Good and Gracious God,
We pray that there would be peace on earth, and we pray that it would begin with us. We know that often war and conflict come from either selfish ambitions or warped reasons. Sadly, we know that war can also come from warped religious ideas.
We ask, Lord, that there would be peace in Ukraine. We ask that there would be peace sooner rather than later, and that the aggression would stop.
We pray for both the people of Ukraine and the people of Russia, so many of whom have no choice in this matter and are simply living out events decided by other people. We pray for their health and safety.
We also pray for the transformation of the hearts of the people behind this conflict. We pray that you would help them find peace in their hearts and that it would begin with them and overflow, that peace might abound in that part of the world.
We pray as well for other parts of the world that endure conflicts about which we rarely hear, but struggles that have been going on for many, many years.
We ask that your children – that we – might be at peace.
In Jesus’s name … Amen.
During Sunday worship on February 27, Pastor Nik led the congregation with an extemporaneous prayer about the situation in Ukraine. Since then, people have asked for a copy of it. Julie, our Minister of Music, transcribed it from the online worship video and shared it with us all.