Passing on a Prayer
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Lord, send your Spirit in this place;
Lord, listen to your children praying,
send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.
Text and music- Ken Medema
God of all creation, God who calls us each and all by name, hear our prayers of anguish, of contrition, of desperation, as we look around this world which you have created and given to us to care for and about. Hear us as we acknowledge that so much of what is happening is the result of our human actions and failures to act; forgive us and breathe your Spirit into us, that we may each and all commit to doing our part to heal the brokenness in this world you love.
Even as some refuse to admit the reality of climate change, we see the deadly rains in Germany and Belgium which have taken the lives of more than 170, with thousands more missing. We grieve the rains in Henan province in China as they received a year’s rainfall in only three days, resulting in the deaths of at least 25, with 1.2 million displaced from their homes. We can barely breathe at the thought of the extreme heat affecting large portions of the western United States of America. And yet, in Iran, water shortages are resulting in protests by people without sufficient water to meet daily needs. Wildfires rage in the western United States and Canada, resulting in the destruction of countless acres of forest, and causing cross-country air pollution. We look at this and wonder why, O God, and we grieve for our part in creating a world in which this is not only possible but is a reality.
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Lord, send your Spirit in this place;
Lord, listen to your children praying,
send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.
Even as some refuse to acknowledge the continued presence and threat of Covid-19 and the spread of the latest Delta variant, cases in many African countries, where fewer than 2% of the people are vaccinated, are surging, including Senegal, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, and South Africa. Half of Australia has been returned to lockdown, and cases surge in parts of the United States with low vaccination rates. We look at this and wonder why, O God, and we grieve for our part in creating this reality out of our human arrogance and lack of concern for our neighbor.
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Lord, send your Spirit in this place;
Lord, listen to your children praying,
send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.
Even amidst the terrors and pain which confront us daily, we seek good news and lift it to you for your blessing, O God. We celebrate the rescue of the 150 kindergarten children and teachers in the flooded Henan province. We celebrate the triumph of the female soldiers who have become part of the security forces at the Muslim holy sites in Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. We rejoice with the people of Haiti, as they welcome a new prime minister, Ariel Henry, and with the people of Peru at the election of a new president, Pedro Castillo. We are gratified that 100 mothers and children who had been kidnapped last month in Nigeria have been rescued and returned to their families. And we rejoice that the 855 Black women of the Six Triple Eight Postal Battalion will, at last, receive a Congressional Gold Medal for their service to the United States during WWII. We look at all this, O God, and realize that these things are your intention for us, your children, as we care for and about one another in every place.
Lord, listen to your children praying,
Lord, send your Spirit in this place;
Lord, listen to your children praying,
send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace.
God of all creation, God who calls us each and all by name, hear our prayers, for to whom else shall we go when our hearts are breaking and our souls are filled with unrest? You alone have the words of healing, of life, of forgiveness, of compassion, and for that, we give thanks, in the name of the Christ- our brother, companion, friend, and redeemer. Amen
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