Daily Prayer for Peace  | |
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Daily Prayer for Peace
Daily Prayer for Peace
1:00 p.m.
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Cote d'Ivoire
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Gathering in Silence
Call to Prayer
Lighting of CandleInvitation |
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Good afternoon, and welcome to
this sacred place of quiet meditation and prayer. Each day in this
Temple dedicated to the pursuit of peace, we pray to God for peace in
our world. In addition, each day we pray for a different country.
Today we will remember the people of the Cote d’Ivoire or Ivory Coast in
our prayers. Located in Western Africa, this former French colony gained
independence in 1960, but only held its first multiparty elections in
1990. The Ivory Coast is home to more than 60 ethnic groups. Once a
model of stability, the country in 1999 started slipping into the kind
of tribal strife that has plagued many African countries. Violence
between northerners and southerners in 2000 destroyed churches and
mosques and killed dozens of people. The political crisis, combined with
low commodity prices, caused personal income to decrease, while
unemployment and urban migration increased. Dependent on such
commodities as cacao and coffee, which are subject to drastic price
swings, this once prosperous nation faces ongoing economic problems.
Christ, whose presence is like daybreak and shines in the darkness of
all our pain and fear, calls us to worship. May the light of Christ fill
our hearts this day. |
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| Scripture Reading: Zechariah 8:16 NRSV |
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These are the things that you shall do:
Speak the truth to one another, render in your gates judgments that are
true and make for peace. |
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Prayer for Peace by Donald Brown, Reno, Nevada |
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Creator God,
It is good to gather here once again, to rest in this silent, sacred,
spiraling place, and collect our thoughts, calm our minds. Gentle colors
and light surround us, sooth us into quietness and stillness. Even for
those of us who live far away from this place, we can journey here in
our minds and sense the pace and tranquility that abides in this
sanctuary.
We need times like this, God. Times when we can retreat and refresh our
spirits, and clear our minds. Times that restore our souls, and remind
us again of the tasks you have commissioned us to fulfill.
God, we sometimes grow weary. Weary of hoping and struggling for peace
in a world that so often seems filled with hatred and despair. We are
overwhelmed by the needs that surround us, the demands and the problems
which drain our resources and sap our strength. We grow weary of the
world around us which too often dashes our hope for peace and mocks our
faith in You.
We weep for the violence and destruction that rages in so much of the
earth. We weep for the children, little innocent ones who are denied
love and whose lives are consumed by forces of darkness and evil. We
weep for those rendered powerless by systems of injustice, abuse, and
oppression. We weep for those who are treated as if they were of no
worth in the sight of others around them. At times we feel as though we
have no more tears to shed for those who suffer.
We do not want to hear anymore of life, precious life, or of the beauty
of your creation, destroyed as if it were of no consequence or value.
We are burdened, Lord, filled with both a far-off vision of a world of
peace that could someday be, but also filled with an awareness of human
brutality and misery of such intensity that we cannot bear to comprehend
the depth of its reality.
Meet us now, O God, in this place and time, and gently open our hearts.
Fill our hearts with both the pain of the "now" and the hope of the
"what yet can be." For if you are the God of love and compassion as
shown in the life of your Son, Jesus, then we know that the tears we
have shed have been your tears as well. We know that we have not
struggled alone, but that you have been with us, beside us, yearning and
longing for peace.
Creator God, cradle our wounded hearts in your hands and heal us,
restore us to wholeness, and rekindle the vision of peace in us once
again. Lift us to our feet and stir our hearts once more with the
promise of peace, the message of peace and love which gave to us in the
gift of your Son, Jesus Christ.
Place in us the longing for peace, and the courage to enter the struggle
again, to ache and dream and speak for peace. And we know that one day,
by your power and will, that the kingdoms of the earth will become the
Kingdom of your Son, and our Lord, Jesus, and that the peoples of the
world shall dwell together in love and unity.
To this end, God, we lift our prayer to you, and offer our love to you,
and to the world you have called us to minister to. In the name of your
Son, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen. |
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Hymn - Infant Holy, Infant Lowly -
Hymns of the Saints #242 |
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Prayers of the People
Please join us now, praying the Prayers of the People. During the
moments of silence, you are invited to pray silently or meditate. |
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We praise you, God, for this day and its blessings, for
our family and friends who sustain us, for abilities to earn our daily
bread, and for the gift of Jesus our Christ who ever leads us toward
peace. |
| The People Pray in Silence |
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We bow before you in repentance of our sins. Help us to be ever more
aware of those things we should omit from our lives, as well as those
actions we should add to our living. |
| The People Pray in Silence |
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We especially ask your blessing on the nation and the people of Cote d’
Ivoire. Guide them as they seek to find peace among their people and
neighbors. |
| The People Pray in Silence |
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We are aware of inequalities in our world. Touch the lives of world
leaders that they will make wise decisions to benefit all nations—not
just their own. |
| The People Pray in Silence |
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We would also remember the concerns and the needs of the people gathered
here this day. Bless your children, O God. |
| The People Pray in Silence |
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Please use this space to pray for any
current concern or event in our community, city, state, nation or world
that you feel needs to be held up to God for prayerful consideration.
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| The People Pray in Silence |
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Hear our prayer, O Lord, and in your mercy answer us. Amen. |
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| Sending Forth |
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We conclude our service for today with ministry of
music. We invite you to remain in the quiet of this place and pray or
meditate for as long as you may wish.
Let us go forth and be the peacemakers and peacekeepers that we are
called to be. Christ, our peace, will guide you and bless you for your
calling. |
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| Ministry of Music |
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