Prayers of the People

If you’re breathing a sigh of relief now that we’ve moved past 2 Samuel 11 and 12, think again. Just a few chapters later, David is embroiled in a family drama that has escalated to a violent war against his son, Absalom. Despite Absalom’s attempts to usurp the throne, David responds to his death not as a victorious king but as a heartbroken father. The complicated nature of this episode in David’s story calls our attention to the prayers of the people as our response to God’s Word and to one another.

In particular, the prayers of the people invite us to respond to the complicated and often unknown challenges facing our neighbors in the pews, down the street, and around the world. Few simple solutions exist to the complex problems that plague our lives, whether we’re talking about war among nations, conflicts within families, or battles being waged in individual hearts. Whether our neighborhoods are hungry for food, a living wage, or unconditional love, we must grapple with the problems. And yet, no matter the enormity of the challenges we face, grace abounds again and again. The prayers of the people remind us that when we don’t know what to do or we are afraid to acknowledge the suffering around us, we begin with prayer; and not just individual prayer—corporate prayer. We don’t have to know the details of our neighbors’ struggles to gather together and offer one another grace through prayer.

If your community is not accustomed to sharing joys and concerns with one another in worship, consider this Sunday an opportunity to teach and experiment with inviting congregants to offer petitions during worship followed by a response like, “God, in your mercy, hear our prayer.” You might invite community partners to tell you specific concerns they would like the church to pray for and incorporate those into the prayers of the people, focusing the church’s intercessions toward the challenges that are happening in the neighborhood. Consider, too, how your visuals might help your congregation notice where grace is at work in the community. Perhaps you can bring in local flowers and plants, art made by a children’s group inside the church or in the neighborhood, or school supplies the church is gathering for a local school. Reference the items on the altar during the preaching and/or the prayers as physical touchpoints to the community outside the church’s walls, the neighbors to whom the church offers grace through prayer. These ordinary items can then help congregants remember the importance of the prayers of the people every time they see a petunia, a coloring page, or a box of pencils, extending the grace we offer through prayer in worship into the other six days of the week.