Prayed during the COVID-19 pandemic, as vaccine mandates gave Christians new occasions to disagree.
O God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, our one true God, this is a prayer for unity, a prayer on behalf of Grace Fellowship Church of Toronto. Please hear our prayer and answer it.
We are aware of athletes who run hard for 25 miles, only to falter before the finish line. Jesus told of those who started to build towers, but only got part way done. We don’t want to get nearly through this pandemic, only to falter before the end. So, our triune God, make us one. Father, remember the prayer of your Son on our behalf, “Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one” (John 17:11).
This season of life has shown us ways we are different from each other in categories we rarely considered before. Some of us think the government has acted in folly, others think it has done well. Some of us think vaccines are dangerous, others think they are a gift. Some of us fear coming to church, others wish we could sit shoulder to shoulder when we do. And these strong differences of opinion on important matters could lead us to grow suspicious of one another; to avoid fellow members we disagree with; or even to judge them in our hearts. O Lord, fill this church with people who value your Word over their opinions. Make it so the most important thing in the world to us is to do what we are certain is absolutely true. Settle our eyes on the simplest of your commands and send your Holy Spirit to empower our faithful obedience to them.
By your grace, let us: love one another with brotherly affection and outdo one another in showing honor (Romans 12:10); keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8); live in harmony with one another (Romans 12:16); agree with one another and live in peace so that the God of love and peace will be with us (2 Corinthians 13:11); greet one another with true love (2 Corinthians 13:12); welcome one another as Christ has welcomed us (Romans 15:7); bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2); behave with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love (Ephesians 4:2); be kind to one another and tenderhearted (Ephesians 4:32); encourage one another and build one another up (1 Thessalonians 5:11); submit to one another out of reverence for Christ (Ephesians 5:21); if one has a complaint against another, forgive the other (Colossians 3:13); consider how to stir up one another to love and good works (Hebrews 10:24); not neglect to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encourage one another, and all the more as we see the Day drawing near (Hebrews 10:25); confess our sins to one another and pray for one another (James 5:16); show hospitality to one another without grumbling (1 Peter 4:9); as each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace (1 Peter 4:10); clothe ourselves with humility toward one another, for ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble’ (1 Peter 5:5).
And as we do all these good things, Lord, keep us from doing some other awful things. Let us not: pass judgment on one another (Romans 14:13); become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another (Galatians 5:26); lie to one another, seeing that we have put off the old self with its practices (Colossians 3:9); speak evil against one another (James 4:11); bite and devour one another (Galatians 5:15).
The worst thing that could happen to us as a church is if we would let our circumstances provide us an excuse to disobey the clear commands of your Bible.
