For all those occasions when we choose to get by so that we will not be challenged beyond familiar comforts, when we use money without thought so as not to take responsibility for its power, when we fill time so that we will not hear the call to intimacy,
forgive us, O God, and have mercy.
When we indulge in negativity so as not to acknowledge that we have choice,
when we listen continuously to others without sharing of ourselves,
when we pray from a distance so as not to risk involvement,
forgive us, O God, and have mercy.
When we opt for ordinariness so that we will not have to lead, when we acquiesce to fear so that we do not have to realise our potential, when we live focused on self so as to avoid commitment to community,
forgive us, O God, and have mercy.
When we do not deal with conflict so that we do not have to learn, when we are ungrateful or demanding and forget that all is gift, when we never relinquish control so as not to admit where we are broken,
forgive us, O God, and have mercy.
When we live as driven people and excuse our lack of peace, when we snap with anger because we did not attend to the body’s need for sleep, when we forget that our bodies are temples and not dumping grounds for waste,
forgive us, O God, and have mercy.
When we spread or listen to gossip so that we can manipulate to our advantage,
when we couldn’t be bothered getting involved but criticise those who do,
when we make no space for prayer yet have time for other things,
forgive us, O God, and have mercy. Amen.
