Prayer #1: God who lifts our burdens

Adapted from a prayer by Lamma Mansour, Palestinian Christian and Ph.D. student in social policy at Oxford University, 2023.

God our Lord.  We come to you in this darkness, hard-pressed on every side, but not crushed; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed, because we carry your Sumud (steadfastness) in our souls.

God of resurrection. Death is around. It lurks in the corner, threatens your loved ones, and the suffering feels unbearable and endless. In faith, albeit limping, we declare: You have defeated death. We believe. Help our unbelief.

God who knows sorrow and is acquainted with the deepest grief. Hold us near while we weep, embrace us while we mourn. Help us feel your tears blend with ours, our friend who sticks closer than a brother.

God who walks the land proclaiming the good news of the kingdom. Walk among the white body bags in Gaza, hug those leaning over them, crying for divine mercy. Sit with our children shaking with terror, covering their ears from the sound of bombs raining down. Wander the corridors of the hospitals, overwhelmed with the injured, strengthen the minds and bodies of our doctors struggling with grief and exhaustion.

God who lifts our burdens. Lift the rubble and rescue those underneath, with your might hand bring them from the edge of death back to life. Clear the air from the smell of burning, infuse our land with your fragrance of salvation.

We long for justice, we cry out for peace.

Lord in your mercy, break into this darkness with your light.