Reverend Dr. Ronald F. Christian
Lutheran Social Services
Fairfax, VA
Date of Prayer: 04/03/2001
Opening Prayer Given by the Guest Chaplain:
God of all mercy and grace, look kindly upon all Your people this day in both the celebrations and the sufferings of life. Shield the joyous from pride and relieve the grieving of their sorrow.
Where health of body and mind is in jeopardy, grant a full measure of Your healing and hope. Where conflict and distrust between people are present, provide a quiet and calm refrain in the clamor of their strife. And where hunger and thirst are Your children's basic needs, challenge all those with an abundance of this world's possessions the desire to be good stewards and to share with others from their own storehouses of wealth.
Wherever hate outranks love, wherever sadness is more common than joy, wherever retaliation is the first acceptable alternative to mercy, then and there, Oh God, we pray, give to all of Your people a sense of what Your justice for our world might mean, and let Your peace ever rule in our lives. Amen.
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