Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” (Jeremiah 29:7)
Jeremiah gives God’s message to his people as they are to go into exile in Babylon - seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which they were sent. They were to remain his distinct people while working for the good of the place they lived. And we are called to do the same. How can we pray for the communities of St. Charles county? How can we pray for St. Louis? For our country? For our world?
We can pray for peace and justice in these places. We can pray for hunger to be alleviated and for corruption to end and injustice to cease and for war to come to an end. And we can be a part of God’s answer to these prayers as well, as we are able. Instead of withdrawing ourselves from these problems, instead of thinking of them as not involving us - we are called to love all of these neighbors. And praying for these neighbors is a concrete way we can love them.
We have been called to this community and we are called to love our world - let’s pray.
Action: Pray
“Father in heaven, I pray for peace in our world, justice for those suffering under injustice, provision for those who are hungry, and medical care for those who are sick. I also pray for direction for my church and my family and myself as we seek to be a part of your answer to these needs wherever you lead us.”