These prompts are provided for worship leaders as they prepare the prayers of intercession for weekly worship. The prompts are prepared by several leaders in the ELCA and reflect current world and national events. You are encouraged to adapt and add other concerns for your local context, including staying informed of events and concerns in your synod.
Intercession prompts:
For the family of Tyre Nichols and the city of Memphis as they experience the trauma of police brutality…
For the city of Jerusalem as it mourns those killed in the recent synagogue shooting…
For victims and families following a mosque bombing in Pakistan…
For labor strikes in the U.K. and for fair working conditions for all…
For the UN, NATO, and all world leaders working in global collaboration…
For warmth and safety following ice storms in the southern and central USA…
For a renewed commitment to seeking racial justice as we enter Black History Month…
For free access to education, and in thanksgiving for all educators…
Other notable events and observances:
Black History Month (Month of February)
Cancer Prevention Month (Month of February)
Martyrs of Japan, died 1597 (February 5)
Tu BiShvat (February 6)
Suggested prayers:
A prayer for the nation (ELW p. 77):
Holy Trinity, one God, you show us the splendor of diversity and the beauty of unity in your own divine life. Make us, who came from many nations with many languages, a united people that delights in our many different gifts. Defend our liberties, and give those whom we have entrusted with authority the spirit of wisdom, that there might be justice and peace in our land. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our sovereign and our Savior. Amen.
A prayer against prejudice, racism (ACS p. 51):
Good and gracious God, you invite us to recognize and reverence your divine image and likeness in our neighbor. Enable us to see the reality of racism and free us to challenge and uproot it from our society, our world, and ourselves. Amen.
ELW = Evangelical Lutheran Worship
ACS = All Creation Sings: Evangelical Lutheran Worship Supplement
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Additional topical prayers are found in Evangelical Lutheran Worship (pp. 72–87) and All Creation Sings (pp. 46–55), as well as in other resources provided in print and online at sundaysandseasons.com.
Follow this link to access resources to assist worshiping communities as they respond to the crisis in Eastern Europe. Several prayers are provided that could be used during the prayers of intercession or at other times, in public worship or for devotional use at home or in other settings.
Further assistance for composing prayers of intercession can be found here: Resources for Crafting Prayers of Intercession
Crafted intercessions for every Sunday and festival are provided in the Sundays and Seasons worship planning guide published in-print and online by Augsburg Fortress.
Prayer Ventures, a daily prayer resource, is a guide to prayer for the global, social and outreach ministries of the ELCA, as well as for the needs and circumstances of our neighbors, communities and world.
