World in Prayer

World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, March 7, 2019

“Safe in the shadow of the Lord
beneath His hand and power,
I trust in Him,
I trust in Him,
my fortress and my tower.”
– paraphrase of Ps 91 by Timothy Dudley-Smith

 

Heavenly Father, Your word and being is of compassion, merciful care and everlasting love to all, regardless of merit.  The response to this has to be our choice. But, if we come choosing to trust You in your nature and openly admit with contrition where we have fallen short or turned away from You, Your everlasting mercy erases our failures and unites us with Your heart. We long for this acceptance and healing.

 

Lord, I trust in You and give thanks and praise.

 

“My hope is set on God alone though Satan sets his snare,”…

 

The temptation to be obsessed by becoming “successful” and gaining material wealth and power too often based on exploiting others and the world You have created is seen as being mainstream and so seductive.  We think of our cheap, instant fashion created by people in sweat shops; our flowers often out of season grown in developing countries using chemicals not allowed in our own home states; cheap palm oil at the expense of deforestation and loss of habitat for wildlife and endangering the ecosystem of the entire planet. Our rubbish, whether technical, plastic, or ships and vehicles, dumped overseas where they are stripped by people in desperate need of work, often in very dangerous conditions, and contaminating their environment.

 

Lord, open our eyes to the convenience of our lives so dearly paid for by others we don’t see or rarely think of.  But, these too are our brothers and sisters, created and loved by You.

 

I choose to trust in You, God, to keep each one of us in Your care and make us more aware of how we are co-dependent one on each other, regardless of where we live on this small, beautiful, but fragile planet.

 

“From fears and phantoms of the night, from foes about my way”…

 

The widespread use of violence in word, attitude, and action wounds, marginalizes, and even kills people.  Anything that is “other” than what we are is portrayed as being negative and even not worthy of being allowed to exist.  We remember people of faith being persecuted for being Christian in Pakistan, Syria, Somalia, Northern Nigeria, Iraq and even in Europe and the UK if people of other faiths chose to become Christian; for those Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus, Jehovah Witnesses and others who are routinely targeted by hatred and thoughtless violence in word and action and even torture in Russia, the US, Canada, Australia, the UK and many countries in Africa, South America and Asia.  Our fear of difference and love of the same as ourselves distorts so often into ugliness and hatred of others.

 

We give thanks for projects, such as that led by Dr. Paula Green in Massachusetts, USA, bringing people together from across whichever divide exists in our communities for conflict resolution.  Helping to put faces to the depersonalized hate or feared group of people, and to really listen to each other are major starting points.

 

I choose to trust in You, God, by darkness and by day.  Forgive us our smallness of mind, heart and understanding and open us by the in-pouring of Your Holy Spirit.

 

“His holy angels keep my feet secure from every stone;”…

 

Fake news abounds throughout the media and the world, built on fears and trying to cause division and confusion.  In Venezuela, Israel, the Middle East,  Europe the UK and Northern Ireland over Brexit; countries, politicians, multinational companies trying to manipulate others through media disinformation and lies, breaking down trust, increasing the sense of helplessness and hopelessness in so many: we recall the Chinese telecoms corporation, Huawei, Facebook, Twitter, most major newspaper groups in the UK, and so many of our own governments who are involved in this to varying degrees. We give thanks for the individuals and groups daring to challenge, often at great personal cost, even of their lives, and hold to account those perpetrating such destructive practices.  You are the God of truth, justice and what we rarely speak about now, “righteousness”.

 

I choose to trust in You, God, and with Your help, unafraid go on. Keep hope alive for all those who look and trust in You so others too may come to know You and Your love.

 

“Strong in the everlasting name, and in my Father’s care”…

 

The widespread epidemic of violence of gun and knife crime, and using sex as a weapon of violence is destroying lives and communities throughout the world but with especial focus on India, Canada, the UK,  the USA, South Africa, and the Middle East.

