The PRAYERwerks: Prayer for the Gulf

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Prayer for the Gulf

There’s a harsh line in chapter eighteen of Leviticus. God, speaking through Moses, says: …if you pollute it, the land will vomit you up just as it vomited up the nations that preceded you. (Leviticus 18:28) It brings to mind the Gulf of Mexico oil pollution crisis. Chapter eighteen is mainly about sexual ethics, but this still reads like a creation care warning to me.

Creator God,

I pray for the Gulf of Mexico…that you would heal that great body of water…the marine life, the shoreline, the wildlife and the people affected by the oil well disaster.

Let us confess...
That our technology, our best engineers and scientific minds are inadequate when we disrespect creation…when we cut corners…when profit becomes god rather than goal.

Let us confess…
That we are not the masters of creation, merely dependent stewards.

If only we would act that way.

By your hand, by your power, craft our repair and restoration efforts. Make them sufficient.

The Psalmist tells us:
You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly. (Psalm 65:9)

Please Lord, heal the Gulf. Amen.

God’s preferred state for the Gulf of Mexico

Sunset from Captiva Island, FL

Pelican photo credit: National Post

I admire people who can pray spontaneously, but there’s something to be said for word craft, especially when the words are offered to the Lord.

The PRAYERwerks is my attempt to assemble the components of prayer: Praise. Gratitude. Confession. Repentance. Intercession. Humility. Authenticity. The result: A connection with the presence and power of God.

(There’s a significant omission from the list above: silence before the Lord and listening for his voice. I can’t really assist with that on the Internet other than to remind you of its importance!)

I'm publishing my prayers on the web because we can’t get enough…offer enough…speak enough…internalize enough PRAYER. As St. Paul advised the Thessalonians “PRAY WITHOUT CEASING.” This is my modest contribution to the cause.

Here’s a disclaimer: I may "sample" ideas and language from my daily Bible study - Encounter with God - from Scripture Union USA, and the other resources listed below on the sidebar. Some might consider it plagiarism. I prefer to think of it as improvisation, and I attempt to give the authors and expositors credit.

Thanks for visiting The PRAYERwerks.

G.W. Habel
Durham NC, USA

I only pray when I'm in trouble. But I'm in trouble all the time, so I always pray.

Isaac Bashevis Singer

Nobel Laureate

Prayer is eternity in the midst of mortality, life among death, hope amidst despair, true promise surrounded by lies. So let us pray unceasingly.

Henri Nouwen

One way to make sure that your heart is in tune with God is to pray often. The more you talk to God, the more he will talk to you.

Family Christian Press

Prayer names how God becomes present to us and how we participate in that presence by praying for others.

Stanley Hauerwas
Duke University
From Hannah’s Child