Today, I want to offer something a little different. As I have over the past two days, I want to share with you a guided meditation as our message and prayer. (Tomorrow we’ll return to our more regular style of messages.) When you have the time, I would encourage you to put all three of these messages together, to make one complete prayer.

Today we are going to take this one step further.

Written only: I invite you to read this slowly. Close your eyes as you are able and take the prayer into your heart. Begin by taking a couple of deep breaths. Breathe in God’s Spirit, breathe out. Breathe in God’s Spirit. Breathe out…

Recorded only: If you are able to safely close your eyes, I invite you to do that now. Take a couple of deep breaths. Breathe in God’s Spirit, breathe out…

The Apostle Paul once wrote to his young friend and colleague Timothy: “I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone…” (1 Timothy 2:1)

For everyone.

I invite you today to get more than one person in your mind’s eye. Imagine people across the globe… people with no power, perhaps living in the streets, in refugee camps, those in prisons… (pause a few moments) And gather with them people with vast power… who may or may not care… Gather with them people that you love, your family and friends, and with them people no one loves…

And we pray for all God’s children.

Gracious God, just as I wish to be protected, so do they wish to be protected. Just as I wish to be joyful, so do they wish to be joyful… Just as I wish to be healthy, so do they wish to be healthy… Just as I wish to have peace, so do they wish to have peace.

May all these, your children, O God, be protected… May they be joyful… May they be healthy… May they be at peace… (speak to them directly) May you be protected… May you be joyful… May you be healthy… May you be at peace…

We offer you these our prayers today, in all humility and hope, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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