Prayers of the People 2026-01-25

I don't know if you've been watching the news lately. It is not good. I don't care what side of the red-blue color divide you're on. The world will break your heart.

So, I'm not exactly sure what to pray for this morning. I know what I'd like to pray for. But I don't trust my biases right now. So, this morning's Prayers of the People – interesting title, because it means more than just "we, the people," more than just "we, in the Trinity bubble of us." There are a lot of people out there, who need a lot of prayer.

So, this morning's Prayers of the People, comes from the Bible. You might pick other scriptures than I do. That's good. It's a big book. And it's a big world of people. A big world of people on a tiny blue planet. The one thing we know for sure: It all needs our prayers and God's help.

So let's pray:

Almighty creator God, loving redeemer Jesus, guiding Spirit --

As your words spoke in Psalm 46, "The nations are in an uproar; the kingdoms totter;"

Help us not to be the weak voices you described in Jeremiah 6. Help us not to be "Those dressing the wounds of your people as though it were not serious, saying, "Peace, peace, when there is no peace."

As the Prophet Micah says in chapter 4, please, Lord, judge between many peoples and arbitrate between strong nations far away. Give us strength to beat our swords into plowshares and our spears into pruning hooks, that we shall no longer lift up swords against other nations, neither shall we learn war any more.

Make our voices sing with Mary in Luke 1, scattering the proud in the imagination of their hearts, bringing down the powerful from their thrones, lifting up the lowly, filling the hungry with good things, and sending the rich away empty.

Teach us, Lord Jesus, NOT to practice the worthless religion described in the first chapter of the Apostle James. Help us not to think we are religious without bridling our tongues while we deceive our hearts. Keep our religion pure and undefiled before God the Father by caring for orphans and widows in their distress, and to remain unstained by the world.

Lord, count us among your sheep of Matthew 25, giving food to the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, welcoming the stranger, clothing the naked, caring for the sick, visiting those in prison. Count us among your flock, instead of the goats who receive your scorn.

Loving God, may the words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 12 be ever in our minds, so that we do not think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the faith you have assigned. May we not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, so that we may discern what is the will of God — what is good and acceptable and perfect. May we laugh with those who laugh. (May we not forget to laugh. May we not forget to notice the beautiful blooming right before us.)

As Paul says, let our love be genuine. Help us to hate what is evil and to hold fast to what is good. Help us love one another with mutual affection, outdoing each other in showing honor. Help us to rejoice in hope, to be patient in affliction, to persevere in prayer. Give us generosity to share with the saints and to pursue hospitality to strangers.

May we bless those who persecute us. May we bless them and not curse them. May we live in harmony with one another, never being arrogant, associating with the lowly, and not claiming to be wiser than we are.