A prayer for strength and sanctuary

Psalm 68:1–10 

Find your strength in Holy One, 

seek in God a sanctuary. 

Parent to the orphan,
we pray for the orphans in our world,
whose parents were taken by war,
by fire, flood, or famine; whose parents
are lost to drug abuse, or accident, to
illness, or poverty, or fear.

May orphaned ones find strength in Holy One,
may there be for you in God and God's people a sanctuary.

Home to the desolate,
we pray for the homeless on our streets,
the un- and under-employed,
the retrenched, the desperate and afraid;
those sleeping on benches, in cars,
in shelters, tents, cardboard boxes.

May desolate ones find strength in Holy One,
may there be for you in God and God's people a sanctuary.

Restorer of prisoners,
we pray for the imprisoned out of our community,
those immersed in justice systems
sometimes devoid of justice;
those spiralling down cycles of crime,
those reaching for change, education,
opportunity, for hope.

May prisoners find strength in Holy One,
may there be for for you in God and God's people a sanctuary.

Provider for the needy,
we pray for all in need today –
for the ill, the grieving, for isolated,
lonely people, for essential workers,
emergency, defence, health system
employees and volunteers; for teachers,
for leaders, for our families,
our friends and neighbours, and we pray
for ourselves.

[leave a time of silence]

May we find strength in Holy One,
May there be for us all in God and God's people a sanctuary.
Amen.