Ash Wednesday Prayer

lenten-prayers.jpg


by Cynthia Langston Kirk

Patient and Forgiving One,
help us to pray not for show or accolades,
but constantly listening for your still, small voice.
Help us to fast not for attention,
but as one way of emptying ourselves
that you might feed us.
We have broken trusts;
we have neglected the fragile;
and we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
This day we turn back to you.

We repent of pain we have inflicted
and prejudice with which we have judged.
We repent of being quick to speak
and slow to understand.
Take our torn and contrite hearts, O God,
and mend them with your mercy.
Free us from fear, from poor choices
and from feelings of unworthiness or entitlement.
Free us to love like Christ Jesus
in whose name we pray. Amen.


Permission is granted for use in corporate setting. Copyright © 2011 The Upper Room. 

Rev. Cynthia Langston Kirk is a creative arts minister whose primary focus mediums are poetry/liturgy, fabric art, and retreats.  She and her husband live in Tucson, AZ.

Related Resources

No related resources.

View All