Dear God,
If there’s one thing I know for sure right now, it’s that the world wasn’t meant to be like this.
Nice, France. Orlando. Dallas. Alton Sterling. Philando Castile. These names, and too many others like them, are my nation’s newest synonyms for tragedy. For the friends and family of those who have died, they represent moments of agony that can never be unwritten. For those whose race or sexuality or occupation has given them reason to fear the same kind of violence, they are threats, reminders that catastrophe is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode.
Even for me, though these names are little more than headlines to weep over and shake my fist at, they still leave me reeling. They make me wonder how much longer the world as I know it can possibly survive. They make me wonder what I can do, how I should respond, if I too am complicit in this violence.
But you, God, know these names better than all of us. They’re not just names to you. You’ve studied every detail of every life damaged or lost in these tragedies. You’ve numbered the hairs on every head, gathered every tear. The people I’ve only ever known as victims, you’ve known all along as reflections of your own image.
You know far better than I that the world wasn’t made for hatred and pain. You’re the one who knew our human race from the very beginning, the one who breathed life into our dust and called us very good. You know just how beautiful we were intended to be.
So if my heart is breaking right now, surely your heart must be breaking too.
I pray to you not as someone distant and aloof, but as someone near to me, near to us, even in the midst of chaos. I don’t have to shout to get your attention. You are close enough to hear my broken whispers. No matter how strong or weak I feel, no matter how much or how little
faith
I can muster, I’ll start by whispering this:
Give us peace.
You are the sovereign ruler, the mover of mountains, the victor of impossible victories. You are Lord over earthquakes and tsunamis, over nations in turmoil and terrorist plots, over starving children and fleeing refugees and prisoners tortured for their faith. You speckled the sky with stars and set the earth spinning like a top. You own everything, control everything. Your hand allows each mind to think and teaches each heart to beat. There is nothing you can’t do. So I pray, even though it seems impossible:
Give us peace.
Bring an end to violence and hatred and discord. Steady the feet that rush into war and the finger poised on the trigger. Bring justice to the downtrodden, restoration to the marginalized and abused, hope to the hopeless. Guide all those in positions of power—whether that power is political or physical or social—and give them wisdom to use their power wisely. Give them, and all of us, the grace to admit when we are wrong and to seek forgiveness. Give us the grace to forgive.
Help us see your face in the faces of the people around us. Give us courage to love one another even when love seems like a risk. Give us compassion for those who are unlike us. Teach us to listen to those we disagree with, to hear stories that make us uncomfortable. Heal the hatred in the world around us by healing our own hearts first.
Give us peace by making us agents of peace.
Even now, in the midst of the darkness, I believe you are at work. I believe you have the power to fashion something new and beautiful out of our disastrous ruins. Give me patience as you work. Don’t let me rush so quickly into peace that I fail to learn from the chaos. If you’re revealing ugliness in my nation and world so that I can begin to address it and transform it, don’t let me be content to simply sweep it under the carpet. I want more than a temporary cease-fire of my own making. I want true peace, lasting peace.
Your peace.
If tragedy and chaos persist, keep me from apathy. Give me a heart that loves deeply enough to break again and again. Give me a passion for peace that only burns brighter as time goes by.
Thank you that your love has never stopped blazing. Thank you that no matter how many times our human race falls, you have never fallen into apathy. When we are faithless, you remain faithful.
One day, I know, you’ll give us a perfect peace that lasts forever. One day every sorrow will be erased and every tear wiped away. One day pain will be locked in a heavenly museum and hatred will be the stuff of history books.
But I dare to ask for peace sooner than that. I dare to believe, along with King David in
Psalm 27:13
, that
“I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.”
I dare to plead with you in the name of Jesus, in the name of the one who suffered so I could plead with you:
Give us peace.
Gregory Coles is an author and an English instructor at Penn State University. Learn more at www.gregcoles.com.
This article is part of our larger Prayers resource meant to inspire and encourage your prayer life when you face uncertain times. Visit our most popular prayers if you are wondering how to pray or what to pray. Remember, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us and God knows your heart even if you can’t find the words to pray.
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Rev.Isaac Komolafe, Northern Region Coordinator, Foursquare Gospel Church, has called on Nigerians to remain steadfast and continue to pray for peace and unity of the country.
Komolafe, who made the call at a special prayer session for the nation at the National Christian Centre in Abuja on Sunday, noted that prayer was key to resolving problems.
He said that things were better because Nigerians were prayerful, adding that it could have been worse without prayers.
‘’That is why we must continue to pray.
”We are praying for God to heal the country and that those occupying government offices and all leaders will do what is right by listening to people who voted them into office.
”Nigeria is still a baby, we are not yet an adult which we are suppose to be, but it is not over yet, we must resolve our problems now so that the nation will pick up.
”Nigeria at 57 has not gone very far, although we have some little things that we can count to show our progress, but a lot is still need to be done,” he said.
Contributing, Babatunde Idowu, District Oversearer, Foursquare Gospel Church, Wuse, said that Nigerians must be united and hope for a better future.
According to Idowu, Nigerians are one, irrespective of tribe, belief and religion.
He said that the church had been praying for solutions and peace for the people and the country at large.
The theme the prayer session is ”A night of God’s glory.”
NAN
www.vanguardngr.com
Jehovah Mekoddishkem, we bless Your holy name. Fill us with Your Holy presence. Guide our thoughts, our actions, our words and our deeds so that they will all be used in the manner of glorifying Your precious name. Draw close to us as we seek Your face.
1 Timothy 5:8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
Ephesians 6:1-4 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” Fathers, do not provoke Your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
We just want to lift up our families before You, Oh God. Thank You for each and every member. Give them peace in their hectic lives as well as protection against all evil wherever they go. Allow each individual to be a blessing to others.
I declare that every sign of gossip, confusion, hatred, bitterness, envy, jealousy, malice and pride against one another will be dispelled in Jesus’ name.
Genesis 2:24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
Psalm 133:1 Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
Restoring Unity and Peace
Restore unity and peace, and may love, faith and hope invade the hearts of each of them. Mend the broken relationships within each circle. Let love never run dry for one another and let all situations be resolved.
Allow all the lost ones who have been led astray by the world discover You again, Merciful Savior. Continue to bless us daily. We declare that all families will unite and love will be restored from this day forward, in Jesus’ mighty name, Amen!
1 Timothy 3:4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive
Proverbs 18:22 He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.
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