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New every morning is your love, great God of light, and all day long you are working for good in the world. Stir up in us desire to serve you, to live peacefully with our neighbors and all your creation, and to devote each day to your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

"A Liturgy for Morning Prayer," Upper Room Worshipbook

Used by permission from the Book of Common Worship, © 2018 Westminster John Knox Press. All rights reserved. This prayer appears in “A Liturgy for Morning Prayer” in Upper Room Worshipbook.

Companions in Christ: The Way of Forgiveness Participant’s Book

Marjorie J. Thompson • July 2002

BUY Print $9.99

The Way of Forgiveness Leader's Guide is also available.

It takes a lot of willingness and practice to see life from God's perspective. Perhaps nothing goes more against the grain of human nature than forgiving those who wound us and accepting forgiveness from others. But practicing forgiveness will transform your life and help you grow in the heart and mind of Christ. In The Way of Forgiveness, an 8-week small-group study, Marjorie Thompson examines shame, guilt, and anger, helping you release these emotions so you can move toward wholeness. She also deals with the topics of receiving God's forgiveness, forgiving others, and seeking reconciliation.

Thompson gives guidance for such ticklish questions as: Does forgiveness mean release from consequences of sin? Are there no limits to forgiveness? How do we deal with absent offenders or people who refuse to forgive us? A unique feature of this book is the inclusion of a reproduction of Rembrandt's Return of the Prodigal Son. Over the course of the study, the artwork will serve as a focal point for reflection and discovery.


Marjorie J. Thompson is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA). She has served as director of the Pathways Center for Spiritual Leadership and as spiritual director to Companions in Christ, a program outgrowth of the Pathways initiative of The Upper Room. Companions in Christ is a series of small-group resources for spiritual formation in local congregations, suited to ecumenical use. Marjorie has exercised a ministry of teaching, writing, and spiritual guidance for many years.

ISBN: 978-0-8358-0980-1

Imprint: Upper Room

Pub Date: July 2002

Trim Size: 7.5 in (w) x 9.25 in (h) x 0.234 in (d)

Page Count: 112

BISAC Categories: RELIGION / Christian Living / Spiritual Growth

BISAC1: REL012120

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The organization of this eight-week study is impressive. Participants read each week's chapter on the first day, participate in spiritual exercises and journaling days 2-6, and meet on the seventh. The well-planned progression of each chapter is designed to move participants closer to embracing forgiveness as a lifestyle. The spiritual journey begins with the blessedness of creation and of God the Creator. In the next several chapters, readers are invited to reflect upon the ways that shame, guilt, and the many forms of anger have influenced their ability to either extend or receive forgiveness. The second half of the book focuses on the good news of God's forgiveness and our own capacity to forgive. The Way of Forgiveness is designed to be used by small groups. Among the many helps in the participant's book are suggestions for writing letters of apology or letters of forgiveness. The Leader's Guide provides lesson plans and leader's notes that would prove helpful to either novice or veteran group leaders. In a complex world, where wounds and offenses abound, learning to forgive is a must; and The Way of Forgiveness is a must-read."
— Safiyah Fosua Director, Invitational Preaching Ministries General Board of Discipleship The United Methodist Church