Prayer of Confession

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” - John 4:7

On Sunday we reflected on the story of the woman at the well. In so many ways it represents the kinds of opportunities we have every day to interact with others, to pay attention to their needs, to extend compassion and to do justice.

Today we’re going to pray a simple prayer of confession (which is the one we used on Sunday). The goal here is not to shame ourselves - that’s never the goal of confession. Instead, our goal is to recognize moments we’ve missed and to own them so that we might heal and grow and become more like Christ. Take some time with this prayer today.

Holy God, we have been on every side of this story. We have been the one who is thirsty and in need of compassion, and we have been the one with a bucket and a deep well. 

So today we wonder: how often have we missed the opportunity to share water with our neighbors? How often have we forgotten that we have a bucket and the power to bring change? How often have we simply decided that justice and compassion were not worth the work? 

Forgive our fragile hearts and remind us that it was you who sat at that well in Samaria in the heat of the day. It was you. It is still you. 

With hope we pray, amen. 

@sanctifiedart