Prayers for Sunday February 4, 2001
Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Invocation or Call to Worship (Adapted from Psalm 138)

Leader: I give You thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart.
People: I give thanks for Your steadfast love and faithfulness.
Leader: On the day I called, You answered me, and my strength increased.
People: Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You preserve my life.
Leader: You stretch out Your hand against the anger of my enemies and delivered me.
People: Your steadfast love, O LORD, endures for ever.

Prayer of Confession

O Lord, we quit too easily. When things get a bit hard, we tend to throw up our hands and not try again. We confess that we often take failure as a stop sign. We own up to the fact, that when we can't find something the first time we are tempted to look for something else.

We admit that we have problems trying again. We keep wondering how many more times is enough. Forgive us for not picking ourselves up and brushing ourselves off and starting again. Forgive us for trying the same old thing again and again without really trying new ways of relating, talking and thinking in our lives. Forgive us for not trying to live as Jesus would have us live one more time. Amen.

Prayer of Dedication

Dear Lord, we come in thanks each week. May our thankfulness persist during the week. May our gratitude to You, Dear Lord, infect our lives. May these gifts not only symbolize our thankfulness but make our thankfulness long lasting. Amen.

Pastoral Prayer

O God, keep us from being satisfied with failure, keep us from being satisfied with doing just enough. O God, You know how hard it is to pick ourselves up and try again. You know how hard it is to keep going even though our face is burning with shame and anger. But keep us going, keep us picking ourselves up and trying again.

We thank You, Dear Lord, for all of those who never gave up on us, who kept on loving us and helping us. We thank You, strangely enough Dear Lord, for those who have been hard headed enough not to stop. We thank You, Dear Lord, for those who have been stubborn enough to keep reminding us that we need to keep trying. We come in thanks Dear Lord, to You for being stubborn enough not to give up on any of us. We pray in Jesus' name, who persisted until he was killed for us. Amen.