A Prayer for Independence Day 2009

Good and gracious God, you have given us the privilege and the responsibility of living in the most resourceful land in the world. From sea to shining sea most of us enjoy unparalleled freedom, comfortable homes, nutritious meals, preferred vocations, and unique religious liberty.

Even as we count the many wonderful blessings we share by living in this great land, we also sense that we live in times of heightened concern and anxiety. Our nation is engaged in a multi-national military conflict. Our economy is slowed by a recession. And in the past year we have elected a new president who needs divine guidance to lead our country.

These concerns remind us of our need to confess our sins, personally and collectively, and to embrace your plan for living life with purpose and integrity.

We confess that we have too often taken our freedom for granted and we have too frequently been negligent in fulfilling the responsibilities of our citizenship.

We confess that at times we are too quick to criticize and we are too slow to intercede prayerfully.

We confess that our self-interests have too often taken priority over your best intentions for our nation and for our world.

We confess that we have been negligent in our stewardship of health and wealth, often consuming compulsively when we should be managing carefully, investing wisely, and sharing generously.

We confess that we have too often trusted in our own initiatives and ingenuity more than we have trusted in you.

We pray with the psalmist, “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.” (Psalm 51:1-3)

Therefore, as we prepare to celebrate this Independence Day, we ask you to, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)

On this day, we pray for the leaders of our nation, our state, and our community that they will lead with moral courage, bipartisan cooperation, and wise discernment.

We pray for the men and women who serve in our nation’s military that they will perform their humanitarian mission with effectiveness and precision, and return home safely and soon.

We pray for our enemies that their swords, as well as ours, will be “turned into plowshares.”

We pray for the churches, cathedrals, and temples of our nation and our community that we will be lighthouses of grace and mercy, living our convictions with consistency, engaging our discourse with hospitality and civility.

Because you are the freedom-loving and grace-giving God, lead us to exercise our freedom responsibly and to pursue “liberty and justice for all” your children around the globe, especially the “least of these.”

We present our petition in the strong name of Jesus, the one who exemplifies the truth that makes us free indeed. Amen.