Litany

God the Father,
have mercy on us.
God the Son,
have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit,
have mercy on us.

From all evil and rebellion;
from pride, self glorification, and hypocrisy,
from envy, hatred, and trouble making,
and from all evil intentions,

Good Lord, deliver us.

From laziness, love of money, and power,
from hardness of heart, greed, and unkindness,
and from raising our way of life above yours,

Good Lord, deliver us.

From misusing and abusing our bodies and minds,
from lying and not telling the whole truth,
from fear of opinion and rejection by others,

Good Lord, deliver us.

From violence, arguing, and gossip,
from being judgmental, unfair, and negative,
from insulting and lifting ourselves above others,

Good Lord, deliver us.

From distorted love, which drives every crooked desire,
from shallow obsessions with image, reputation, and talent,
from careless relationships, selfishness, and arrogance,

Good Lord, deliver us.

By the mystery of your beautiful incarnation,
by your prefect obedience in birth, life, and death;
by your temptation, humility, and resistance of evil,

Good Lord, deliver us.

By your passionate love in word and action,
by your mighty acts of service and power,
by your presence and teaching of God’s Kingdom,

Good Lord, deliver us.

By your agony, unjust trial, and suffering;
by your taking the sins of the world into your Jewish body,
by your brutal death and burial,

Good Lord, deliver us.

By your powerful and world re-creating resurrection,
by your glorious and radiant journey to heaven,
and by your gushing the Holy Spirit upon us,

Good Lord, deliver us.

***

Hear our prayers, O sweet loving God.
Hear us, good Lord.

Lead us and guide us each day,
lead us with clear thought, loving desire, and pure imagination;
lead us and teach us to love you and others with our whole lives.

Hear us, good Lord.

Help us to make good choices each day,
help us to call upon you amidst struggles and temptations;
help us to deny ourselves and find ourselves in you alone.

Hear us, good Lord.

Give us boldness and strength of heart to embody the Gospel;
give us creativity to communicate your love and truth to others;
and give us wisdom and clarity concerning the hurts of those around us.

Hear us, good Lord.

Give us ears to hear and eyes to see and receive your word,
give us the courage and desire to obey your transformative word,
give us the fellowship of the burning heart,
so that we might we hear you speak the scriptures to us.

Hear us, good Lord.

Speak your truth to us amidst our storms of confusion,
speak your hope to us on our plains of emptiness and boredom,
speak your love to us in our dark valleys of despair and insecurity,

Hear us, good Lord.

Release us from the slavery of endless cravings and addictions,
release us from the bondage of burning wrath and self-hatred,
release us from loving the creation more than you, O Splendid God.

Hear us, good Lord.

Teach us the way of sacrifice and generosity,
teach us to walk the path of humility and forgiveness,
teach us the glorious life of worship and prayer.

Hear us, good Lord.

Remind us to seek you when we are weak,
Remind us to return love for hatred,
Remind us that you are Lord and we are not.

Hear us, good Lord.

***

Give us the power to turn away from choices that lead to chaos,
forgive our ignorant and intentional sins,
and give us the grace of your Holy Spirit,
that our broken lives might be amended–
by your promise of new creation.

Sweet God,
Pure and Holy,
Beautiful and Strong,
Faithful and True,
have mercy on us all.