“Lent is a season of preparation and repentance during which we anticipate the death (Good Friday) and resurrection (Easter Sunday) of Jesus. It is this very preparation and repentance – aimed at grasping the intense significance of the crucifixion – that gives us a deep and powerful longing for the resurrection, the joy of Easter.” – Will Walker
As we walk through this season of Lent together as a church family, I will be posting a simple daily prayer of confession for you to use as a prompt for your own prayers of confession. The spiritual practice of daily confession of sin is a vital one for me. I hope these daily posts can help you form a similar practice of forsaking sin and embracing Christ’s mercy that is far, far greater than our sins!
Day 34
O God: as I hear the words of this Psalm (71), I imagine them on the lips of Jesus as he journeyed toward the cross. The sorrow and distress expressed in this psalm anticipate what he must have experienced in the days before his death. I confess my tendency to avoid suffering and pain; I’m prone to ignore sadness and lament. But this is not the way of Jesus. He was acquainted with sorrow and grief, and never more than when he approached his death. When I’m tempted to acknowledge his suffering intellectually, and not engage it with my soul, I invite you to slow me down, orient my heart, and help me feel. Increase my sensitivity to my own sin, and to the dullness of my affections. And in those times when I labor under an oversized burden of guilt, remind me that Jesus has lifted my burden and I am free. Today, O God, be not far from me; make haste to help me. Let your Spirit work deeply in me, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
The Daily Liturgy Podcast
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