It is the custom in many churches to read or sing the Great Litany from the Book of Common Prayer on the First Sunday of Lent. In preparation for that, a prayer aid is to sit and read through the words slowly and really think about them. You may find that rather than being a long drawn out part of the service you will be greatly enriched by the words in these ancient prayers, esp. if you have read through them ahead of time.
The Litany starts with remembering Who God is and moves on to confessing that we are all sinners and in need of saving from evil and from natural disasters. We then remember Who saves us:
O God the Father, Creator of
heaven and earth, Have mercy
upon us.
O God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have
mercy upon us.
O God the Holy Spirit, Sanctifier of the faithful, Have mercy upon us.
O holy, blessed, and glorious Trinity, one God, Have mercy upon us.
Remember not, Lord Christ, our offenses, nor the offenses of our forefathers;
neither reward us according to our sins. Spare us, good Lord, spare thy people,
whom thou hast redeemed with thy most precious blood, and by thy mercy preserve
us, for ever. Spare us, good
Lord.
From all evil and wickedness;
from sin; from the crafts and assaults of the devil; and from everlasting
damnation, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all blindness of heart; from pride, vainglory, and
hypocrisy; from envy, hatred, and malice; and from all want of charity, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all inordinate and sinful
affections; and from all the deceits of the world, the flesh, and the devil, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all false doctrine, heresy,
and schism; from hardness of heart, and contempt of thy Word and commandment, Good Lord, deliver us.
From lightning and tempest; from
earthquake, fire, and flood; from plague, pestilence, and famine, Good Lord, deliver us.
From all oppression, conspiracy,
and rebellion; from violence, battle, and murder; and from dying suddenly and unprepared, Good
Lord, deliver us.
By the mystery of thy holy
Incarnation; by thy holy Nativity and submission to the Law; by thy Baptism,
Fasting, and Temptation, Good
Lord, deliver us.
By thine Agony and Bloody Sweat;
by thy Cross and Passion; by thy precious Death and Burial; by thy glorious
Resurrection and Ascension; and by the Coming of the Holy Ghost, Good Lord, deliver us.
In all time of our
tribulation; in all time of our prosperity; in the hour of death, and in the
day of judgment, Good Lord,
deliver us.
The next set of intercessions are for the world and those in it:
We sinners do beseech the to
hear us, O Lord God; and that it may please thee to rule and govern thy holy
Church Universal in the right way, We
beesech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to
illumine all bishops, priests, and deacons, with true knowledge and
understanding of thy Word; and that both by their preaching and living, they
may set it forth, and show it accordingly, We
beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to bless
and keep all thy people, We
beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to send
forth laborers into thy harvest, and to draw all mankind into thy kingdom, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to give
to all people increase of grace to hear and receive thy Word, and to bring
forth the fruits of the Spirit, We
beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to bring
into the way of truth all such as have erred, and are deceived, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to give
us a heart to love and fear thee, and diligently to live after thy
commandments, We beseech thee
to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee so to
rule the hearts of thy servants, the President of the United States (or
of this nation), and all others in authority, that they may do justice, and
love mercy, and walk in the ways of truth, We
beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to make
wars to cease in all the world; to give to all nations unity, peace, and
concord; and to bestow freedom upon all peoples, We
beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to show
thy pity upon all prisoners and captives, the homeless and the hungry, and all
who are desolate and oppressed, We
beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to give
and preserve to our use the bountiful fruits of the earth, so that in due time
all may enjoy them, We beseech
thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to
inspire us, in our several callings, to do the work which thou givest us to do
with singleness of heart as thy servants, and for the common good, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to
preserve all who are in danger by reason of their labor or their travel, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to
preserve, and provide for, all women in childbirth, young children and orphans,
the widowed, and all whose homes are broken or torn by strife, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to visit
the lonely; to strengthen all who suffer in mind, body, and spirit; and to
comfort with thy presence those who are failing and infirm, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to
support, help, and comfort all who are in danger, necessity, and tribulation, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to have
mercy upon all mankind, We
beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to give
us true repentance; to forgive us all our sins, negligences, and ignorances;
and to endue us with the grace of thy Holy Spirit to amend our lives according
to thy holy Word, We beseech
thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to
forgive our enemies, persecutors, and slanderers, and to turn their hearts, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to
strengthen such as do stand; to comfort and help the weak-hearted; to raise up
those who fall; and finally to beat down Satan under our feet, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to grant
to all the faithful departed eternal life and peace, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
That it may please thee to grant
that, in the fellowship of all the
saints, we may attain to thy heavenly kingdom, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.
At the end we turn to our Lord for help in accomplishing all that we prayed for:
Son of God, we beseech thee to
hear us.
Son of God, we beseech thee to
hear us.
O Lamb of God, that takest away
the sins of the world, Have mercy upon us.
O Lamb of God, that takest away
the sins of the world, Have mercy upon us.
O Lamb of God, that takest away
the sins of the world, Grant us thy peace.
O Christ, hear us.
O Christ, hear us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Almighty God, who hast promised
to hear the petitions of
those who ask in thy Son's Name: We beseech thee mercifully
to incline thine ear to us who have now made our prayers
and supplications unto thee; and grant that those things
which we have asked faithfully according to thy will, may be
obtained effectually, to the relief of our necessity, and to the
setting forth of thy glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
