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call to confession / declaration of forgiveness

Confession: Choose Life

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On our journey with God, we often make mistakes, and hurt each other. By acknowledging these mistakes, and asking for forgiveness, we work to heal that pain, and reconcile with each other and with God. Let us join together in prayer:

Holy and Beloved God, you have blessed us with life itself – and yet, we choose to walk away from you again and again. We get engrossed in the small details and the broad strokes, and lose track of you as the artist. We say we want to be your disciple, but we chase after dreams that you tell us to ignore, and ignore your call to act in love in the world. Help us to turn our hearts back to you. Help us give our whole attention and whole self to you, as Jesus told us to do. Help us to choose life in you over all else. Hear the words of our hearts as we lift up silent prayers.

No matter how often we forget God’s presence, or choose to follow our own paths and dreams, God calls out to us to return to the path, that God has already forgiven us, and that Jesus is waiting for us with open arms.

May we love God and each other as much as God loves us! Amen.

 

Submitted by Rev. Lucus Levy Keppel, Trinity Presbyterian Church, Bixby, OK

(Based on Deut. 30, and Luke 14, for Proper 19 (Sept 4, 2016))

Confession: wild grapes

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Prayer of Confession            from Isaiah 5:1-6

Beloved, God, you had a vineyard on a very fertile hill.  You dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines. You built a watchtower in the midst of it, and hewed out a wine vat in it.

You expected it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes.

What more could you do for your vineyard that you had not done in it?

When you expected it to yield grapes, why did our lives yield wild grapes?  What now will you do, Lord?

We confess that we stray from the way you call us, choosing to trust in what is temporary:

do not remove your hedge, or we shall be devoured.

We confess that we build our own walls through injustice and indifference to others:

do not break down your wall, or we shall be trampled down.

We confess that we are destroying this earth you created:

do not make it a waste.

When we confess are many sins to you, Lord, may the Spirit of Truth change our hearts:

prune us so that we shall not be overgrown with briers and thorns.

When we cry out to you in humility:

send your living water so that we may be cleansed. 

 

Assurance         from John 15:7

Hear the words of Jesus:  “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”  When we offer our confession to God with a humble and contrite heart, we will receive forgiveness.

In Jesus Christ we are forgiven!

confession: impatient, overwhelmed, and frustrated

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Prayer for Confession (Unison)
Gracious God, we pray for new understanding
because we are tormented by our doubts and mistakes.  
We confess that we have been impatient with your ways.
We have not trusted your wisdom but have insisted on our own ways. We have been so overwhelmed and frustrated by what does not make sense that we have denied your righteousness and your salvation. We have ignored your glory.
We have dismissed your love. Forgive us, Gracious God.
Grant us new understanding.
 
Affirmation of God’s Grace (Responsive)
Leader: Beloved in Christ, believe in the good news.
For God’s love is made manifest in our flesh.
God’s love has been poured over us with
wisdom and understanding.
 People: We belong to God. Alleluia! Amen.
Submitted by Rev. Elsa Peters.

confession: verbs

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Call to Confession

As we continue the season of Christmas,
let us confess our sins,
our actions and our inactions,
that are contrary to the kingdom of the newborn King.

Prayer of Confession (Responsive)

Almighty God,
The verbs of Psalm 147 remind us of your actions:
you strengthen, bless, grant, fill, send, give, make, and declare.
But we confess that our verbs do not always match yours:
we argue, fight, lie, steal, oppress, ignore, refuse, and silence.

    Forgive us, Lord, for what we’ve done to tarnish your holy name.
Give us courage, merciful God, to make our actions match yours.
Help us to shed our sin and join you in your redemptive work.
This we pray in your good and gracious name.  Amen.

Assurance of Pardon

The prophet Jeremiah reminds us that our sin does not have the final word.
God will turn our mourning into joy, God will comfort us,
God will give us gladness for sorrow.
Friends, in the name of the Jesus Christ, you and I are forgiven!
Alleluia!  Amen!

Submitted by Rev. Stephen M. Fearing, Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, NY

confession: clothe yourselves

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Call to Confession

Christ has been born and has come before us.
Now let us come before him and confess that which we have done
that is contrary to his peaceful kingdom on earth.

Prayer of Confession

    We are told by your holy word to clothe ourselves
with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.
But too often we clothe ourselves with hurtful garments;
we clothe ourselves instead with stubbornness, selfishness,
impatience, rudeness, and apathy.
Help us to clothe ourselves with love
that the peace of your son might rule in our hearts.
This we pray in your merciful and forgiving name.  Amen.

Assurance of Forgiveness

    Hear the Good News of the Gospel:
God has broken into our broken world
and saved us from ourselves.
With God’s help,
we are now able to put on clothes of righteousness and justice.
In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.  Alleluia!  Amen!

Submitted by Rev. Stephen M Fearing, Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, NY.