confession

One of the most interesting things that I've experienced since coming to NPC is the addition of a prayer for forgiveness at every service. There are many things that my evangelical upbringing has not prepared me for, not that I paid much to that upbringing untill a few years ago. But this is one thing that I am really coming to believe should be included in the average evangelical liturgy. I think that this is somthing we often miss in our lives, the simple act of public confession. A good Catholic goes to confession, what makes us think that we are better than them? Maybe it's not that, but we are told to confess to one another. This simply does it corporatly, out loud, in fount of everyone. No one any better saying anything different, no one acting any better than the person next to him. You can't think about the person next to you when you say it, it's about you and God in front of everyone else. I really don't have much to say on this subject, I really would just like to share a few of these prayers with you.

Oct. 16
"Our heavenly Father, forgive us for forgetting your gracious care,
Your Careful assistance and Your wise Word,
which are always there to help us each and every day.
Your have been faithful, and we have been half-hearted.
Your have been gracious and giving, and we are so demanding.
In Your mercy, we ask you to create in us thankful, joyful, believing hearts
in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whose name we pray. Amen"

Oct. 23
"Most merciful God, You created us to reflect Your glory,
But we make choices which cause us to fall short of living a life in the likeness of
Your Son. Each day You call us to know Christ, to grow in christ, to be transformed in Christ, but we are often gripped by complacency which hinders the working of Your Spirit within us. Unveil our hearts and minds so that we might brightly reflect the true glory of the Lord. Amen."

I want to write on this later, but I wanted to share some of these prayers with you guys, so forgive my lack of writing.