 

We give thanks for many initiatives both at national and local levels to combat this globally including Boston, USA as far back as 1995, inspiring others in Scotland and now England.

 

I choose to trust in You, God, who hears and answers prayer.

 

Daily, let our prayer be that in all we seek to be and do as individuals and communities, we choose to be safe in the shadow of You, our Lord, our God and Redeemer.  Possessed by Your divine love, help us to trust in You and meet Your unfathomable love with our puny and sometimes swithering love and, so, be participants in transforming and transfiguring all of Your Creation of which we are part.  Power in Your terms is Love.  May we become people of such power.  AMEN.

World News This Week in Prayer- Thursday, June 21, 2018

World Refugee Day was observed on June 20. Let us remember that a person’s dignity, worth, or humanity does not depend on their citizenship. May we be filled with the deep understanding that Jesus calls us to welcome and love the stranger.

Let us pray:

God of compassion, we are torn apart by the cruelty Your people are facing at the United  States–Mexico border. We pray for the successful reuniting of families after thousands of children were separated from their parents and sent to “tender age” shelters in the US. We are grateful for the courage of those who are willing to stand up against injustice, like American, Frontier, Southwest, and United Airlines, who are refusing to transport these children away from their families.

God of love, our prayers are with those in Hungary, where parliament passed laws that criminalize offering help to immigrants seeking asylum. We pray that what is legal becomes more like what is just.

God of every Nation, we pray for Italy, as one of its Ministers vows to count and expel thousands of the nomadic Roma minority. And for the more than 600 refugees who risked their lives in search of safety and were turned away in Italy last week. We are thankful that they were accepted into Spain. May all countries be moved toward hospitality.

God of all people, we lift our hearts in prayer for the 20 war orphans in Baghdad, Iraq, who were invited to a restaurant for Eid al-Fitr, their fast breaking from Ramadan, but were rejected at the luxury shopping mall it was inside. May Your love move us to open our arms instead of closing our doors.

God of reconciliation, lead us to a day when we no longer see each other as aliens, as illegal, or as anything other than Your beloved children. May we know that all people are Your people.

We pray for the day when peace fills our hearts, our world, our universe, that these prayers may be made real. This we ask in your many Holy names. Amen.
——
Because of our many Hispanic readers, we are including a Spanish translation of this week’s prayers.

El Día Mundial de los Refugiados se celebró el 20 de junio. Recordemos que la dignidad, el valor o la humanidad de una persona no dependen de su ciudadanía.. Que seamos llenos del profundo entendimiento de que Jesús nos llama a recibir y amar al extraño.
Dejanos rezar:
Dios de compasión, somos destrozados por la crueldad que tu pueblo enfrenta en la frontera entre Estados Unidos y México. Oremos por la reunificación exitosa de las familias después de que miles de niños fueron separados de sus padres y enviados a refugios de “tierna edad” en los Estados Unidos.
Estamos agradecidos por la valentía de aquellos que están dispuestos a luchar contra la injusticia, como American, Frontier, Southwest y United Airlines, que se niegan a transportar a estos niños lejos de sus familias.
Dios de amor, nuestras oraciones están con aquellos en Hungría, donde el parlamento aprobó leyes que penalizan a ofrecer ayuda a los inmigrantes que buscan asilo. Oremos para que lo que es legal se vuelva más como lo que es justo.
Dios de cada nación, rezemos por Italia, ya que uno de sus ministros jura contar y expulsar a miles de la minoría romaní nómada. Y para los más de 600 refugiados que arriesgaron sus vidas en busca de seguridad y fueron rechazados en Italia la semana pasada. Estamos agradecidos de que hayan sido aceptados en España. Que todos los países se muevan hacia la hospitalidad.
Dios de todas las personas, elevemos nuestros corazones en oración por los 20 huérfanos de guerra en Bagdad, Iraq, que fueron invitados a un restaurante para Eid al-Fitr, su ayuno del Ramadán, pero fueron rechazados en el centro comercial de lujo que estaba dentro. Que tu amor nos mueva a abrir nuestros brazos en lugar de cerrar nuestras puertas.
Dios de la reconciliación, llévanos un día en el que ya no nos veamos como extraterrestres, como ilegales o como cualquier cosa que no seamos Tus queridos hijos. Que sepamos que todas las personas son tu gente.
Oremos por el día en que la paz llene nuestros corazones, nuestro mundo, nuestro universo, para que estas oraciones se hagan realidad. Esto lo pedimos en sus muchos y santos nombres. Amén.

