God of bright yellow and green, the sun smiles on the earth, friendly and hopeful. You invite us to breathe in a new day. We hear the birds greeting one another, the squirrel’s playful chatter and in the distance there’s the sound of bullfrogs and spring peepers vying for airtime. Welcome to this fresh new day.
We give thanks for the mysteries that unfold all around us:
*for Lake Powell, USA, the nation’s second-largest reservoir. As its water recedes, there is an emergence of a breathtaking landscape of deep red-rock canyons that cradle lush ecosystems and other-worldly arches.
*for Strumpshaw Fen, a wildlife reserve in Norfolk, UK, where butterfly enthusiasts have recently congregated to catch a glimpse of the Swallowtail, one of the UK’s rarest and largest butterflies.
Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it. Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for you. Psalm 96:11-12
Creator of fiery red and orange, the heat of midday scorches the grass and zaps the energy of living beings. We long for relief, for solace and for protection from the things that cause us harm. We scramble for cover from the violence that erupts in the spaces around us. We hunger for peace.
We pray that Your presence will be felt among those who are in trouble:
*for the people in the Philippines whose lives are being impacted by the Mount Mayon volcano. Nearly 13,000 residents in the southeast of the country’s main island have been evacuated from their homes.
*for Pakistanis who do not follow the teachings of Islam. Pakistan’s Blasphemy Laws sanction abductions, indentured servitude, and execution, with more than 50 people of religious minority currently being incarcerated, some facing execution.
O God, you are our God; eagerly we seek you; our soul thirsts for you, our flesh faints for you, as in a barren and dry land where there is no water. Psalm 63:1
Lover of justice, robed in dusk with hues of deep violet, You lead us to tranquilityand remind us that we all belong to one another. You soothe our fears, our wounds, and our anxieties of what the world is bringing to us. You feed us with the powerful truth of inclusive love, inviting us to be advocates; to enhance the color of the world.
Shine your light on all the goodness in the world:
*for the four Indigenous children who survived 40 days in the Amazon jungle in Colombia after their plane crashed, and for the joint work of the military and Indigenous communities to find the siblings. It was a beautiful combination of ancestral wisdom and Western wisdom utilized for one common focus: saving lives.
*for Chanel Contos, director of the Australia Institute’s Center for Sex and Gender Equality. She started a campaign in Australia for public schools to teach sexual consent and the Australian government agreed to make consent education mandatory in all schools from Kindergarten to High School.
This is what the Lord Almighty said: “Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another.” Zechariah 7:9
May we all embrace the variety of colors that permeate our world.
May we see one another with loving eyes and an open heart.
May we praise your name forever and ever. Amen.
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