Morning Litany for Lent

Lenten wreath from http://www.weelittlemiracles.com/2011/03/idea-for-your-family-this-lent.html

As Lent begins I thought that some of you would appreciate this litany which I wrote a few years ago for Lent. Tomorrow I will post the evening litany as well.

Morning Prayer for Lent – A Litany of Repentance

God, all-loving and all-caring,

We come before you with hesitant steps and uncertain motives,

Our hearts are parched from wandering in a desert of sin.

We want to sweep out the corners where sin has accumulated,

And uncover the places where we have strayed from your truth,

Our hearts are parched from wandering in a desert of sin.

We ask for courage to open our eyes and unstop our ears,

That we may be aware of all that distracts us from a whole-hearted commitment to Christ,

Our hearts are parched from wandering in a desert of sin.

We want to see ourselves as you do and live our lives as you intended,

Expose in us the empty and barren places where we have not allowed you to enter,

Our hearts are parched from wandering in a desert of sin.

Reveal to us our half-hearted struggles,

Where we have been indifferent to the pain and suffering of others,

Our hearts are parched from wandering in a desert of sin.

Create in us a clean heart, O God, and put a right Spirit within us,

Nurture the faint stirrings of new life where your spirit has taken root and begun to grow,

Our hearts are parched from wandering in a desert of sin.

We long for your healing light to transform us into the image of your Son,

For you alone can bring new life and make us whole,

In your mercy, shine upon us, O God, and make our path clear before us.

Pause to remind yourself of your own brokenness and need for repentance

God of mercy, come,

Into the hidden places of our hearts,

Forgive our sins and make us whole.

Christ of compassion, come,

Into the broken places of our world,

Bring us to repentance and renew us.

Spirit of life, come,

Into the polluted places of our lives,

Have mercy on us and draw us close.

Son of the living God, Christ crucified

Forgive us, heal us, redeem us,

Lead us from death to eternal life.

Read scriptures for the Day from Daily Lectionary

Pause to reflect on the scriptures to think about those things that vie for your attention and distract you from a whole-hearted commitment to Christ.

Things that clutter and consume,

We lay them down.

Attitudes that separate and divide,

We lay them down.

Thoughts that confuse and disrupt,

We lay them down.

Into the cycle of living and dying and rising again,

We lay them down.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours. Now and forever. Amen.

(Pause to offer up your own prayers of intercession)

God, you are good and upright, and you instruct sinners in your ways,

Show us how to break down the barriers separating us from each other,

Lead us through the wilderness sin has created to find new life.

Forgive us for the times we have abandoned the poor, the disabled, and the homeless,

Teach us to live by the law of love in unity, peace, and harmony.

Lead us through the wilderness sin has created to find new life.

Forgive us for the ways we exclude people of different race, culture, or gender,

Guide us that we may come to mutual understanding and care.

Lead us through the wilderness sin has created to find new life.

Draw us into your community to embrace those with whom we need to be reconciled,

Grant that all who seek to heal divisions between peoples may have hope.

Lead us through the wilderness sin has created to find new life.

Show us your ways, O Lord,

Teach us your paths and guide us towards your truth.

Lead us through the wilderness sin has created to find new life.

Pause to offer your own prayers of repentance and forgiveness

Go into the day knowing your life has been touched by the triune God.

Let the God of creation breathe on you,

Let the God of life sustain you,

Let the God of all Gods grant you forgiveness.

We are cleansed by the mercy of God,

We are surrounded by the love of Christ,

We are filled with the power of the Spirit.

Amen.