How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I bear pain in my soul, and have sorrow in my heart all day long? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? Psalm 13:1-2 (NRSV) How long, O Lord? Our hearts and […]
Lazarus, Come Out: Prayers for Nicaragua, the Laos Dam Collapse and Deadly Wildfires (July 26, 2018)
Editor’s note: Mary, Martha, and Lazarus of Bethany were friends of Jesus. This year, a number of christian denominations commemorate them on July 29. Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said […]
Breathe and Behold: Prayers for Cape Town and Flint’s Water, Syria’s Siege, and Winter Olympians (February 8, 2018)
Holy One, We keep scrolling through the news, forever flicking from catastrophe to exhilaration to trauma, over and over and over again. Make us stop. Force us to take a break. Teach us how to breathe. Show us how to behold–rather than barrel through–your world. We pray that we might take a break and breathe […]
Come Fill Us With Your Light: Prayers for Eastern Ghouta, Jalalabad, and the Gambia (January 25, 2018)
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever. ~ Psalm 111:10 …we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. ~ 1 Corinthians 8:1 …anyone who loves God is known by him. ~ 1 […]
Let It Be With Us: Prayers for the Least and the Mighty, from Benin to Catalonia (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 […]
Lead Us From Darkness to Light: A Prayer for Peace 72 Years After Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 10, 2017)
Dear God Today we pray for peace. We remember those who perished with the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan 72 years ago this week. The monuments and memorials and parks in these cities and other cities and lands having suffered holocausts remind us that our prayers are mighty and necessary. Help us to […]
Amen, May It Be So: Prayers for Venezuela’s Protests and Arkansas Executions (April 27, 2017)
Amen. Yes. So be it. It will certainly be like this. May it be so. This is the truth. On this we can depend. Amen! Compassionate and loving God, as we watch events unfold across our world, our emotions often cannot be translated into words. So we call out to You with a word You […]
Martha, Martha: A Prayer for the Detained, the Trafficked, and the Distracted (February 2, 2017)
N.B. There has been an email glitch (hopefully resolved) and a lack of clarity in the 4th from last paragraph which has now been amended. In expectation of normal service being resumed next week… Jesus Visits Martha and Mary – Luke 10: 38 – 42, NRSV Now as they went on their way, he entered […]
Commit Your Way to the Lord: A Prayer for First Nations Children and Quiet Peacemakers (September 29, 2016)
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him; do not fret over those who prosper in their way, over those who carry out evil devices. Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret – it leads only to evil. […]
The Lord Looks at the Heart: A Prayer for Yazidi Women, Hungry North Koreans, and Our Blindness (August 4, 2016)
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7, NIV Loving God, we pray today for the same instruction that you gave to Samuel: […]