Monday 8th November 2021
Creator God, giver of life
You sustain the earth and direct the nations.
In this time of climate crisis
grant us clarity to hear
the groaning of creation and the cries of the poor:
challenge us to change our lifestyles:
guide our leaders to take courageous action:
enable your church to be a beacon of hope:
and foster within us a renewed vision of your purposes for your world;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord,
by and for whom all things were made.
Amen. (Dave Bookless)
Reading: … there was no water for the people to drink. The people quarrelled with Moses, and said, ‘Give us water to drink.’ Moses said to them, ‘Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?’ But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, ‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?’ So Moses cried out to the Lord, ‘What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.’ The Lord said to Moses, ‘Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.’ Exodus 17:1-6
On this the seventh day of COP26 the focus is on adaptation, loss and damage, so let us pray:-
We pray for all the participants,
the decision-makers and the protestors,
the bureaucrats and the prayerful,
influencers and bankers,
for producers and consumers,
for the secure and the vulnerable.
May they understand and acknowledge
the loss of homes and livelihoods,
the loss of food and water supplies,
the damaged and loss
caused by floods and storms, heatwaves and droughts
and undertake to address these needs
to meet the costs of adaptation
and underwrite the costs of loss.
Loving and patient God,
may your will be done.
All: Amen.
Far Away and Near at Hand
The floods were far away
Now there near at hand.
How long before I wet my feet
and take a stand?
The heat was far away.
Now it’s close to home.
How long before I own the fact
and finally begin to act?
Hurricanes were tropical.
Now they’re topical.
How long before I feel my guilt
and understand the world we’ve built?
Our climate is changing –
Far away and near at hand.
Holy God, redeem our failings
and strengthen our resolve:
far away and near at hand.
The Green Tau 