World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, 7, June 2018

(The hymn used in these prayers is “Lord, Listen to Your Children Praying” by Ken Medema)

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Lord, send your Spirit in this place;

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.

 Lord God, open our eyes to the power and promise of Nature, even as we pray for those being affected by the eruptions of the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii and by the Fuego Volcano in Guatemala; for those in the paths of the wildfires burning in New Mexico; for those in Puerto Rico still suffering the after-effects of Hurricane Maria which devastated that island last September. And even as we pray, O God, grant us to see the ways in which we each and all are responsible for caring for this planet with integrity and love.

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Lord, send your Spirit in this place;

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.

Lord God, open our ears to hear the cries of pain and sorrow of the migrant families separated at the Mexico-United States border, even as they are trying to seek asylum and safety; the cries of fear and pain of Ethiopians as they seek to escape war in their nation, including the 46 drowned this week en route to Yemen. And as we pray, O God, grant us the courage to speak out with the voice of Jesus the Christ in behalf of justice and truth, even when it is difficult and unpopular.

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Lord, send your Spirit in this place;

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.

Lord God, open our hearts to care about our sisters and brothers throughout the world who are seeking free and fair elections. We pray for the people of Iraq, struggling over election results; for the people of Zimbabwe, as they are demanding election reform; for the people of Pakistan, as they fear for the honesty of election results; for the people of the United States, where gerrymandering and restrictive voting laws have made voting far more difficult for so many. And as we pray, O God, grant us the determination to play our own part in the elections of our country by voting and encouraging others to do the same, valuing this gift of franchise for the wonder it is.

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Lord, send your Spirit in this place;

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.

Lord God, open our minds to release fear over Iran’s refusal to permit nuclear inspections; over the up-coming meeting between North Korea and the United States; over this week’s G-7 Summit and its consideration of trade and tariffs, understanding that perfect love casts out fear. And as we pray, O God, we lift up all of this world’s leaders, that their hearts and minds may be filled with a determination to unite, rather than divide; to work together as friends, rather than against one another as enemies.

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Lord, send your Spirit in this place;

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.

Lord God, open our spirits to rejoice in and support the young people around the world who are working for and demonstrating for peace and justice and for what is right, especially in the United States, in Turkey, and in Jordan. And as we pray, O God, keep us mindful of and grateful for this next generation of world citizens, determined to bring our nations together and heal our broken world.

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Lord, send your Spirit in this place;

Lord, listen to your children praying,

Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.

All these things we place into your hands, Loving, Gracious God, asking that you will open us to be the people you intend us to be, people filled with the Spirit of the Living, Loving Christ in whose name we pray. Amen and amen

World News This Week in Prayer- Thursday, February 22, 2018

“Be still, and know that I am God”
(Psalm 46:10)

O God, O God, my God, our world is full of anything but stillness. There is no silence to be found, I fear; no quiet about. We hear of your “still small voice”, we know You have taught that there is virtue in silence, we yearn for “green pastures” and “still waters” where You can restore our souls.

But all around us are sounds we cannot escape. The crack and pop of gunfire in schools in the United States. The screams of targeted children, the moans of the wounded, the sirens of police and ambulances, the shouts and gasps of families. These echo the bomb blasts of terrorists and bomb-strikes of armies in Syria and Afghanistan and Iraq, and the aftermath of it all. So close to home.

