Labor Day Prayer

Dear God,
As we celebrate this last holiday weekend of summer, fill us with your joy. We know that you are the warmth we feel in our hearts as we gather with family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers. We know that you are the life that fills the wonderful food that we eat and the beautiful flowers that we see. We also know that your peace fills those quiet moments when we can just be, giving our concerns a vacation for a little while.

This Labor Day we ask you to renew our country. Help all those who want to work to find work that allows them to make at least a living wage and to have a sense of purpose. Lift up this country so that it will again be considered a land of opportunity. A-men.

Labor Day Blessing

May you always be able to find work when you want it. 

May you easily be able to make a living wage. 

May you be treated with honesty, fairness, and respect. 

May you work in a safe and healthy environment. 

May your work give you a sense of purpose.

Prayer for Somalia

Dear God,
Please be with the people of Somalia today. Send your power so that relief comes to them quickly and easily. Supply them with more than enough food to sustain their bodies. Fill them with your life so that they can be healthy, strong, and thrive. Spread your protection over them so that they can be safe. Spread your love over them so that they can feel hope. Spread your comfort over them so that their hearts can heal.

Please be with those of us around the world who watch, sometimes feeling helpless. Guide us to know how best to help.

Lastly be with the leaders of government and business, with scientists and entrepreneurs, and with others who can be agents for positive change in the world. Help them to make decisions from a place of wisdom and compassion. As the climate of our planet changes, guide them in creating a world where all people can be safe and healthy. A-men.

Prayer London Riots and Recent Mob Violence

This morning when I checked the news, I read a disturbing story about the riots in London. On a smaller scale—if a hundred people can be considered a small scale—we had mob violence in my community, here in the United States, this weekend. I realize that this has been going on elsewhere in the world for a long time. Somehow it is feels different when it is one’s own community. Here is a prayer for all of us: those in London, in US cities, and elsewhere in the world.

Dear God,

Please spread your protection around those in London and in other cities that have been experiencing mob violence. Send your healing power to diffuse the tension and the anger. Fill the hearts of those who would behave violently with your love and peace. Send your strength, courage, and wisdom to the police forces and community leaders. Lastly, send your guidance to help create long-term solutions that help eliminate the root causes of the recent violence. A-men.