Father,

We gather here in the name of Jesus Christ to worship.

We stand amazed at the privilege we have to come into your presence.

Lord, who are we that you should hear our prayers?

You created the universe, we are but a flower which blossoms and then dries up.

You have power and glory, we are but dust in the wind.

You are perfect and have glory, we are neither perfect, nor have any glory.

Indeed, Lord, it is not because of who we are that you open your ear to us and welcome us into your presence. It is because of who You are, the One true God who sent His sons as a ransom for sin.

And by your grace alone, in Christ, we stand before You saved, reconciled, righteous.

But Lord, we are still sinners. This is true every day, but even more today as we contemplate your word. We consider Lord the character of the person who comes into your presence as presented in the sermon on the mount.

Lord, we confess that we want to be appreciated by men more than we want to be appreciated by you. Lord, we fear men and what they can do to us. They can take our reputations, our careers, our children’s opportunities. They can our lives. And because we have a low opinion of You Lord we compromise your glory and trade it for human glory, seeking to protect ourselves and the ones we care for.

Lord, we confess that in our prayers we don’t truly seek your kingdom. Your kingdom appears far off and we think we have time to seek it later. In the meantime we seek other things that appear more attractive. We store treasures on earth Lord in search for security and glory, forgetting that whatever we accomplish with our own hands doesn’t last. Lord, we are double-minded and we set our eyes on conflicting goals.

Lord we confess we don’t forgive. Lord, forgiveness is too painful. Forgiveness creates moral hazard and we are afraid of being taken advantage of. We find ways to avoid the people who hurt us and to rationalize our actions as wisdom. We find lots of reasons why we are better than the other people and why we need to distance ourselves from them. We openly bow our heads in front of you, but secretly harbor bitterness.

Lord, we want to repent from these sins. We want to fear you most. We want to single mindedly seek your kingdom. We want to forgive. Would you please transform our hearts through the Holy Spirit to enable us to obey you. Have mercy on us Lord, transform us from the inside out!

Lord we are grateful for the Engage conference yesterday. Thank you that we could be challenged in our worldview and be pointed to the fact that missions are right in the center of your plan to glorify yourself. We thank you for the ways you have provided for Restoration to serve you among the nations. I pray that we would continue and increase.

Lord, it is quite amazing how you work life out of death. This was publicly portrayed to us when our Lord was crucified. His enemies and death did their best, but you used exactly that to accomplish your plans. And Lord we see glimpses of that today in various places.

We thank you Lord that you use the distress and death in the Middle East to bring people to you. Lord we pray for peace and for the end of death and destruction in that region. We pray for reconciliation. But we are happy to see how you use all that evil to advance the gospel and save people for yourself. Lord, I pray that the Gospel would spread in spite of the work of ISIS to destroy your people. I pray that the gospel would spread like fire in a dry wheat field. And we pray Lord that you protect and empower our brothers and sisters in that region. Give them faith to stand in the face of hunger, pain and death.

We are grateful for the opportunity to worship today unimpeded. We pray that you help us do so to the full.

In Christ,

Amen