One of the easiest liturgical elements to gloss over in America is the confession of sin. It doesn’t seem “positive” enough for the kind of Christianity we see around us. The Christian radio stations pride themselves on being family-friendly and “upbeat.” But there is nothing upbeat about confessing sin.
But it is vital and life-giving, because we learn to approach God in humility, not thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought. We learn how to put no confidence in our own abilities to bring about change, to cultivate goodness in our own strength. We learn to come to God with empty, expectant hands. And we find that in our confession and by his grace, he takes our weakness, brokenness, and sin and begins the work of transformation in our lives so that truth and goodness come to characterize us more and more.
So I always love finding a great confession prayer, something that cuts to the root issues of our lives and doesn’t skirt around them with vague language. The confession below is one such prayer (ht).
Eternal God, you asked for our hands, that you might use them for your purpose; but we gave them for a moment, then withdrew them, for the work was hard.
You asked for our mouths to speak out against injustice; but we gave you whispers that we might not be accused.
You asked for our eyes to see the pain of poverty; but we closed them, for we did not want to see.
You asked for our lives, that you might work through us; but we gave a small part, that we might not get too involved.
Lord, forgive our calculated efforts to serve you – only when it is convenient for us to do so, only in those places where it is safe to do so, and only with those who make it easy to do so.
Father, forgive us, renew us, and send us out as usable instruments, that we might take seriously the meaning of your cross. Amen.
A contemporary confession of sin
from the Worship Sourcebook #35, p 98.
What kinds of practices do you engage in to keep your heart humble and soft in confession?
**Bonus points if you can name the movie the photo above is taken from.
Thanks for the prayer; it is great. By the way, I think we discussed the Aggelos Training awhile back on here. I went this past May and it was great. We're working on a plant here in the Syracuse, NY area. But back to prayer…If you have never read Robert Benson's little book called "In Constant Prayer" you should. It's on the daily office and is a gem of a book. I'm always looking for more prayer aids, so thanks again for this prayer. By the way, it's from The Goonies, my favorite movie. That scene is great.
Thanks for the recommendation, Scott. Another prayer book I just picked up is the Paraclete Psalter. Essentially it's a way to pray through all 150 Psalms every four weeks, doing four daily offices of prayer (Morning, Midday, Evening, Bedtime).
Keep me in the loop with what you're doing in Syracuse! I'd love to see what's going on there. I'm glad you found the training helpful. (And you can't go wrong listening to Fitch talk!)
Thanks for the book recommendation. I'm a bit of a bibliophile. I saw a t-shirt once that said, "Librarians: they're novel lovers." Pretty funny. Anyways…I'll keep you in the loop about what's happening with us here in the Syracuse area. Hopefully, we'll see each other at some Ecclesia event or something. And, yes, Fitch was well worth the 8.5 hour drive. Blessings.
Apologizing to my kids — and really explaining how I was wrong. They seem to delight in it.
And Goonies, so obvious! Of course, we did grow up together. So maybe we're the only ones that watched it 327 times?
Ha! That is so true (about the kids delighting in parental apologies). But so important, I've found that to be true.
Bonus points for Kim and Scott!!
man. i found this and immediately had to stop and bury myself face down for a while. wow. thanks for sharing.
found your site via jon chandler – glad i did. blessings on you and yours.
Thanks for stopping by, Justin! Hope to hear your voice around here more often.
DUH GOONIES. Hey brother
Not hard, I know. It was funny to remember that "confession," though! Hey brother.
Hi Ben – I'm a Pastor in northern Illinois – formerly on staff at Christ the King, a 3DM chruch in Houston – came across your blog entirely by accident while looking for a fresh confession. Found this one, made a few edits to catch our church's voice, and am grateful!
Glad for that, Rick!