Matthew 11

Call to Reconciliation  

We come to this moment with our own personal baggage, our histories, our experiences.  God invites us to come as we are, and unburden ourselves of our past and know that we are forgiven.

 Let us pray.

Prayer of Confession

We want to be people of trust, O God,

But we are fragile people who have known pain and loss, and therefore, fear.

We fear for ourselves and those we love.

We fear for our country and our neighbors.

We fear for our planet and our climate,

We fear for our politics and our divisions.

We fear for our economy,

We fear change — and everything is changing.

In this moment, we unburden our fears to You.

Give us the courage to trust, we pray.  Amen.

Silent Confession

Now, let us take a moment in silent prayer, so that we can confess our sins against God and our neighbor.

(wait for 3 breaths)

Assurance of Forgiveness

Hear the Good News:  God, our Maker, Jesus our Teacher, the Spirit our Advocate, the Triune God is for us, not against us.

We are forgiven!  Thanks be to God!

submitted by Rev. Steven Kurtz, Central Presbyterian Church, Fort Smith, AR