We Pray in Faith for the Hemorrhaging

We feel like we're hemorrhaging in a million different ways. We each have a different story, but we're all hurting.

We're willing to be honest with You. We know that our situations could grow much worse. But we also know that we are already hurting, limping along through life, and clinging to a faith that feels cold right now.

We are not skeptics. We have seen You work on our behalf before. But right now, Your comfort is far from us. We will endure whatever You ask us to endure. But will You not comfort us? Will You not strengthen our faith? Will You not rescue us from the discouragement and despair, if nothing else?

We are not rebels. We long to follow the path You've laid out for us. But everything looks dark around us, and we feel lost. We cannot be lost, our heads tell us. We know our heads are right. And perhaps our faith hasn't grown cold, after all, if we are still struggling to cling to the truths we know, rather than the ever-changing currents of emotion.

We are warriors, even if we don't feel it. Beaten down, that's what we feel. But once again, we face the truths we know. They are the foundation upon which we will stand. We are warriors, and we battle for our brothers and sisters. Certainly, we pray for ourselves. But we also pray for the suffering ones among us, our brothers and sisters throughout the world.

We cry out for one another, God. We cry out, and we await Your answer. We know You will answer. You always have. We cry out with Christ, "Deliver us from the Evil One!" Most of us wish to be rid of these trying circumstances. But more than this, we wish to be rid of this fear, this discouragement. Fear paralyzes our obedience; discouragement mocks our faith. We want to obey, and we want to keep faith.

So we pray for one another. We pray for deliverance. We pray for strength. We pray for comfort. We're not looking for proof, God. We've already seen. We already know the depths of Your love. We come simply as Your children. We know that You will show us compassion and kindness.

O God, we fall on our faces when we remember who You are and who we are. What disparity! Yet You have chosen to love us, chosen to care for us, chosen to listen to our prayers. We fall on Your mercy now.

In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.