Good and gracious, God,
Can we admit to You that our lives seem to have fallen into a state of chaos?
The world around us seems to have gone crazy and lost its way.
The constant changes are exhausting!
With each passing day, it seems as though we have become
a more deeply divided people.
Surely, we humans must test your patience!
Surely, we children must infuriate You with our disobedience!
Surely, we followers must exasperate You with our bickering!
O Lord, we call upon You to break through to us today.
We want to feel grounded in Your love and presence.
We long to feel secure in Your mercy, to find rest in Your care.
At the top of our list, of course,
we pray for a breakthrough in medical research,
as our world seeks to find a vaccine or cure for the coronavirus.
But we also pray for the breakthroughs of our hearts…
With You, Lord, we will walk through the tension of our society -
the suffering and sorrow,
the challenges and struggles,
the tired times and dark places.
We pray for a breakthrough in our own inner blindness and denial
when it comes to our lack of understanding and empathy
for those You call our neighbors.
We pray for a breakthrough in our hearts
to create a hospitable space to be offered to one another,
where conversations can occur
for the purpose of deeper understanding.
We pray for a breakthrough in the mutual hurt and pain of our community,
for progress to be made towards finding that common ground,
upon which we can stand, and create a flourishing and safe world for all.
We pray for a breakthrough in our own stubbornness and arrogance
when it comes to what You are trying to teach us and reveal to us.
We long to become whole.
We pray for a breakthrough in our fears and anxiety
so that we are able to welcome an uncertain future,
knowing that a non-anxious presence will do more
to build a better world than an anxious presence.
We pray for a breakthrough in our own timidity around our convictions,
so we can hold them with courage and humility.
We pray for a breakthrough in our false thinking that we can control the future,
when, in reality, we can only be present to the here and now,
and seek to respond as kindly and maturely as possible.
We pray for a breakthrough in our tendency to judge others
based on our assumptions and biased attitudes.
May we move towards seeing that of God in others.
To achieve these breakthroughs
will require total reliance upon You, Lord.
If we try to go solo on this,
we will most surely fail.
Mold us be Your change agents and breakthrough artists.
Embolden us with courage to speak out about our faith,
to teach those around us about Your love for all people,
and to lead by example,
showing and speaking with respect to others.
Clear the ground of our hearts,
break up the hard crust of our souls,
and plant seeds of hope.
In Your Spirit, may we nurture these seeds
and bear the fruit of life, joy, peace, and energizing vision for our future.
We pray all this in the name of the One,
who transforms us into His image,
who makes us whole,
so that we may be His hands and heart for the world to see.
We pray the words that He taught us to pray:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
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