We are called to freedom,
brothers and sisters;
let us now practice that freedom
and pray for one another.

God of Good Things,
Bring joy where we are destitute;
bring peace where we are anxious.
Where we need patience and kindness,
give us opportunities to practice them.

When our hands are clenched with fear;
ease them open with Your generosity and faithfulness.
When we are tempted to berate others or ourselves,
whisper words of gentleness and self-control.
So that we may live entirely from Your love.

Leader: Lord, in Your mercy

All: Hear our prayer

God Who Leads Us,
We have always looked
to other people for answers;
strong leaders to whom we can pledge our allegiance.

Let us forsake that precedent
and follow only You
Let us not seek after power,
whether it be political, spiritual, organizational;
Instead, let us choose to follow You.

To let You so fill our vision
that we follow You wherever You may go.
To the wild and haunted places,
to the banal and dreary places,
and to all the unmemorable places in between.
Wherever You are,
let us call that “home.”

Leader: Lord, in Your mercy

All: Hear our prayer

God of Presence,
You are not a fickle god
who grades us on how hard we perform our worship.
You are The Good Parent.

You hear Your children when we ask,
no matter how imperfectly.
Even when words fail us,
You still hear us.

You do not sit above and wait
for the right incantation to summon You.
You are with us now and always,
whether we feel You or not.

We thank You that You hear these petitions
which we now speak, either silently or aloud.

[Silence]

This world is a gift,
a masterpiece of Your creation.
As we come to Your table
and then go out of this place,
we pray for this world and all the people in it,
especially the least of these,
—the You In Human Form—
those among us who are suffering,
and the persecuted Church worldwide.

All this we ask through Christ, our Lord. Amen.