We hear the loud voices of those who demand change, or peace, or justice. We hear the chatter of politicians and pundits who explain away change, or peace, or justice. And now we hear a children’s chorus of victims and survivors, reviving the ancient Biblical hope that “a little child shall lead them.” We hear the calls for action, for accountability. And we hear the mockery and insults as clearly as we hear the passion and demands.

We hear the pleas of refugees in camps in Bangladesh and Kenya and Lebanon, and migrants on the seas; we hear the scratch of the pen across the paper as decisions are made about who shall be free or turned away. We hear the whimpering of the hungry, the wailing of the mournful who do not feel blessed.

God, we hear it all, and we are caught in-between. We want silence and stillness in order to know You, and to hear You. But we know we should not block out such sounds. Our world cries out to us, as surely as they cry out to You. In partnership with You we hear. Lord, as much as we might wish to be, we pray for, an exemption. Be known to us through all these sounds. Amen.

World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, December 21, 2017

“Let it be with me according to your word.”

–Mary, on learning that she was to bear the son of God (Luke 1:38)

Let it be with us, according to Your word.
Let the hungry be filled with good things.
Let the lowly be lifted up.
Let the mighty be cast down.
Let your promise of mercy take root throughout all humankind.

Let it be with us according to Your word, for the least among us

  • In the United States, castigated by a United Nations poverty and human rights investigation for having one of the highest rates of income inequality in the developed world, with low-income residents often being marginalized with little support from the government and few opportunities to climb out of poverty. The same report said that the massive tax reform bill just passed will turn the U.S. into “the World Champion of Extreme Inequality.”
  • In Benin, where a two-year pilot project funded by the World Bank virtually stopped child slavery in the central commune of Za-Kpota. Just giving each family $6 per month provided them with enough income that they no longer needed to sell their children to labor in Nigerian mines, and instead were able to keep them home and send them to school.
  • In Tanzania, after President John Magufuli pardoned singer Nguza Viking and his son Johnson Nguza for raping 10 primary school girls, aged between six and eight, in 2003. The pardon has been denounced by Human Rights Watch and Equality Now as promoting a culture of human rights violations in which young victims of sexual violence are being punished while perpetrators are going free.
  • Children affected by wars in the Middle East, especially those displaced in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan. A five-year grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation will bring a local version of “Sesame Street” to an estimated 9.4 million children, teaching reading, language, and other skills.

Let it be with us according to Your word, for the mighty among us

  • Following the election in Catalonia, Spain, where the separatist parties won a slim, smaller majority in the new Assembly.
  • As the new leader of South Africa’s governing African National Congress, Cyril Ramaphosa, pledges to fight corruption and pursue a policy of “radical economic transformation”.
  • In Honduras, where a chaotic presidential election in Honduras—involving unexplained computer malfunctions and possible vote rigging—has ended with the country’s electoral commission proclaiming the incumbent president, Juan Orlando Hernandez, the winner.
  • After U.S. President Donald Trump declared that the U.S. would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel – an act immediately and overwhelmingly condemned by the United Nations General Assembly.

Let it be with us according to Your word, for all who are sorrow-filled and all who are joyful.

Show us your mercy, that we all may proclaim,
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”

World News in Prayer – Thursday, 16 November 2017

Note: The writer this week is using the framework of the Liturgy of the Hours (Opus Dei i.e. Work of God) so sanctifying the day with prayer.

