Our Father in heaven, we give you praise and thanks for the grace and mercy you have shown this fallen and wicked world through the incarnation, life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Your Son the Lord Jesus Christ. In Him You have shown Yourself to be completely righteous and yet loving in Your dealings with us.
Lord, we thank You for the sacrificial model that You have provided us in
Christ. There is no greater expression of love than that someone would lay down
his or her life for their friends (cf. John 15:13).
We thank You for the veterans who have laid down their lives defending
our safety and security. We thank You for those who have given their own lives
so that we might live and prosper in this land where You have placed us.
We thank You for the veterans who have bravely gone into places where
many of us would fear to tread in order to restrain evil, protect innocent
life, and uphold justice.
Lord, we ask that You would heal and touch the lives of veterans who have
been wounded in body and mind during the course of carrying out their duties.
We ask that You would bring them the peace and comfort that can only come from
Your Holy Spirit.
For those veterans who continue to suffer as a result of the sacrifice of
their service to us, we ask for healing, favor, peace of mind, a settled
conscience, and in some cases, even forgetfulness. We pray that You would lift
from them the cares and burdens of violence and that You would open doors for
them so that, as a result of their sacrifice, they would be able to prosper in
this nation that they have served to protect.
We pray Your blessing on soldiers who served in non-combat assignments.
We thank You for their sacrifice and dedication.
We pray for those involved in the Student Veterans Organization here at
GCC and for similar organizations around our nation. We pray that the faculty,
staff, and other students would be given special understanding and wisdom in
their dealings and interactions with student veterans.
Lord, we pray that You would bring peace to the regions that our brave
soldiers have fought in. We pray boldly for an end to wars and for the dawning
of Your peaceful kingdom here on earth, as it is in heaven.
Finally, Lord God, we ask that, through the advancement of Your gospel,
You would grant us all the divine vision that affirms the inherent dignity and
value of every human life created in Your image, so that we would be enabled to
move beyond violence and warfare.
We pray all these things in the name of Jesus Christ Your Son, who lives
and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.
Amen.
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