#PrayerforEveryone: September 24-October 1

#PrayerforEveryone: September 24-October 1 September 21, 2015

Prayerforeveryonequotes-FrancisFrom September 24-October 1, the ONE Campaign (with other partners) is encouraging faith communities to engage in the #PrayerforEveryone campaign. In this campaign, we as faith communities are being asked to pray, share on social media, and engage in action in regards to The Global Goals for Sustainable Development. The list is an ambitious priority list for reaching out to the most vulnerable and making sure their needs are met. These goals will be formally adopted this month at the United Nations general assembly.

I have to admit that the campaign–in the details I’ve found online–seems a bit overly broad (not in terms of aspiration but in terms of achievable goals), and I haven’t found a lot about the “how” of meeting these goals. It’s possible I am missing this part. However, I do support all these goals. It seems as if their combined total come together to articulate what a full-bodied pro-life ethic would look like: life and well-being for all human beings.

Even if some of these goals may be a bit too idealistic, why not go big? Why not focus on living out the new life that has come through Jesus’s resurrection in the here and now? We can never dream too big when we seek to serve those most in need.

So, with that in mind, the way I’d like to participate in this campaign is by praying through some of these goals. I’ll be praying personally and also posting about these issues on Twitter. Will you join me in prayer?

I’d like to encourage you to not only pray “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” but also pray that it may be done through you too (as Martin Luther suggested we pray).

In other words, let’s pray that these things would not just be words to us but that God will show us how to reach out in our world and do what is right for those who are most in need and for future generations. And let’s pray for our leaders to care less about political power and more about serving those in need.

With that in mind, here are focus of prayer areas for the #PrayerforEveryone week:

September 25: Prayer to end poverty

Did you know that “since 1990 we’ve more than halved the number of people living in extreme poverty”?

September 26: Prayer to end hunger

More than 870 million people in the world today are hungry.

September 27: Prayer for good stewardship and protection of life in God’s beautiful world (especially water resources)

One in 9 people lack access to clean water.

“I believe in God the Father, Creator of heaven and earth…”

September 28: Prayer for quality education for all

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and MIND and strength…”

September 29: Prayer for sustainable energy and good care of God’s creation

600 million people in Africa don’t have access to reliable sources of energy.”

September 30: Prayer for peace and justice

Thanks for praying! I’d love to hear what things you’re praying about. Please leave me a note in the comments.

For readers who are not Christians, please share something you’re thinking about in regards to these issues and something you’d like to do to help those most in need.

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Because this is a Christian blog, the things I’m talking about will obviously be topics that people feel strongly about in one direction or another. Please keep in mind that this is a place for substantive, respectful, constructive conversation. All perspectives are welcome to discuss here as long as all can treat each other with kindness and respect. Please ignore trolls, refuse to engage in personal attacks, try not to derail the conversation into divisive rabbit trails, and observe the comment policy listed on the right side of the page. Comments that violate these guidelines may be deleted. Vulgar remarks may result in immediate blacklisting. For those who clearly violate these policies repeatedly, my policy is to issue a warning which, if not regarded, may lead to blacklisting. This is not about censorship, but about creating a healthy, respectful environment for discussion.

P.S. Please also note that I am not a scientist, but a person with expertise in theology and the arts. While I am very interested in the relationship between science and faith, I do not believe I personally will be able to adequately address the many questions that inevitably come up related to science and religion. I encourage you to seek out the writings of theistic or Christian scientists to help with those discussions.

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