Heavenly God, Creator, Saviour Jesus,
Thank you that we have a story of Creation that tells us that you loved creating the heavens and the earth, that you wanted to bring light and creatures to climb up into trees and fill the sky and to swim in our oceans, to crawl across the mountains.
Oh Lord I thank you that from time in the beginning you wanted to save your creation, you didn’t want it to go into ruin and despair. So we grieve and lament and apologise for the destruction we have caused both with our own individual hands and the way we have lived and collectively as a people, collectively here in these lands now called Australia, as we think about the history of colonisation that it’s intertwined with deforestation, it’s intertwined with what the IPCC report is saying that Australia’s warming climate is above the average. That we have caused so much suffering to your beautiful creation. Lord help us to know the next step to take.
Thank you for Common Grace, that we are stronger together, we are more capable together. Lord, that we can lean on each other as we pursue justice. Thank you for each person in this room and the broader church communities that they represent. Thank you for the thousands of people that these church partners connect Common Grace to.
Lord I pray for those who are grieving loss of work, for pastors trying to do the best pastoral care when church life is really hard for a continued season of Covid. We pray for the churches who are going into lockdown recently and very soon, as they shift into online as they shift focus and strategies and priorities, lord that You will strengthen them and equip them. Lord help us to pursue our passion and pursue justice in that space and not get lost just in Covid.
We thank you for the churches that have been pursuing Creation and climate justice and we are thankful for those who are prepared to start something new in this space. We pray that the Church Resources will be equipping and encouraging. We pray for those churches that are in transition, new pastors joining, we pray for the church community as culture changes, as things change in those spaces as new leaders come in. May communities be supportive, we pray for those leaders as they get to know who Common Grace is as well.
We thank you for all the people who have knitted scarves and we thank you for the MPs and Senators who have accepted the gift and worn their scarves. We pray for those meetings that take place over the next couple of months and for churches to be able to really support this movement. To be able to say that Australia is wanting a bold and national plan that will really tackle the climate crisis.
We pray this in your loving and gracious name. Amen