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“O Lord, our God! Our years come and go. And we ourselves live and die. But Thou art and remainest the same. Thy dominion and Thy faithfulness, Thy righteousness and Thy mercy, have no beginning and no end. And thus Thou art the origin and the goal even of our lives, Thou art the judge of our thoughts, words, and deeds.
We are grieved that today we can only confess that even to this hour we have so often and ever anew forgotten, denied, and offended Thee. But today we are illumined and comforted by the word through which Thou hast given us to know that Thou art our Father and we are Thy children because Thy dear Son, Jesus Christ, for our sakes has become man, has died and risen again, and is our brother.
We thank Thee for the privilege now, on the last Sunday of the year, of once again proclaiming and hearing these glad tidings. Do Thou Thyself make us free to say that which is right and also to hear it aright, that this hour may serve Thy glory and bring to us all peace and well-being. Amen.”[1]
Soli Deo Gloria
[1] Karl Barth, Selected Prayers, Keith R. Crim trans. (Richmond, VA: John Knox Press, 1965), 24.
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