“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1)
Loving, present God, as we begin this day
we pause to remember.
We remember the 2,976 men, women and children
who died in New York City, at the Pentagon
and on Flight 93 eighteen years ago.
We pray for spouses and children and parents
and grandparents and friends and co-workers
who find themselves weeping today.
As we remember that harrowing day,
we acknowledge that You are Almighty God,
maker of heaven and earth,
giver of life,
vanquisher of death,
bringer of life everlasting.
You are the God of all power
who has given us power, as well:
power to create, not to destroy;
power to love, not to hate;
power to build instead of tearing down;
power to reconcile instead of breaking apart;
and power to seek restorative justice instead of revenge.
As we pray in the name of Jesus Christ,
may we walk always in his Spirit and in his way,
even as we pray the words he taught us to pray:
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Peace and grace,
Pastor Julie