nation – Page 2 – A Collection of Prayers

A Prayer for All Nations

lossless-page1-800px-president_wilson_1919-bw-tif Almighty God,
supreme Governor of all people,
hear our prayer for all nations,
and so overrule the imperfect counsel of people,
and set straight the things they cannot govern,
that we may walk in the paths of obedience to you,
and to thoughts that purge and make us wise;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Source: Woodrow Wilson

Source of this version: Freely modified from A Book of Collects in Two Parts, John Wallace Suter and John Wallace Suter, Jr., Milwaukee: Morehouse Publishing, 1919.

Original in traditional English:

ALMIGHTY GOD, supreme Governor of all men; Incline thine ear, we beseech thee, to the prayer of nations; and so overrule the imperfect counsel of men, and set straight the things they cannot govern, that we may walk in the paths of obedience to places of vision, and to thoughts that purge and make us wise; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

For Our Country

lossless-page1-800px-president_wilson_1919-bw-tif Almighty God,
Ruler of all the peoples of the earth,
forgive our shortcomings as a nation,
purify our hearts to see and love the truth,
give wisdom to our leaders,
and steadfastness to our people,
and bring us at last
to that fair city of peace
whose foundations are mercy,
justice, and goodwill,
of which you are the designer and builder;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Source: Woodrow Wilson

Source of this version: Freely modified from A Book of Collects in Two Parts, John Wallace Suter and John Wallace Suter, Jr., Milwaukee: Morehouse Publishing, 1919.

This prayer references Hebrews 11:10

Original in traditional English:

ALMIGHTY GOD, Ruler of all the peoples of the earth; Forgive, we beseech thee, our shortcomings as a nation; purify our hearts to see and love the truth; give wisdom to our counselors, and steadfastness to our people; and bring us at last to that fair city of peace whose foundations are mercy, justice, and good-will, and whose Builder and Maker thou art; through thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Prayer Reflecting on the Shooting in Dallas, Texas, July 8, 2016

Father in heaven, your holy Word tells us to mourn with those who mourn, and to not repay evil with evil, but to overcome evil with good (Romans 12).

Your Word also tells us that those who serve to guard and protect us are your servants who work and act for our good (Romans 13).

Day by day your people pray “Deliver us from evil.” It grieves us to see evil and violence. We are grieved once again by the shooting of police officers Dallas, Texas.

We pray for those who live with anger—move them to seek help and move friends, family and others who sense that anger to help them.
We pray for those who were injured—if it is your will, speed the healing of wounds to body and mind.
We pray for those who have the duty to protect and serve—give them strength to do their work with perseverance and patience.
We pray for the friends and families of those who were killed—draw them to yourself. Lead them to find comfort, hope, healing and peace in you.
We also pray that we may give faithful witness for the hope that we have, with gentleness and respect, that those around us may be led by us to you, and that they may be moved and enlightened by your gospel of peace.

…through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Prayer Reflecting on the Shooting in Dallas, Texas, July 8, 2016 by Paul C. Stratman is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for any commercial usage.

Prayer Reflecting on the Shooting in Orlando, Florida, June 2016

Father in heaven, your holy Word tells us to mourn with those who mourn, and to not repay evil with evil, but to overcome evil with good (Romans 12).

Day by day your people pray “Deliver us from evil.” It grieves us to see evil and violence. We are grieved once again by the shooting last week in Orlando, Florida.

We pray for those who live with anger—move them to seek help and move friends, family and others who sense that anger to help them.
We pray for those who were injured—if it is your will, speed the healing of wounds to body and mind.
We pray for the friends and families of those who were killed—draw them to yourself. Lead them to find comfort, hope, healing and peace in you.
We also pray that we may give faithful witness for the hope that we have, with gentleness and respect, that those around us may be led by us to you, and that they may be moved and enlightened by your gospel of peace.

…through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Prayer Reflecting on the Shooting in Orlando, Florida, June 2016 by Paul C. Stratman is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for any commercial usage.

Prayer Reflecting on the Shooting at Umqua Community College in Oregon, October 2015

Father in heaven, day by day your people pray “Deliver us from evil.” It grieves us to see evil and violence. We are grieved once again by the shooting last week in Oregon.

We pray for those who live with anger—move them to seek help and move friends, family and others who sense that anger to help them.
We pray for those who were injured—speed the healing of wounds to body and mind.
We pray for the friends and families of those who were killed—draw them to yourself. Lead them to find comfort, hope, healing and peace in you.
We also pray that we may give faithful witness for the hope that we have, with gentleness and respect, that those around us may be led by us to you, and that they may be moved and enlightened by your gospel of peace.

…through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Prayer Reflecting on the Shooting at Umqua Community College in Oregon, October 2015 by Pastor Paul C. Stratman under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for any commercial usage.