A Prayer for Texas

Great Spirit of Life, we who are gathered in this great room come from many different places, and call you by different names. There are many paths to you, O God, but the path that I follow is Jesus. And so it is in the Spirit of Jesus that I offer my prayer on behalf of these devoted servants of Texas. I pray for you to give them wisdom in the name of Jesus, who said that he came “to bring good news to the poor, release to the prisoner, recovery of sight, to the blind, and to let the oppressed go free.” (Luke 4:18-19)

O God, it is with fear and trembling that we come before you praying for our leaders and our state where:

• Though we have great resources, we are still 16th in the percentage of our citizens who are living in poverty;
• Though we love your children, we are 46th in providing them health insurance and dead last in providing them healthcare.

Lord Jesus, you came to bring good news to the poor, but that word has not yet directed the priorities of our great state.

And Jesus, if you are still concerned about the prisoner, then your heart must be breaking when you behold the state:

• With the largest prison system that executes more of our citizens than almost any nation on earth.

Oh you, who were yourself executed by the state, have mercy upon us and lead us to consider new and better ways to do justice.

Many of us in this room and in this state have different faiths, but I must pray to the God of Jesus Christ, since that is my faith. So, in that name, I give thanks, Lord Jesus, that you care for the poor, the prisoner, the sick and the oppressed. While not all of us in this room claim you as Lord, nor all in this state, I pray, O God, that you will move those of us who do to become more like our Christ. May we take seriously his call to live out our faith with the mercy and relentless compassion of one who would rather die than leave even one of God’s precious children out of the family.

Free us from caring only for our own and those who look like us or believe like us or love like us. Free us to represent with compassion and justice all Texans, including immigrants, veterans, the disabled, lesbians, gays and transgender Texans. O God, may we look beyond ourselves and see with your eyes that all people deserve equal rights and equal protection, not just the dominant majority.

Great God of mercy, in this Lenten season, give us all the courage to do what is right regardless of the political cost. Help us believe the best about our fellow citizens and trust that our ultimate fate is not in their hands but in yours.

Thank you for the great women and men who have gone before us. Thank you for the greatness that resides in every woman and man who fills this place today. Give us the courage to live out our creeds. In all your many names we pray. AMEN.