‘God is not aloof; God is not a spectator.’ Eugene Victor “Gene” Debs, American union leader. Creator God, we would pray for the whole world, but it’s too big and we are overwhelmed. We understand that you can see all and know all that is before we even think to talk to you about it. […]
Prayers for Australia
Fire and water shape much of what is prayed for Australia: bushfires and heatwaves, floods, hail and cyclones. Asylum policy and offshore detention are named, along with violence against women and mining accidents, and there is regular thanksgiving for wildlife, reefs and species returning to the wild.
Out of the Darkness We Cry to You: Prayers for Palmyra, Lahore, and Western Wildfires (August 27, 2015)
(Thanks to the Evangelical Lutheran Church for some of these prayer petitions.) Out of the darkness we cry to you, O God. Enable us to find in Christ the faith to trust in your care even in the midst of pain. Assure us that we do not walk alone through the valley of the shadow, […]
Today the World Is Full of Glory: A Prayer on the 70th Anniversary of Hiroshima (August 6, 2015)
Today is the 70th anniversary of the atomic bomb dropping on Hiroshima, and three days later over Nagasaki. At a ceremony to mark the anniversary, which included Caroline Kennedy, U.S. Ambassador, Mr. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, said “Seventy years on I want to re-emphasize the necessity of world peace.” The Church of England […]
How Long, O Lord: Prayers After the Kuwait Mosque and Tunisia Beach Attacks (July 2, 2015)
How long, O Lord? Will you forget me for ever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light […]
Give Us the Patience to Listen: Prayers for Greece, Charleston, and Pakistan’s Heatwave (June 25, 2015)
Lord of the past, present and future, sometimes I have this view of you pushing your hair back, in exasperation, and wondering when will we return to you and listen. Just once in our lives – really listen, then do something. It must be so vexing to you when we do something then complain – […]
This We Can Do, We Can Pray: For Yemen, Chile’s Volcano, and Ethiopian Christians (April 23, 2015)
We have come to worship you, Lord our Shepherd. You, Lord, are our shepherd. Like any shepherd you watch over us, lead us to the best pastures of the mind, the best waters for the spirit, and like sheep we follow. Sheep are not stupid and neither are we. Forgive us our tendency to act […]
The Violence of Love: Prayers After the Germanwings Crash and for Ebola-Hit West Africa (March 26, 2015)
Archbishop Oscar Romero was murdered at the altar in a hospital chapel 25 years ago. He wrote: “We have never preached violence, except the violence of love, which left Christ nailed to a cross, the violence that we must each do to ourselves to overcome our selfishness and such cruel inequalities among us. The violence […]
Through Your Tender Mercy: Prayers After Cyclone Pam and the Bardo Museum Attack (March 19, 2015)
Creator of all, we come to you in this time of prayer with thankful hearts. Through your expansive love, we receive strength and hope. Through your tender mercy, we learn compassion and forgiveness. Through the gift of your son, Jesus Christ, we seek justice and peace for all people, all nations and all of creation. Help […]
Release to the Captives: Prayers for Raif Badawi and Boko Haram’s Kidnapped Girls (January 22, 2015)
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” Mark 1:14-15 We know, Lord, that you call us to a far wider agenda than proclaiming good news and […]
Light in the Darkness: A Prayer After the Charlie Hebdo Attack (January 8, 2015)
There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord. Proverbs 21:30 The rich and the poor have this in common, the Lord is the Maker of them all. Proverbs 22:2 Lord, when will You tear the heavens apart to make Your will known and show Your might? Yes, I […]