Litany and Prayer for Veterans Day
For those who in all times and places have been true and brave, and have lived upright lives and ministered to others.
WE GIVE YOU THANKS, O GOD.
For those who served their country and those who gave even their lives in that service.
WE GIVE YOU THANKS, O GOD.
For those veterans whom we neglect and who suffer mental illness or physical challenges because of their service.
WE ASK FOR YOUR COMFORT AND MERCY, O GOD.
For all people who inhabit this land with all its liberties.
WE GIVE YOU THANKS, O GOD.
For all the ways in which you call us to love beyond our division, hurt and pain.
WE GIVE YOU THANKS, O GOD.
LET’S PRAY
God, veterans teach us many things. They teach us courage and selflessness. They teach us sacrifice. And they also remind us that the world is not as it should be. They remind us that the past had conflict, the present has conflict and the future will have conflict.
So I ask this morning that you teach us to learn from our veterans. Help us listen to their stories, help us to understand their lives, their hopes, their hurts, their longings. And God, don’t let us forget those veterans who are marginalized in our society. Those veterans who now find themselves homeless or with deep wounds, both mentally and physically. Remind us that they deserve dignity and respect.
And finally, help us be Christians who have courage, selflessness and sacrifice, those qualities we learn from our veterans, because we know we do not have all the answers, but we know that we long for your kingdom to come to this earth. We long for a day when there will be no more hurt, no more pain, no more conflict, when there will be peace on earth, and goodwill towards all people. When hope, love, joy, and peace will full realities. So God, help us to start living like that right now so that we live into the future you have in store for us without wasting even a second.