Gracious and Loving Father, indeed you are our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. We are in trouble Lord and we call on you. We find ourselves fighting a long list of our worst enemies- illness, death, injustice, prejudice, chaos, fear, violence. We seek your mercy and ask that you create new and right spirits within us. We seek your help and ask for courage, healing, and comfort. We pray O Lord that you will raise up mediators among us. We pray that you will sharpen their skills and multiply their numbers. We pray for wisdom and sustained strength for leaders. We pray that you will silence incendiary leadership and call forth leaders capable of empathy and uniting people.

Lord, we recognize that the cultural pandemic among us is connected to the virus in our hearts and spirits. We all struggle with sin. Jesus, we remember that our sin is the reason you came and walked among us. Some of us become comfortable and in the midst of our comfort, we become apathetic and do little to help our fellow members of humanity. We are often silent when we should speak out against wrongs we witness. We tend to elevate ourselves and think less of others. We allow prejudice and harmful biases room in our hearts.

Lord, we ask for spiritual renewal. We belong to you. Cleanse all that is wrong in our hearts. Pour your Holy Spirit into our spirits. Transform all within us that needs your shaping. Inspire us to reach outside of ourselves and remember that we – people of all colors- belong to one another. Equip us with courage and wisdom to do better and to do more for our neighbors. Break down the barriers we have built up.

Lord, we ask for protection for police and protestors. We pray for officers who strive every day to bring peace and justice, and are now overwhelmed with added stress because of the unjust and criminal actions of a few officers. Bring them safely home to their families. We pray for protestors who are also striving to bring peace and justice, using their voices for all who have felt voiceless and powerless because of direly needed systemic changes. Bring them safely home to their families. May all of our minds be open enough to recognize when another is also working for peace and justice that we will do so with joined arms.

Lord, in the midst of all of the chaos we have created by our own actions and inaction, we ask for your help as we fight COVID-19 across the globe. You are the master physician, and all avenues of healing first come from you. Inspire, invigorate, and grant knowledge to those in medical research. Grant knowledge and compassion and sustaining strength to all healthcare professionals on the front lines. Help them to feel you closer than breathing and never feel alone.

Be with families who are grieving. Carry them through the darkness of the valleys, and prepare for them light and joy in the years ahead. Be with those who remain ill. Help them to feel you closer than breathing and know that they are not alone. The isolation of this illness cuts to the core. Make a way for every person to hear their loved ones voices and to feel wrapped in your arms. Connect all who are ill with effective medical attention.

We continue to pray for the multiplication of medical supplies everywhere they are needed. We pray especially for those who are at higher risk for COVID- 19 and for all illnesses. We pray for our elderly and impoverished communities.  Lead us to find additional ways to protect them and keep them safe.

Lord, we are going to need more than rebuilding. We need to build anew. We need to build communities that have access to healthcare and earn a living wage, and do not feel discriminated against. We cannot move forward without reconciled relationships and respectful dialogue and finally listening to one another. Lord, again, we beg for your spirit’s cleansing and equipping.

Lord, you created a beautiful world. Every morning when the sun rises once more, we know that your steadfast love and patience is shining down on us again. You are gracious and merciful. Your love for us is beyond comprehension. Open our hearts to receive your mercy and love that we might honor you in how we move forward. Through Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen.