May All People Turn to God

Praise awaits you, our God, in Zion; 

     to you our vows will be fulfilled. 

You who answer prayer, 

     to you all people will come.

You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds, 

     God our Savior, 

the hope of all the ends of the earth 

     and of the farthest seas…

(Psalm 65:1-2, 5)

It is my hope and prayer, good and gracious Lord,

that when the dust settles on this pandemic,

all of heaven and earth will praise you.

I pray that the urgency of the present crisis,

and the helplessness that all people feel,

will result in a worldwide turning of hearts

toward you.

For you ARE Lord.

Right now, not all people acknowledge that.

But I hope and pray that they will.

I hope and pray that the present crisis

will cause people everywhere 

to turn to you.

I long for the day when 

every knee will bow,

and every tongue will confess,

"Jesus Christ is Lord,"

to your glory.

We’re not there yet.

But I pray that we will be there,

sooner than later.

In this pandemic, show us your 

awesome and righteous deeds:

  Heal the sick.

  Renew the strength of those who are exhausted.

  Comfort those who mourn the loss of loved ones.

  Unite entire nations to work for the good.

  Fill our hearts with love and charity.

  Provide relief for the poor, the unemployed,

    and for hurting businesses.

  Enable the flow of critical supplies 

    to where they are needed.

  Surprise us, even, with miraculous deeds!

Show us your awesome and righteous deeds,

that the whole world will turn to you

in humility, repentance, praise, and faith.

Hasten the day, O Lord,

when every knee will bow,

when every tongue will confess,

"Jesus Christ is Lord."

For you are God our Savior,

and to you belongs ALL

glory, honor, dominion, and power,

through Christ our Lord. Amen.

During the season of Lent, I am “Praying with David,” using prayers from the psalms as inspiration for personal prayers.