 

The one who made the Pleiades and Orion,
    and turns deep darkness into the morning,
and darkens the day into night,
who calls for the waters of the sea,
and pours them out on the surface of the earth,
the Lord is his name,     Amos 5:8 (NRSV)

Matins (MIDNIGHT)  Dear Lord we ask your mercies on your people of Ezgeleh, Iran and the over 500 villages that have endured a 7.3 magnitude earthquake. Sustain them as they are digging frantically through the rubble for survivors. Be with the families and medical teams as they care for the 7,100 injured. Wrap your care around those in deep grief for the 445 dead as the nation enters three days of mourning. Guide those conducting house-to-house searches and inspections in the city of Halabja and surrounds in Iraq where 7 people are dead and 535 people were injured. We pray that the Darbandikhan Dam can be secured and that villages below are evacuated. Help us to comfort one another during times of deep loss.

Lauds (SUNRISE) A moment of silence as we allow the Light of Christ to enter our hearts.

Prime  (6:00 A.M.) In the bright mountain forest of the Cerro Pelon Sanctuary in Mexico Monarch butterflies arrive from their ancient flyways. Traveling through endangered habitats of the US and Canada they endure.  God, you eternally are forming this earth. You grant us pleasure and cameraderie as we unite to protect and preserve something as beautiful as a butterfly and a caterpillar’s foraging plant – each a unique essence in your splendid creation. Help us as stewards to see the connections.

Terce  (9:00 A.M.) Somewhere on this earth it is always morning and children are going to school. Protect them. Give them nourishment and caring attention as they live, learn and play with one another. Be with the families who have lost children to gun violence and again most wrenchingly near Corning, California, USA where the Rancho Tehama Elementary School children and community members experienced a murderous shooting spree.  Be with those who mourn and receive the gratitude of the many who were saved due to quick action by school staff, citizens and police. Descend upon us Holy Spirit as we care for one another.

Sext  (NOON)  Even in the brightness of day violence against children “knows no boundaries,” as described in the just released UNICEF report. God have mercy. Bring your protection and comfort to children throughout the world who are mistreated in their homes, to those who witness domestic violence, endure sexual violence, forced labor, trafficking and have no safe place to live, grow and play. Take into your eternal peace those who have been murdered. Bring awareness to the caregivers and communities who are a safety net for these your most vulnerable.  Strengthen our resolve and amplify our voices as light is shined on violence. Sustain our partnerships in education, child welfare, and justice and health systems.  Infuse your mysterious force of Love in our daily work.

None (3:00 P.M.) Oh, Holy Spirit, come among us.  Soothe our cares and our worries. Help us to find some serenity in spite of all the news that seems to flood over us. Be close, guide and protect all involved in the political upheaval in Zimbabwe whose people have already suffered so much for so long.  Sometimes it is hard to take it all in. Help us to find peace, respite, a friendly smile or to be that warm embrace when everything seems at opposite ends.

Vespers (6:00 P.M.) Somewhere on this earth it is becoming evening and suppertime and family time.  Some of your people sit in tents and some in fine houses with secure roofs and safe walls. Others flee and have no food. Many are homeless. Dear Lord, we ask you to help us to sit with the refugee and listen, with those experiencing war, natural catastrophe and the long, long after shocks of deprivation.  You are our refuge.

Compline (9:00 P.M.) And for all of these hours, the gift of Life this day, in this moment, in all of its sadness and losses, its joys and recoveries, we rest in You.  Amen.

 

World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, October 19, 2017

Dear Lord,

Your people in Puerto Rico and across the Caribbean have looked up into rain flooded skies and out onto destroyed homelands, waiting for water, food, shelter and the provision of medical care. Open the hearts of decision makers to release funds to continue the rescue, to bring relief and stability. Smooth the communications to move people to care as the USNS Comfort (US naval ship) waits for the needy. Help us to grow in compassion as a people as we listen to news from hurricane-devastated places and during the long recovery, not forgetting the gulf coast.

