A Call to Prayer and Effective Action
There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are messengers of overwhelming grief…and unspeakable love. Washington Irving
Heavenly Father,
Nine days ago most of us had never even heard of a town in Texas named Uvalde. Eight days ago, all of that changed. Forever. It is now one of the most well known places in America, but for all the wrong reasons. The horrific tragedy that took place there one week ago today has wounded a nation. The families of Uvalde are on our minds and hearts and lips. And as our Pastor prayed last Sunday, “There are more tears in our world today than there should be. There is more grief in our world today than there should be.”
We must catch these tears that flow unceasing, and we must prevent the flow of tears from ever falling again that are borne out of a tragedy such as this.
Today O Lord, we come to you broken and bereft, for this land that we love is fast becoming a war zone. Every single day there are countless murders of men, women and children. While many others have died throughout this holiday weekend, we are still reeling from the shock of a mass murder inflicted upon the most innocent and precious of lives.
We know that every bullet that pierced a child, pierced and deeply wounded your heart most of all. The only comfort that we can know in the freshness of a nations grief is that these small and vibrant souls are now with you. They will never hurt again. Our Savior proclaimed, Let the children come unto me…for to them belongs the kingdom of heaven. However premature, they now reside, and are busily at play in your glorious kingdom of perfect love and tenderness and joy. They weep no more.
Lord when we unfortunately experience a tragedy of these proportions we tend to do what we’ve always done. We reach around for our little bags of arsenal, stretch out our bows and start flinging our poisoned arrows with tired and bedraggled talking points, aimed at shaming others with accusations born out of political rhetoric. Forgive us our self-justification, for those times that we act as if we are somehow smarter, wiser or better than those with differing opinions. How you confound the wise, O Lord. Your ways are far above our ways. We are inept, You alone are wise and the only place for believers to be is on our knees seeking Your wisdom in the matter…and Your plan, Your protection, and Your comfort.
As Your family of faith, we should be ashamed of ourselves. Politics will never solve humanity’s sin problem. You have taken care of that in a completely different way. Yet, we tend to reside in the pettiness of politics while You preside over it and above it. Lord, help us to see that now is not the time to accuse or belittle, to make someone feel small when we value our opinion above others. Help us to remember who and Whose we are. Our common humanity is all that should be on our minds and hearts. Not taking political potshots that only serve to divide and separate us. Help us to ask ourselves before we hit “post”, would I send this to Jesus?
Holy God, wipe clean the slate of our minds with your omnipotent finger. By your Holy Spirit, infuse us with real solutions, absent of condemnation, which serves no purpose except for creating strife and the wounding of yet more souls. We know what you think about a proud and haughty heart. This is not who we are called to be, this is not how we are called to behave. We submit that we are imperfect creatures. Bring to our minds new ways of engaging and exchanging ideas born out of a common purpose. Help us find ways to ensure the protection of the innocent, so they may never have to endure such an egregious tragedy as was experienced in Texas.
Give us the ears to hear You calling us to new ways of being and doing; of loving You and loving neighbor. Give us wisdom, strength and the endurance to do whatever it takes to protect innocent lives, whether children or adults. Write upon our minds and hearts a clear path for moving forward. Enough is enough. It must stop. And we need to begin again, through the grace and peace of your people. You who are above all politics, let us rise above, allowing us to be molded ever closer to Your Spirit.
The Gospel that we live and tell is both personal AND social. Remind us that we are the collective, that we need each other. Continue to open our minds and hearts to tangible solutions that can only come from listening to all ideas, not just defending our own, for You speak through all of us. Let us not discount the validity of other voices.
Come now, and let us reason together, says the Lord. Isaiah 1:18
How fruitless are our works when we do not turn to you…
So far, nothing that we have said or done has had any real and lasting impact in the face of countless tragedies. They just keep coming. How many more will die because of our foolish and insistent ways that prevent us from moving forward? How can we not respond in one accord for the ultimate good of our fellow man?! We should all be in total agreement that this cannot continue to happen! We need to hold ourselves accountable to You, O God, by holding ourselves accountable to the deepest needs of our communities.
Help us to be faithful in seeking Your wisdom for the appropriate solutions to eradicate this evil as much as we possibly can. You are the only way through this Lord, and we beseech You for the answers that will evoke real and lasting change. Then help us to get out of Your way, so that we may be receptive to the implanting of Your divine will and purpose, and to be fruitful in seeking a way forward in the midst of unspeakable tragedy.
We pray with all that is in us that never again will there ever be another Uvalde. Help us to be part of the solution through the guidance of your Holy Spirit. Help us as a nation to begin to bind the wounds of grieving families after such a devastating loss. Comfort them. Comfort us. We know the scars of their grief will never completely heal, but they will be surrounded by a nation who grieves with them. Knowing that can sometimes be enough, in the long dark nights of grief and pain.
In Your great mercy O Lord, let us seek Your face; let us search diligently for solidarity in the face of division. Allow us to make an impact for good. Let us soothe and console one another.
As the lyricist has written…
Change my heart Oh God, make it ever true.
Change my heart Oh God, may I be like You.
Guide us all, along the way of shalom. Peace within, peace without.
All of this we ask in the name of the Prince of Peace…
Amen. And amen.