“For What Shall We Pray?” is a weekly post inviting individuals, groups, and congregations to lift up our world in prayer. This resource is prepared by a variety of leaders in the ELCA and includes prayer prompts, upcoming events and observances, and prayer suggestions from existing denominational worship materials. You are encouraged to use these resources as a starting point, and to adapt and add other concerns from your local context. More information about this resource can be found here.
Prayer prompts:
For those in the path of Tropical Storm Ophelia…
For victims of the wedding party fire in northern Iraq…
For Armenian refugees fleeing Nagorno-Karabakh…
For leaders in all levels of government, and especially for their partnership and empathy…
For the victims of the devastating landslide in Guatemala…
For scientists and engineers who advance knowledge and learning about God’s creation…
For writers, artists, musicians, and all in creative vocations…
For the community of Lahaina as residents continue to grieve and to assess damage…
For victims of gun violence, especially in Charlotte, NC; Columbia, SC; and Des Moines, IA…
For areas around the world experiencing violence and unrest, including Ukraine, Nagorno-Karabakh, Kosovo, Gaza, and Niger…
Events and observances:
Monthly Observances in September: National Suicide Prevention Month, Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept 15-Oct 15),
Michael and All Angels (Sept 29)
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (Sept 30)
Jerome, translator, teacher, died 420 (Sept 30)
Sukkot (Judaism, begins eve of Sept 29)
World Communion Sunday (Oct 1)
Prayers from ELCA resources:
A prayer for interreligious cooperation and understanding (ACS p. 51)
O God, whose name is above all names, your grace cannot be contained within human limits. We offer our thanks for holy wisdom that comes in other voices, in religions and worldviews different from our own, and in prayers offered in the wideness of your love. Move us more deeply into understanding and partnership, willing to work together in mutual respect, always open to the grace that we have experienced in Christ Jesus, our light and our life. Amen.
A prayer for emergency workers (ELW p. 85)
God of earth and air, water and fire, height and depth, we pray for those who work in danger, who rush in to bring hope and help and comfort when others flee to safety, whose mission is to seek and save, serve and protect, and whose presence embodies the protection of the Good
Shepherd. Give them caution and concern for one another, so that in safety they may do what must be done, under your watchful eye. Support them in their courage and dedication that they may continue to save lives, ease pain, and mend the torn fabric of lives and social order; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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ELW = Evangelical Lutheran Worship
ACS = All Creation Sings: Evangelical Lutheran Worship Supplement
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.
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. Further assistance for composing prayers of intercession can be found here: Resources for Crafting Prayers of Intercession
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.
