Prayer for Ireland
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
God, we thank you for creating the nation of Ireland.
We bless you for the characteristics you have given us as a people…
We thank you for giving us the gifts of creativity and musicianship; literature
and lyrics; drama and theatre; craftsmanship and artistry; inventiveness and
entrepreneurialism.
We thank you for making us a people who work for justice; who are quick to
give generously, eager to show compassion and stand up for those who are
unfairly treated.
We thank you for giving us an ability to laugh and not take ourselves too
seriously.
… and we embrace these as a reflection of your nature.
We thank you for the heritage we received from our Irish ancestors: Columba,
Kevin, Brendan, Colmcill, Brigid, Aidan and Patrick and others in more recent
history. We ask that you give us passion to change the course of history through
the spreading of your Gospel the way these people did.
We thank you for the faithfulness of those who paved the way for us to walk in
the Freedom of Your Spirit and we commit ourselves to carrying Your Truth to
the generations that come after us.
We ask for you to overwhelm us with prosperity and security. We ask for
inventions that create new industries and new jobs. We ask for wisdom for the
government; integrity for commercial leaders; stewardship from the financial
institutions; legislation that honours the population and solutions that offer hope
to those in difficulty. We pray for a society that is shaped by the culture of the
Kingdom of God.
Sean Copeland
18th May 2011