We pray for the Rohingya peoples who await smugglers to take them across the Naf River between Myanmar and Bangladesh. Others make the treacherous journey to safety through jungles and mountains and into refugee camps such as Balukali, Kutupalong and Nayapara, where the depth of need is continually expanding. Dear God, our Comforter and Protector, be with the nation of Bangladesh and the NGO’s as they summon all their capacity to meet the needs of these deeply suffering refugees. Surround exhausted families with nourishing sleep. Tend to the children who make up 60% of the refugees – lost and torn from their families. Open our eyes to the horror of genocide, as a people are being erased from Myanmar’s history and annihilated. Come Holy Spirit. Guide the world as it seeks to address this calamity.

Some look up into smoke and ash filled skies in the western United States barely escaping burning homes and a tortured landscape and yet 10,000 firefighters – including 100 women prisoners working as firefighters – move toward the flames. Renew their energy to endure and guard their steps. We are so grateful for their unique skills in this treacherous work. Dear God, provide shelter to families bereft of everything they owned. Sustain the communities in their great work of serving these families, providing food, a listening ear, counseling and guidance in next steps and getting in touch with family. Be with the 42 families who have lost loved ones and the 68 families with unaccounted for loved ones. Hold them in their distress.

Some hide in the shelter of darkness yet afraid. “Has the fighting stopped?” Oh Lord, how seemingly endless is the noise and dust and calamity of war and the horrific suffering, the interminable loss and degradation. We pray for the peoples caught in the wars within wars, in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region of Kirkuk, for the police killed in Taliban raids and bombings in the Paktia and Ghazni provinces in Afghanistan. We pray for the dead and wounded civilians as they were waiting to get their identity cards. We pray for an end to 6 years of suffering in the Syrian civil war displacing 6.3 million people internally, causing the deaths of 400,000 with more than 5 million Syrians fleeing the country.

Open the hearts of combatants to give safe humanitarian access. Our hearts are torn again as we hear about the global food crisis, severe food insecurity, and the increasing risk of full on famine in northeast Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen. Some are too week to sit or even cry, hungry to the point of death. Oh God, you are listening. You surround them. You love them. Open our hearts. Help us to prayerfully consider our time, talent and treasure. Help us to share the wealth from our tables. Bring peace in those places where war creates famine, where conflict creates war, where war seems to be endless.

We watched with deep concern as Ireland and the UK received the effects of Hurricane Ophelia downgraded to a tropical storm. We are saddened at the loss of life as severe winds toppled trees on to cars. We are grateful for advanced warning such that the Irish Defense Forces were ready where needed and schools were closed keeping children safe. Be with families in their sudden grief and with those experiencing the deep deep losses in Portugal and Spain as wildfires fanned by the winds of the very same hurricane have brought further catastrophe. Again we pray for the 6,000 firefighters and nations called to come together in these wildfires. Be with the injured and their caregivers as severe burns are treated. Comfort those who are in mourning of the over thirty-two victims including a one-month old infant taken so quickly. Many weep for their cherished lands and fields, and livestock so vulnerable. Comfort them in their mourning. Give them your strength.

And your people in Mogadishu, where the Somali nation again suffers a bombing so despicable and barbaric with over 276 lives destroyed in an instant. Oh Lord, we take-in this news of the over 300 injured and suffering, and families still searching for the missing. We hear of the need for donor blood, the exhausted hospital staff, and how they keep going, as its populace is weeping, weeping, weeping. Help them as they assemble and arise as a people to discern steps for increased stability and safety in their nation. Comfort your people of Somalia in their great sorrow. Bring them peace.

Guide us in our faith. Help us to seek your will.

May we rush to understand one another, to love urgently, and to grow steadily in becoming more tolerant.

From you comes all blessings and life itself.

Amen.

World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, October 5, 2017

A note from the writer of this week’s prayers:
 I really wrestled with what prayers to write today. Part of me – a LARGE part – wanted to rage at God: “If Jesus’ crucifixion, death and resurrection was supposed to end the power of evil and sin, your experiment has failed. Utterly. It’s time to try again, with something different.” But then I saw Connie Sun’s Blessings of Life cartoon, and all the tangled threads of anguish within me took a deep breath and began to unwind. And I thought, “This. Yes. This is what we need. Blessings. To bless, and to be blessed.”

