Prayers of gratitude and intercession

  • God of all the earth

    Take us outside to your holy places. Take us out beyond our walls, out where we can see our neighbours, out past the garden with its ripe tomatoes and fat watermelons. Out where flowers bloom yellow and pink and sway in the wind. Out to the soil we came from and the place where we no longer have words for what we see but can only say how small we are.
    There – out there – bend down. Make mud with your spit; smear it on our eyes.

    And when the clay cakes and cracks and we turn our faces to your vast world, may we see grace, not despair, and a harvest so plentiful it distresses us.

    This prayer by Jennifer Schrock is based on an outdoor worship service that took place at Berkey Avenue Mennonite Fellowship, Goshen, Indiana, USA. Jennifer Schrock serves on MWC’s Creation Care Task Force.

    Christians across the world are walking in spirit toward care for creation.

    This #SeasonofCreation celebration takes place 1 September to 4 October 2020.

    #SeasonofCreation

    #TiempodelaCreación

    #TempsdelaCréation

    #TempodaCriação

  • Lord of the wind and the rain, your creation is both calm and storm. We pray for those who fall in the path of hurricanes, typhoons, earthquakes and tornadoes. May the grieving sense the nearness of your comforting Spirit. May your church be the hands and feet who rebuild and reassure those who experienced loss.

  • Zimbabwe is facing the COVID-19 pandemic health crisis along with the rest of the world, but compounded with an unstable political situation, 90% unemployment, an underfunded health system, hyperinflation and food security crisis. Pray for Catholic leaders who have made a statement to the government to uphold the gospel tenets of human dignity and the common good. Pray that the people of Zimbabwe would treat each other with respect across political divisions as they advocate for justice for all. Praise God for the Christian brothers and sisters – including the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe – who are speaking with one voice during a critical time.

  • We pray that God will protect our lives and give wisdom to the authorities. May they respond appropriately and show mercy toward people so that the possible consequences of the virus can be prevented and mitigated.

    Some days we feel so impotent, frustrated and afraid. We pray that God will help us manage our emotions in a healthy way and also that we may find joy in the midst of the uncertainty.

    We pray that God will help us to continue building deep relationships in spite of social distancing.

    We pray that you may sense the constant love of the Lord in all aspects of your lives.

    —Diana Cruz and Felipe Preciado, La Casa Grande FIFATA, Benin (Iglesia Cristiana Menonita de Colombia [IMCOL])

  • Pray for more open doors to preach the gospel, especially in regions where it is not well known. Pray for labourers to partake in the kingdom work. Intercede for all our ministers in their preaching and teaching responsibilities. Some of our youths completed high school but they can‘t enter university due to the cost of tuition fees; please pray for God’s provision.

    —Adriano Mbackeh, member of Mennonite Church West Africa, The Gambia

    Read more:

    Year-old West African church plants three others

    Updated 26 August 2020: country corrected

  • Praise God for the celebration of baptism as a practice of discipleship in Mennonite, Lutheran and Catholic churches. The final report on the Lutheran-Mennonite-Roman Catholic Trilateral Conversation (on baptism) has been published. Praise God for the trust, patience and receptivity of the leaders who participated in this dialogue between world communions. Pray that studying the report may promote better mutual understanding between communions and lead to greater faithfulness to Jesus Christ. May MWC churches be attentive to the “gifts received” and “challenges accepted.—

    Read more

  • “Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me, for in you I take refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.” (Psalm 57:1)

    Seventeen people are confirmed dead with more than 75 feared trapped as rows of houses sank into the ground as a result of heavy rains on the Pettimudi tea estate in Munnar,Kerala, India. Gilgal Mission Trust, a Mennonite World Conference member church, has a small congregation in this village. News reports indicate that a church is buried under the mud. Ten church members are among the missing.

    MWC calls for the global community of believers to stand in solidarity by praying for missing people to be rescued and for rains to stop so further damage can be avoided.

  • The global gathering of Anabaptists at MWC Assemblies is in God’s hands. Preparations are extra challenging: fundraising; logistics of transportation, accommodation, venues, program, food; obtaining visas – all are complicated by uncertainty about what regulations may be in place one year from now. Pray for wisdom and discernment for those who are making decisions about the event. The Executive Committee will decide at their 17-18 August 2020 meeting.

    Learn more about the Executive Committee here.

  • “All my bones shall say, ‘O Lord, who is like you? You deliver the weak from those too strong for them, the weak and needy from those who despoil them.‘” (Psalm 35:10)

    Lord, we take hope in your strength and salvation.

  • 20190210OkothSimonOnyangoIMG_20190210_110842208

    Praise God for the evangelistic fervour and faithfulness of our brothers and sisters in Africa. With economic challenges, severe climate events and diseases like malaria compounding the threat of COVID-19, they continue to worship God and serve their neighbours with what means they have, sharing the gospel in word and deed.

  • We pray for everyone who has been affected by Covid-19. For those who have died; for those who have been ill; for the family members that this has affected; for those whose jobs and livelihoods have been affected by the economic downturn that this pandemic has caused; for all of us as our lives and our “normals” have changed.

  • JNelsonKraybill-pastorAlexey

    Ukraine (Association of Mennonite Brethren Churches in Ukraine – AMBCU): Pray for this emerging Mennonite Brethren conference. Pray for the churches meeting in groups of 10 due to quarantine restrictions, and for the small groups doing Bible studies and worship. The churches are also meeting on Zoom. Pray for those that are suffering from the virus. Though there are few cases in that area of Ukraine, people suffer economically and the churches are distributing food.