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God is faithful and asks us to be faithful as well. We seek God’s way, recognizing that we are hindered by the baggage we carry along on the journey. When we confess our sin, we offer that burden to Christ, and make room for the Spirit’s work in our hearts, minds, and lives. Before God, with the people of God, let us confess to our brokenness. Let us pray.
submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, the Presbyterian Church of Palatine, IL
One: You call us to follow, not just your footsteps
but your way of life and your way of thinking.
All: Yet when you ask us what we are talking about amongst ourselves, we fall silent.
One: The things that occupy our thoughts
are not the things that occupy yours.
All: We are full of concern about:
Money. Perfect family. Power.
Body type. Privilege. Big Names.
Good grades. Friends. Nice car.
Winning teams. Good job. Big house.
Recognition. Followers. Fame.
Vacation. Honor.
One: You are full of concern about
grace, love, justice, peace, hope, transformation.
About feeding the hungry, offering rest to the weary,
and ending oppression.
Your life and work seem so opposite
to the way the world works.
All: Your thoughts and ways are not our thoughts and ways, O God.
One: And so we remain silent, or worse, we rationalize our way.
All: Help us, Lord, to turn toward your way,
to fill our minds with your thoughts,
to fill our hearts with your love,
to fill our footsteps with your will.
Guide us as we seek your vision of success,
though it will mean letting go of our own.
We pray in the name of the One who turned success upside down.
Amen.
Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, Ridgefield Crystal Lake Presbyterian Church, Crystal Lake IL.
God, you call to us, but often we do not listen.
We are so busy speaking, we forget that conversations go two ways.
We are so busy looking for what we want, we forget to look for what you want.
Quiet our fear, our greed, and even our uncertainty,
that we may seek you, and hear you, and know you.
Forgive us our one-way conversations, our short-sighted solutions, our narrow fields of vision.
When we look only for answers, sit beside us as a friend in the questions.
When we look only for our desires, walk with us through your beautiful yet broken world.
When we look only for our own ways, open our eyes to your way,
and bring us to true life with you, today and every day.
We pray in the name of the One who lives and breathes among and within us. Amen.
Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, Ridgefield-Crystal Lake Presbyterian Church, Crystal Lake IL.
Thanks to Teri’s CTW (people on the way) for the thematic inspiration 🙂
Listen to the good news!
We are people on the way…
We are people whom God refuses to abandon
when we choose the destructive way in our moments of weakness.
We are people on the way to lives of faith, hope, and love…
Lives of justice, mercy, and humbleness.
We are people on the way…
So let’s sing and give thanks to God!
Submitted by Rev. Teri Peterson, Ridgefield-Crystal Lake Presbyterian Church
One: Celebrating, living, journeying
All: We are people on the way.
One: Fighting, caring, challenging
All: We are people on the way.
One: Hurting, believing, exploring
All: We are people on the way.
One: Sharing, understanding, nurturing
All: We are people on the way.
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