Cartoon reproduced by permission. To see more of Connie Sun’s work, go to http://www.conniewonnie.com/ or follow her on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/cartoonconnie/.

A Litany of Blessings

Bless the conflict
Bless the yearning

Bless the Catalonians who voted to split from Spain. Bless the nation that wants to keep them.
Bless the Kurds who voted for independence from Iraq. Bless the Iraqis who fight the Islamic State beside them.
Bless the ceasefire in Colombia with the Marxist National Liberation Army rebels.
Bless the dreams of every homeland.

Bless the grief
Bless the caring

Bless the victims of the mass shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.
Bless the dead after a stampede on a footbridge at a Mumbai, India, railway station.
Bless children and teachers lost when a day care center in Brazil was set on fire by a guard who worked there.
Bless the troubled. Bless the injured.
Bless the memories of all survivors.

Bless the leaving
Bless the turning

Bless the more than 150,000 from Bali, Indonesia, who are in limbo, waiting to see when and if it will be safe to return to their homes near a possibly soon-erupting volcano.
Bless the lives lived out in makeshift refugee camps around the world. Bless the Rohingya who have fled Myanmar for Bangladesh.
Bless the devastated U.S. territory of Puerto Rico.
Bless the hope. Bless the rebuilding.
Bless the new homes and, someday, those returning.

Bless the danger
Bless the healing

Bless all in Yemen, where cholera cases could hit a million by the end of the year.
Bless the government health officials, World Health Organization, aid agencies and private donors from around the world, now meeting in France to commit to preventing 90% of cholera deaths by 2030.
Bless the 1.2 million “food insecure” in Sri Lanka, where drought has led to the loss of two successive harvests, many small farmers have resorted to eating seed saved to plant next season, and many households are eating just one meal a day.
Bless the hungry. Bless the hurting. Bless the fear-filled.
Bless the aid-workers. Bless the donors.
Bless the researchers. Bless the prayer-supporters.

Bless the night
Bless the morning

Bless the birthdays. Bless new lovers and years-long friendships.
Bless the sunsets and the rainbows.
Bless the achievements, large and small.
Bless the learners and the doers.
Bless the meals eaten, alone and those together.
Bless each hour of rest and slumber.

Bless the hands, and hearts, and spirits
Lord God, bless us all

World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, September 28, 2017

Ex 31:16 “The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant.”(NIV) 

Creator God, you give us every good and perfect gift. We celebrate the equinox so easily, the turning of the world and change of seasons, the seedtime and the harvest; our unique place in the solar system giving us truths that would not be easily discovered on other planets. We enjoy so much of this beauty – forgive us that we ignore your many other gifts.

You gave us the Sabbath to observe as a day of rest and to celebrate it for future generations, a good and perfect gift that we don’t see as such. The burden we place on future generations is to work, continuously, with no space for the holy. We think “the work ethic” means we must work all 168 hours of a week; we think we must take our e-devices everywhere, even on holiday, even in the bath, for fear that we are weighed in the balance and found wanting by our employers. When we are self-employed it becomes even worse, unable to take time for ourselves and our family just in case we miss out on a contract, the perfect job. Lord, who is my neighbour; when will we love ourselves that we can love our neighbour? Will it be when we take a Sabbath’s rest to keep it holy and learn to love ourselves?

And then, we see the news of the war of words between nations, especially between the US and North Korea, and cry “give it a rest”. When we hear that, against Israeli canvassing, Interpol has voted to admit the State of Palestine to membership, along with the Solomon Islands – Lord, who is my neighbour; when will we love ourselves that we can love our neighbour? Will it be when we take a Sabbath’s rest and regain a more objective perspective?

