Prayer for America, July 4

We gather as Christians and perhaps some would-be Christians. Most of us have been baptized into Christ and, therefore, our highest commitment is to serve the mission of the One who by his blood has ransomed people from every tribe and language and people and nation and made them a transcultural, transnational kingdom of priests to God, a church universal. Yet we also gather in a land that has been good to us, and, like the Christian citizens of all nations, we are commanded by the New Testament apostles to pray for divine blessing and guidance for our nation and its government. Let us do so:

Dear God, recognizing that blessing comes from you, we pray blessing for the United States of America. First of all, we pray for the spiritual awakening and moral renewal that is so urgently needed among our people. Beyond that, we pray that true Christian holiness and compassion at every level would characterize all who claim Jesus’ name. We pray special blessing for all who are today in harm’s way as they serve our nation, and we pray healing and comfort and provision for all who have suffered grief and loss due to such service. We pray for peace that such sacrifices might not be always necessary. We pray especially for all your children and all your creatures affected by the oil spill in the Gulf. We ask speedy restoration and the implementation of wise policies and practices that will reduce the likelihood of recurrences. We ask divine guidance for our government leaders in the nation, state, county, and city, that their decisions might be ever more in keeping with your will and wisdom, with your love and justice. Help us as citizens to understand that there is much in our power that does not depend on government, that there are decisions we can make and carry out in voluntary cooperation with our neighbors that make our land and its people better, wiser, and more prosperous. Give us the courage to change and discipline our lives to play constructive roles in making our land better. Show us our part as we pray. Amen.

Our guest soloist from the Opera of the Ozarks, Danya Clevenger, then sang and led the congregation in, “God Bless America.”