Opening Prayer You, O God my Savior, have called me, and Christ Jesus is my hope -I Timothy 1:1 (silent reflection) Prayer of the Bible I cry aloud to the Lord; I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy. I pour out before him my complaint; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way. I cry to you, Lord; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me. Set me free from my prison, that I may praise your name. -Psalm 142: 1-3, 5-7 (Free expression of praise and thanksgiving to God) Confession of Sin Oh Lord, forgive me all my sin and help me so that I may produce fruit in keeping with repentance. Amen -Matthew 3:8 (Time of silence for confession of sin) The Words of Jesus “Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father. In that day you will ask in my name. I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. -John 16: 25-27 (Think deeply on these life-giving words of Jesus) Prayers for Ourselves and Others Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, -Ephesians 6:18 (Time to bring before God our own needs and the needs of others) Closing Prayer Lord, we would like to change the world – make it a little simpler for people to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves as You intended for them to do.…We can, to a certain extent, change the world; we can work for the oasis, the little cell of joy and peace in a harried world. We can throw our pebble in the pond and be confident that its ever widening circle will reach around the world. We repeat, there is nothing that we can do but love, and, dear God, please enlarge our hearts to love each other, to love our neighbor, to love our enemy as well as our friend. Amen -Dorothy Day (1897-1980) |