Even within nations there is no rest: The Iraqis refusing to even discuss Monday’s referendum about Kurdish independence; the Spanish arresting all those officials who would run the coming referendum, disrupting any idea of Catalan independence. Lord, who is my neighbour; when will we love ourselves that we can love our neighbor? Will it be when we celebrate our diversity as your people on earth?

We see the recurring devastation of Caribbean islands by storms, and the country of Mexico by earthquakes, and know there can be no rest until water, food and shelter are provided and the lost are found. As people flee the eruptions of Mount Agung on Bali, and Monaro on Vanuatu, Lord, who is my neighbour; when will we love ourselves that we can love our neighbour? Will it be when we learn to share the labour and give each other respite care?

We fail to recognise that freedom of speech means other ethnicities within our own country can use it.  When we see the ethnic cleansing and displacement of such as the Rohingya, then, Lord, who is my neighbour; when will we love ourselves that we can love our neighbour?  Will it be when we recognise the rights of other ethnicities?

When the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts announces 6 new member countries – Syria, Aruba, Azerbaijan and the State of Palestine as full members and Albania and Niger as associate members – and recognizes Arabic as another official language – then we celebrate, these are our neighbours. We see women in Saudi Arabia are finally allowed to drive, then we celebrate; when all refugees are finally resettled from Australia’s Manus Island Processing Center in Papua, New Guinea, then we can know these are our neighbours; when the great green wall across sub-Saharan Africa finally brings drought relief to the countries around Lake Chad, then all these are our neighbours and for future generations we can celebrate.

“… to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant … “ These are not your hopeful thoughts or wishful comments, Lord, these are your commands – that we learn to live together in covenant with you and our neighbour.   May it be so.

 

World News This Week in Prayer – Thursday, July 6, 2017

Lord, time after time the news reflects what has happened; this week’s events reflecting what has already happened.  So we pray for those for whom the news is also “olds” – for they remember the pain, the trauma, the fear, the deep changes in their lives.

We pray for those caught in the fire in a multi-story building in Johannesburg, South Africa and for those still suffering trauma from earlier fires.

We pray for those who watch the North Korean missile firings with horror and remember.

In the US Fourth of July celebrations of thirteen American colonies adoption of the Declaration of Independence, proclaiming citizens’ right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, in every announcement of liberation we pray also for the people of Mosul, Iraq and Raqqa and Idlib, Syria.

As Canada celebrates 150 years since the 1867 Constitution of Canada allowed for the merger of 3 colonies.  We pray for Indigenous people across the world, and especially for the First Nations, Inuit and Metis of Canada, the Native Hawaiian, American Indian and Alaska Natives of the US,  the Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, the Māori Tribes of New Zealand and the Indigenous Australian Peoples.

Following the arrest of Ebtisam al-Saegh, a human rights activist in Bahrain and the peace-and-love celebration in Malheur National Forest, Oregon, USA where there were 15 arrests and 2 deaths, we pray for those who peacefully demonstrate remembering especially those who protested in Washington DC, USA in January and still face legal charges.

We pray for the life of baby Charlie Gard and his parents, as the legal case in the UK has ended and now others try to intervene.  We also pray for other bereaved parents in their grief.

Lawrence Moore, a church mission and discipleship consultant who also attends Worsley Road United Reformed Church in Salford, England, prays:

“O God,

There are many who pray far more desperately for the coming of your Kingdom than I do.

They beg you for daily bread because they go to bed hungry.

They pray for deliverance from oppression and exploitation.

They long for people who look and behave like you –

who see their desperation and are moved to tears of compassion or

a burning anger that will not let them rest while things stay as they are.

Fill me with your Holy Spirit, I pray,

that my heart will overflow with your compassion,

that I will find the courage to stand up against injustice,

that I will make a Jesus-shaped difference to my world.

Grant, by your grace, that I will be the answer to the prayers of the very least

and proclaim with my life as well as my mouth

that Jesus is the Messiah.”

Amen.