Charles Conkin | February 11, 2018
O God, today, we remember how your Son drew apart to be in prayer with you, now we offer our prayers for the transformation of the world and the church.
O God,
We keep scrolling through the news, forever clicking from one catastrophe to the next trauma, over and over and over again. Make us stop. Teach us to breathe. Show us how to be present rather than barrel through the world.
This morning, we pray that we might take a break and breathe and behold the needs of world.
We offer our prayers for those who are preparing for elections and the transition of power in Venezuela, Germany, and South Africa. We pray for citizen voices to be heard, debate to remain non-violent, and people respected.
Lord, hear our prayers.
We offer our prayers for those in need of drinkable water, whether they live in Cape Town, South Africa, Flint, Michigan, or Martin County Kentucky. We pray for provisions to keep your children satisfied in the present and regulations to keep us safe in the future. And we pray that we might never, ever, ever, ever, take for granted the gift of water and the resources from your Creation.
Lord, hear our prayers.
We offer our prayers for those who remain in battle zones and under siege in Syria. We still lift to you our prayers of grief, anger, fear, frustration, and deep lament for Syrian citizens and refugees. May they be reminded that they are not alone, no matter how long the conflict drags on.
Lord, hear our prayers.
May we breathe and behold those who work to lift up the last, the lost, and the least here in our United States. As our media and legislators fixate on the wealthiest, most glamorous among us, we pray for the conviction to look for you in the face of the stranger, immigrant, prisoner, impoverished, abandoned, and the assaulted.
We pray for the hearts and minds and strength to breathe and behold you in the world around us. We pray that we might learn to love you not just in word but in action, here and now and always.
You revealed your glory and presence in your beloved Son, Jesus the Christ. In receiving our prayers, reveal the glory and presence of your Spirit alive in the world today, free us from all doubts, and empower us to act as a transfigured people. Amen.
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