And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Our gracious and forgiving Father, we come humbly and fearfully to You. Indeed, “If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.” (Ps 130:3) Holy God, You could have judged us as condemned. Yet with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with You is plentiful redemption. (Ps 130:7) Thank You for redeeming us and now we can stand before You forgiven and justified through Christ.
We approach your throne of grace today asking for your mercy and grace, not only to forgive our sins, but also to help us to forgive those who have wronged against us. Forgiving others is hard, yet You desire us to put on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other. You commanded us as the Lord has forgiven us, so we also must forgive. (Col 3:12-13). You did not give us this command and expect us to work it out on our own. We ask to to forgive our unforgiving spirit. We thank you for giving us the power through the Holy Spirit to forgive and to love with the love that covers a multitude of sins. (1 Pet 4:8) Please, Lord, free us from any bitterness but let us see each other as Your image bearer. Let us esteem each other better than ourselves, and may our service to one another be a fragrant offering to You. May this unity be evident in all ministries and especially through the Trunk-or-Treat this coming Saturday.
In the name of Jesus, our Savior, Amen!
*Except for the Lord’s prayer in KJV, all quoted Scriptures are ESV.