Sunday, July 3, 2016
Offered by Judith L. Watt, Associate Pastor

God of liberty and God of justice, you know the yearnings of our hearts, the confusion of our minds, the depths of our souls. On this day when we celebrate our country’s independence from the rule of a king, we find our world teetering between clamors for autonomy and clamors for interconnection. So much around us swirls in disorder. Remind us, O God, remind us again, that you are a God who redeems. Remind us that what looks like disorder is so often the seedbed of a new creation and a good creation. In our Independence Day gatherings, amidst friends and food, let us be thankful for the freedom we have experienced in this nation. And when we hear the sound of fireworks, let those sounds be reminders to us to lift up a prayer, not only for our country, but for our world, that you would lead humanity to a place of true liberty and true justice, not just for some, but for all.

God, we find ourselves overwhelmed by news of more violence than we can handle. We pray for loved ones of victims of the bombing in Turkey and violence in Bangladesh. And we continue to pray for loved ones of victims in our own city streets. We pray for an end to the glorification of weapons. Replace anger and injustice and lack of hope with love and your justice and opportunity.

In our own pain and worry we often forget those who are first responders. Thank you for every single one of them, both near and far. Thank you for their courage. Give them places to share the pain they have absorbed.

We pray for people in our own lives and in this congregation who are experiencing illness or anxiety over an awaited diagnosis. Bring to them comfort and trust. We pray for people in our lives who struggle to make ends meet. We pray for our parents and for our children. And we give you thanks for the friends who support us. We thank you for people who have gone before us, who have fought for us, and who have left a legacy that has made our lives more whole. Most of all, O God, we thank you for the gift of your Son Jesus, who came to show us the depth of your love and forgiveness, the inexplicable wideness of your mercy. We pray all of this in his name, with the prayer he taught, saying together, Our Father . . .

Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church