“God of wisdom and truth, you call us to listen and follow your word to us, but we confess that too often we only hear what we want to hear and see what we want to see. We look for answers that reinforce what we already believe and do and we don’t notice how Jesus loved those who were difficult to love, who were different, or on the margins. Jesus loved us with his whole life and invited us to have such a change of heart that we live that same love. Forgive our cautious love and our guarded hearts and give us the courage to follow in Christ’s footsteps. In his name, we pray. Amen.”