Opening Prayer: Glad in the House of the Lord

Here’s an opening prayer from Literature and Liturgy.

Opening Prayer
(inspired by Luke 6:38; Psalm 126:2; Psalm 122:1)

Creator God,
This is the day that You have made!
This is the day you have called Holy:
Sabbath day, a rest day, a time-out,
out of the world and into the presence of God: a day for rejoicing.

Make us glad this morning in the House of the Lord.
Remove from us our distractions, our heart-worries,
our to-dos and should-haves and all the constant stress & strain.
And in its place, O God, give us more of You.
Here in your House, our hearts are filled with peace
our mouths with laughter,
our tongues with shouts of joy.

Fill us to brimming and overflowing with the joy of the Lord:
A good measure of God, pressed down,
shaken together and running over.
We are glad, yes, we are glad indeed,
to be together in the House of the Lord!