“Show us your ways O Lord . . . “ (Ps. 25 v. 4-5)
You have shown us a better way Lord. A way of
And you have shown us the way we should not go. A way of
Forgive our missteps and misdirection, and guide us into the better way.
Amen
Forgive us our inattention, Lord, to the suffering of others.
Forgive us our willingness to ignore oppression when it brings us economic gain.
Forgive us our inclination to hoard our time, talent, and treasure and to distract ourselves with trivial entertainments.
Open our eyes Lord. Show us how we can reallocate our wealth, and strengthen us to follow-through. (Lev. 25:8-17).
Open our hearts Lord. Teach us how to share and care for one another. (Acts 2:44-47, 4:32-35).
Open our minds Lord, that we might not be misled by the temptations of this world.
Help us to discern and pursue the riches of your kingdom that we might live in peace and prosper as one people, one country. (Luke 12:13-21, 1 Timothy 6:6-16, Proverbs 3:13-18, 27).
Forgive us, and guide us O Lord.
Amen
Free us from our fears O Lord, so that we might embrace the freedoms we have create our future.
Freedom to move beyond prejudice, beyond partisanship, beyond the old narratives of division and anger and loss.
Freedom to grow in relationship with others.
Freedom to learn and grow in wisdom and understanding
Redeem all of your children Lord, that we might heal from the sins of our past.
Release us from ties that too tightly bind us to ritual, to place, to power, to the familiar, so that we might explore and experience the beauty of all of your creation.
Forgive us and guide us, O Lord.
Amen
You my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature, rather serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. Galatians 5:13-15
Lord, we know that freedom isn’t free and democracy is not self-sustaining.
Both take courage, and persistence, and regard for others.
Help us to do our part.
Help us use our freedom not just to claim “liberty,” but to seek justice for all, to care for one another even if that means wearing a mask, and to reach across partisan divides with love and forgiveness.
Open our eyes and our hearts that we might free those who suffer in our economy from want and need and loss of opportunity, and find ways to prosper together.
Help us to seek your truth and serve you O Lord.
Amen
Lord, we know what to do for you have told us:
to love you and
to love others as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39);
to love even our enemies (Matthew 5:44);
to act justly, to love mercy, to follow with humility the path you set out (Micah 6:8);
to seek wisdom (Proverbs 3:11-24);
to do good and share with others (Hebrews 13:16);
to welcome the stranger and care for the poor (James 1:27, Zechariah 7:9-10);
to grow and bear the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-26).
But we have become polluted by the world (James 1:27),
aligned with those who divide (Romans 16:17),
entertained and misled by deceit and hypocrisy and slander (1 Peter 2:1),
entranced by the deceitfulness of wealth, and
overwhelmed by the demands of our daily lives (Matthew 13:22, Luke 8:14).
We have wandered from your ways.
Forgive us Lord.
Help us now to put our faith into action, and to build a better world.
Amen
Come Holy Ghost, Creator blest, and in our heart take up thy rest. Come with your grace and heavenly aid, And fill the hearts which you have made.
Come Holy Ghost, Pentecost Hymn, Rabanus Maurus, 776-856.
On this Pentecost Sunday, Lord, people are dying, cities are burning, and our future is uncertain.
For generations you have put before us both a path to peace and prosperity, and one that leads to destruction and death. (Deuteronomy 30:15, Acts 2: 28).
Too often Lord we choose the wrong way, and then having lost our way, we cry out in despair. (Judges 2-10).
Yet you are ever with us and hear our cry. Your love and forgiveness are everlasting. Let them guide us forward, loosening the grip of hate and fear, inequity and greed, to a better way.
Spirit of Truth, you live in us (John 14:17), guide us to your peace.
Amen
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
Lord, this pandemic has revealed our many failings.
We relied on our own wisdom, made our own plans.
We worshiped money, celebrity, and power and went the wrong way.
We embraced the cynical voices of folly and mockery.
We denied the poor and dismissed the needs of many who we now call essential workers.
We repent and seek your forgiveness Lord, as we celebrate the promise of new life brought through your death and resurrection.
Resurrect in us humility, the love of others, and trust in you.
Show us the hope of a better way, and help us to follow.
Amen
Hosanna! We praise your Holy Name.
Lord, you came to us not as a king but as a servant.
And showed us a way of mercy, of compassion, of healing from sin.
Forgive us for all the times we failed to heed your call.
Especially in these difficult times O Lord, remind us that there is life after death, and that evil can be overcome by good. (Romans 12:20).
Turn us O Lord, and guide us through that we may share your mercy and love, and rebuild our world so that all might thrive.
Amen
How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity. Ps. 133:1
Lord, how do we put our faith in action?
How do we speak up in the face of factions, fear, falsehoods, aggression, coercion, corruption, arrogance, or resentment?
How do we practice self-control, engage the generosity of your Spirit, listen, and forgive?
Show us Lord, the better way.
Amen
On this 4th of July as we think about our country’s past struggles, current condition, and future, we invite you to review and add your prayers to the following verses, most of which are adapted from the “Prayer For Our Nation” in the Lutheran Book of Worship:
Bless our land and people with honest industry, and an honorable way of life.
Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogance, and from every evil course of action.
Make us who come from many nations, with many different languages and cultures, a united people.
Let us provide a truthful education, and informed public discourse.
Give those whom we have entrusted with the authority of government the spirit of wisdom, that there might be justice and peace in our land.
Help us to understand and value our interdependence as much as our freedoms, and help us forgive and care for one another.
We need your help O Lord, and seek your guidance.
Amen
