Introduction
During a time in which we see people across our nation expressing the pain of unjust treatment by their fellow man due to their race or ethnicity, what is the Church to do? How are we, the ambassadors of Christ, to respond?
Our calling to love our neighbor will look different for each of us based on our specific situation and gift mix. However, at a minimum, all are called to weep with those who weep, repent of our own sin and pray for God’s glory to be made known. Those are the focuses of this prayer guide.
How to use this guide
We encourage you to set aside time each week, perhaps Sunday morning or evening, to pray through this guide. You can pray together as a family or individually. We encourage weekly prayer during the month of August.
We have divided the prayer time into 4 sections:
- Lamenting over broken world
- Confession of sin
- Receiving of God’s forgiveness
- Prayer for God’s glory to be made known
If you are using this as a group, chose one leader to guide you through each section, reading the Scriptures and allowing for people to pray as they feel led.
1. Lamenting over broken world
We will begin our time of prayer with a lament. Lamenting means bringing your complaints to God. Let’s begin our time doing just that. As we watch the news, talk to friends and family, we see brokenness, injustice and hatred. As Christians, it may seem like evil has won the victory.
Bring your pain, and the pain of others (including various races and ethnicities in the Church), to the Lord in prayer after reading Psalm 13:1-2:
How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I take counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
Ask God to answer our prayer after reading Psalm 13:3, 4:
3 Consider and answer me, O LORD my God;
light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
4 lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.
Praise God that, despite the sin around us He is faithful, and we can trust Him after reading Psalm 13:5, 6:
5 But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the LORD,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.
2. Confession of sin
We will focus on the righteousness of God, His law and hatred of sin. God commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves. Racial and ethnic strife is a result of specific ways in which people fail to love their neighbor.
We want to allow the Holy Spirit to bring to light the ways in which we also fail to love our neighbor. After you read each passage listed below, spend time confessing specific ways in which you may have fallen into this sin.
- Deeds of the flesh (dissension, envy, strife, etc.) – Galatians 5:19-21
- Hatred – 1 John 3:15
- Sinful Anger – Matthew 5:22
- Provoking words – Proverbs 15:1; 12:18
- Quarreling – Galatians 5:14,15
- Revenge – Romans 12:19
- Partiality – James 2:1-4
- Hoarding wealth – James 5:3-6
- Failing to acquire, preserve, and further the wealth and outward estate of others, as well as our own – Philippians 2:4; Isaiah 58:6-7
3. Receiving of God’s forgiveness
In spite of our wretched sin and the ways in which we hate others, God has promised us the free gift of the perfect righteousness of His son Jesus. Let us rejoice that, although we deserve His wrath. Praise God for His gift of forgiveness and grace shown in each passage after reading each one.
- Romans 8:1
- Romans 5:1, 2
- Ephesians 2:1-10
4. Prayer for God’s glory to be made known
In this final section, we will ask God to expand His glory in specific ways, in spite of the sinful hatred of people. Spend time praying through each bullet. Pray for:
- God’s comfort for all who are experiencing the pain of racial or ethnic hatred (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
- God’s Church would walk in the unity of Christ that He purchased with His blood (Ephesians 2:11-22)
- The unity of God’s Church would be a light to the world and bring people to know Christ (John 17:23)
- Our friends, neighbors and nation would see their need to be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:18-21)
- Our friends, neighbors and nation would see Christ as the only hope to being reconciled to others
- God to provide wisdom and to elected leaders to apply all laws justly (1 Timothy 2:1-2)
- God to restrain sins of hatred and partiality throughout the nation
- God’s church would be a light of love and unity to the surrounding world
- Beauty of God’s offer of forgiveness of all sin would be made known
