Prayer of Confession, OT26B

Call to Confession

Whoever says to the wicked, “You are in the right,” will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations, but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, and a good blessing will come upon them. (Proverbs 24:24-25) Let us confess our sin before God and receive God's mercy and God's blessing.

Prayer of Confession, OT26B

We do not like it, Lord,
when others disagree with us,
when the world laughs at our bravado,
when strangers refuse to bow
to our way of being in the world.
We hiss
and rare
and lash out defensively
with angry words
and untruths,
and we rally our troops around us
on the basis of sheer
narcissism, and self-righteousness.
Our egocentric attitudes
block out any and all ability
to see other humans
as children of God,
and we pray for their destruction,
for their demise,
and for our own victory.
Almighty God,
open our eyes to our own ignorance.
Forgive our single-minded self-centeredness,
and open our eyes
to the lies we have perpetuated
as truth.
Transform our hearts, O merciful God,
before we destroy ourselves
and others with us,
that hope will reign,
and your eternal glory
will be made known throughout the earth.

Assurance of God's Grace

If it had not been the Lord who was on our side— let Israel now say— if it had not been the Lord who was on our side when people rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their anger was kindled against us; (Psalm 124:1-3) In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven. Thanks be to God!

Since we have been forgiven in Christ, let us also forgive one another. The peace of Christ be with you.
Please extend the peace of Christ to those whom you encounter this day ... especially those with whom you disagree.