with unfinished business—
hopes squashed decades ago,
orphan words that never had a listening ear,
yearnings unhinged, glances missed,
potential unrealized,
torn maps of roads not taken.
In lonely moments, if you listen closely,
you can hear regret gnawing away there
sharpening its teeth on yesterday’s sorrows.
God, you great Searcher of our hearts,
is this the place where remorse begins?
You know our lives through and through.
You’ve seen the wrongs we try to hide,
the wrongs we dare to do in plain sight
and the wrongs we don’t even notice.
As we pause in the awareness of your gaze on us,
is this the place where repentance begins?
God our Hope, be our guide in all the terrains of sinfulness.
When sin is glittering, and we have eyes for nothing else
and are oblivious to consequences;
be with us then.
When sin is disguised, and we do wrong things thinking they are right
because we are entirely misguided;
be with us then.
When sin is justified, and we know something is wrong
but we find a million reasons why we can do it;
be with us then.
When sin is a category we reject, and we follow our own way
You are the God who hears:
hear our prayer today for all who lament or repent.
For those among us who face discrimination every day
because of their skin colour,
we lament.
For those among us with white skin who benefit
from racist systems sometimes even without realizing it,
we repent.
For those among us who have struggled and waited so long
for the Promised Land of freedom and equality,
we lament.
We confess that we sometimes forget how to say thank you;
we get used to saying, “I earned this,”
thinking we have only ourselves to thank.
We confess that we are sometimes too jealous to be thankful;
we compare ourselves to others who have more, “Why do they get everything?”
and we rarely compare ourselves to those who have less.
We confess that we are sometimes too busy to be thankful;
we asked ourselves this morning, “Do I have time to go to church?”
and even in worship we are thinking about our to-do lists.
od, we come in prayer to you burdened with our unhappy business:
all the deeds done under the sun that we would rather not remember,
the sound of sin in our world.
The explosions caused by bombs made in our own factories.
The cries of the hungry that are not fed in our own communities.
Our own hurtful words hurled at those we love.
The echoing silence of creatures who we have driven to extinction.
Hearer of all, you know too clearly the sorrows of our world!
Forgive us our sins, and help us right the wrongs we’ve done….
Lord, you give us choices each and every day.
This week we have seen your path,
and turned away from it.
We have seen our brother or sister in need
and we did not turn to help.
Lord, have mercy.
We have said cruel or unkind words,
or refrained from saying helpful words
when they were needed.
Lord, have mercy.
We have been critical of those
God of love, wrap your arms around children who are hiding
from the violence of our families or our communities.
God of justice, cast your eyes on our hidden deeds done in darkness,
so that we may be convicted of our sin and turn to you in repentance.
God of creation, lend your strength to the hidden rhythms of our world,
to restore its natural balance and harmony.
God of comfort, bring healing to the sick and grieving in our midst
so that they may feel your peace in stormy times.
God of hope, speak your words of light to the despairing among us,
even to those who hide that darkness deep within themselves.
God of all ages, hear the hidden prayers of our hearts,
I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.
I love to write and to lead worship! If you are finding my writing helpful, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to use or adapt the material here, it is all written by me. If printing material, please credit “Copyright Carol Penner www.leadinginworship.com” (and say whether you modified it). If publishing, please contact me for permission. Contact me at carol@leadinginworship.com
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