Prayer for January 22-28, 2012

Text: Mark 1:14-20

That we may tell the freedom, joy, meaning and peace You have given us

Jesus, Messiah, we have heard your announcement that God is near and have opened our hearts to welcome You.

We have heard your call to repentance and we have turned from the various sins that have diminished and enslaved us—turned to You and obeyed your command and experienced abundant freedom and joy in your presence.

Even now, when You expose some sin in our lives, we hear and answer your call to repentance as an invitation to true freedom.

We have heard your call to believe the good news and have trusted You in the midst of many challenges. How often, when our faith has begun to cool, You have shown your presence and your power and ignited a deeper trust within us.

We have heard your call to follow You, and we have followed You through dark valleys and deep mysteries, through seasons of sorrow and joy, awaiting your guidance before turning to the left or to the right.

When we have strayed, You have called to us and reached out your hand for us, and led us back into your way.

We have heard your call to invite and draw others into your presence, and, we confess that we have sometimes been slow to speak, timid in the face of resistance and opposition whether anticipated or real.

We would follow You in this task that expresses the heart of your love for a world that is reluctant to acknowledge You. Give us boldness. Give us words to express the freedom, joy, meaning and peace we have experienced in your presence. Fill us with love for others that reflects your own great love for them. Amen.

Note: we did not use this prayer in our Sunday worship.