Prayers for the United States

Prayers naming the United States have followed storms, tornadoes, wildfires and floods across many states, along with elections and political tension, gun violence, and questions of migration and race. Health, mental health and the well-being of ordinary households appear often, as do thanksgivings for its landscapes and wild places.

Toward Palm Sunday: Prayers for Nations at War, Flooding in Hawaii, and Those Facing Antisemitism (March 26, 2026)

Lord of mercy and Father of all good, As we walk the quiet road toward Palm Sunday, steady our hearts in the rhythm of Your grace. In these Lenten days, where reflection meets longing, teach us to lay down not only palm branches, but the burdens we clutch so tightly— our pride, our fear, our […]

Resurrection Is New Creation: Prayers After the Kabul Hospital Airstrike, for Iran and Ukraine (March 19, 2026)

O God, you created us all in your image and declared us good, yet we question your judgment and act as though some lives are worth less than others. Our hearts are so often heavy with the news of the world, yet we do not carry it alone. Let us know that Jesus weeps with […]

We Pray for Peace: A Prayer for Iran, Israel, the United States, and Every Nation Drawn Into War (March 12, 2026)

We come before You with heavy hearts as war spreads and many lives are shaken. Many of David’s psalms called out to the Lord for protection, strength and victory against his enemies – we pray for divine peaceful intervention during this conflict. David trusted God and called upon the Lord to defend and scatter foes. […]

Peace Rather Than Bloodshed: A Lenten Prayer for Iran, Ukraine, and Antarctica’s Glaciers (March 5, 2026)

Holy One, whose tender mercy walks with us on our Lenten journey, we find the wilderness of our world both confusing and full of wonder. In this season of Lent, remind of us of the pilgrimage Christ made to the Cross, while we also walk alongside our global family filled with refugees, those holding pain […]

O God, Our Help in Ages Past: Prayers for Madagascar’s Cyclones and Africa’s Drought (February 26, 2026)

We praise you, O God, for another day to see the dawn, another evening to see the dusk, for the moon and the stars that shine their light at night. We praise you for your great and mighty acts, for your favor to your creatures and your creation. We come to you with our hearts […]

Ashes and Renewal: A Lenten Prayer for Nations at War and for Rev. Jesse Jackson (February 19, 2026)

Heavenly Father, Having just observed the holy day of Ash Wednesday – as we enter the sacred season of Lent – we come before You in humility. The ashes that marked us, remind us we are dust, and to dust we shall return. Strip away our pride, our distractions, and our indifference. Create in us clean hearts, O God, […]

Groanings Too Deep for Words: Winter Storms and a Ferry Sinking in the Philippines (January 29, 2026)

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. – Romans 8:26, ESV Everlasting Comforter, Prince of Peace, Today we come to you not knowing how to pray. Our world often […]

And the Floodwaters Covered the Earth: A Prayer for Southern Africa’s Floods (January 22, 2026)

…And the floodwaters covered the earth… (Genesis 7) I thought I knew what I was doing, when I offered to cover for this week’s scheduled prayer writer, whose whole family had come down with the flu. Easy. I had half a week to prepare, nothing much booked for those days. Easy. I didn’t know that an […]

O God of Wonders: Prayers for Greenland, Venezuela, Protesters in Iran, and the World’s Children (January 15, 2026)

O God of Wonders, Grant us opportunities for celebrations of answered prayers this week, places where we see light break through the darkness, hope arise in the face of despair, and peace prevail in areas of conflict. Let joy and gratitude erupt spontaneously from our hearts, as we see you bring deep healing to places […]

Wrapped in the Love of God: Prayers for Aleppo, Aid Workers in Gaza, and Christians in India (January 8, 2026)

Creator and Giver of all Good, You are God Most High – the source of all life, light, and love. You are worthy of our praise and our adoration. We lift our collective voices to declare that you are majestic in holiness, perfect in wisdom, and boundless in mercy. It is of this mercy that […]