Breathe on us, breath of God and fill us with life anew.

God, Divine Love, we come to you anxious, fearful, sorrowful, and angry. We are surrounded by hatred, violence, greed, racism, war, disease, and systems of oppression. The air we breathe is filled with the soot of uncontrollable wildfires and the ground beneath us feels unstable. Sometimes it feels like we are always on the brink of some disaster; political, environmental, or created by the sin of humanity. Today, God, we remember those affected by the shooting in Buffalo, New York and at the PCUSA church in California.

Remind us, loving Creator that we are also surrounded by Your love, grace, peace, and abundance. May we examine our own hearts and by your power, remove anything and everything that keeps us from being the beloved community. Care for us and protect us as we work for justice and draw us closer by the power of the Holy Spirit so that we may imitate the ways of Jesus the Christ in all that we say and do.

In the name of the Risen One we pray….Amen.

— Rev. Dr. Jacqueline E. Taylor, General Presbyter