Help us to heal O Lord.
Help us to heal both from our self-inflicted wounds and those inflicted by others.
Help us to change the systems that direct our wealth away from those who labor and from the common good.
Help us to heal our hatred and divisions.
Help us to find hope in the courage and dignity and forgiveness of our fellow citizens.
Help us to calm our anxious minds and commit to the hard work of rebuilding our democracy.
Help us to heal O Lord.
Amen
Lead us O Lord, through the divisive rhetoric, appeals to fear, misinformation, and other deceits of our political times.
Help us to trust in you and follow your paths.
Awaken us O Lord, to the world as it is and to our own role in its suffering.
Help us to see the possibilities for peace and future prosperity for all.
Create with us O Lord, a democracy and a country where all might thrive.
Let us not be deceived or turned from your ways.
Amen
Help us to think clearly O Lord. Help us to think beyond the
Help us to find our way, through the noise. Help us move towards
Guide us, O Lord.
Amen
Forgive us our inattention, Lord, to the suffering of others.
Forgive us our willingness to ignore oppression when it brings us economic gain.
Forgive us our inclination to hoard our time, talent, and treasure and to distract ourselves with trivial entertainments.
Open our eyes Lord. Show us how we can reallocate our wealth, and strengthen us to follow-through. (Lev. 25:8-17).
Open our hearts Lord. Teach us how to share and care for one another. (Acts 2:44-47, 4:32-35).
Open our minds Lord, that we might not be misled by the temptations of this world.
Help us to discern and pursue the riches of your kingdom that we might live in peace and prosper as one people, one country. (Luke 12:13-21, 1 Timothy 6:6-16, Proverbs 3:13-18, 27).
Forgive us, and guide us O Lord.
Amen
Today’s prayer is adapted from the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer.
Lord, please help us protect our elections which are the heart of our democracy.
Guide us in our responsibilities as citizens that we may elect trustworthy leaders and make wise decisions for our common good.
Ensure the faithful administration of our voting processes so that the rights of all may be protected.
And in our thoughts and in our actions, help us to align ourselves with your justice and mercy and grace so that we might be a people at peace among ourselves.
Amen
Lord, we know what to do for you have told us:
to love you and
to love others as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39);
to love even our enemies (Matthew 5:44);
to act justly, to love mercy, to follow with humility the path you set out (Micah 6:8);
to seek wisdom (Proverbs 3:11-24);
to do good and share with others (Hebrews 13:16);
to welcome the stranger and care for the poor (James 1:27, Zechariah 7:9-10);
to grow and bear the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-26).
But we have become polluted by the world (James 1:27),
aligned with those who divide (Romans 16:17),
entertained and misled by deceit and hypocrisy and slander (1 Peter 2:1),
entranced by the deceitfulness of wealth, and
overwhelmed by the demands of our daily lives (Matthew 13:22, Luke 8:14).
We have wandered from your ways.
Forgive us Lord.
Help us now to put our faith into action, and to build a better world.
Amen
Today’s prayer is an adaptation of Ps. 33:18-22 that appeared in The Book of Family Prayer by Robert Webber (Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1986.)
Lord, we believe Your eye is upon those who fear You,
Those who have hope in You.
Lord, we wait upon you;
For You are our help and our shield.
Our hearts rejoice in You
Because we have trusted in your holy name.
Lord, let Your mercy be upon us
As we hope on You,
And send upon us
Your Holy Spirit, we pray.
Amen
Come Holy Ghost, Creator blest, and in our heart take up thy rest. Come with your grace and heavenly aid, And fill the hearts which you have made.
Come Holy Ghost, Pentecost Hymn, Rabanus Maurus, 776-856.
On this Pentecost Sunday, Lord, people are dying, cities are burning, and our future is uncertain.
For generations you have put before us both a path to peace and prosperity, and one that leads to destruction and death. (Deuteronomy 30:15, Acts 2: 28).
Too often Lord we choose the wrong way, and then having lost our way, we cry out in despair. (Judges 2-10).
Yet you are ever with us and hear our cry. Your love and forgiveness are everlasting. Let them guide us forward, loosening the grip of hate and fear, inequity and greed, to a better way.
Spirit of Truth, you live in us (John 14:17), guide us to your peace.
Amen
How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity. Ps. 133:1
Lord, how do we put our faith in action?
How do we speak up in the face of factions, fear, falsehoods, aggression, coercion, corruption, arrogance, or resentment?
How do we practice self-control, engage the generosity of your Spirit, listen, and forgive?
Show us Lord, the better way.
Amen
Prayers For Our Country 