A prayer for Ukraine

God, 

We sigh. We sigh because words cannot express our anguish, our hurt, our despair, knowing that siblings in Ukraine are fleeing their homes for their lives, that the cities and towns that hold memories and culture and history may be destroyed. 

Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans that the Spirit intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words. And so we sigh. Let us breathe together. 

<take a deep breath>

May our sighs remind us
that we all share the same air;
that what impacts one of us impacts all of us;
that life is precious to God and war is never necessary. 

May our sighs be a prayer
for every Ukrainian who worries about surviving today; 
for those who will not survive this invasion;
for those who will survive and be forever changed by the trauma of war;
for those Russian soldiers who question their orders and refuse to use their weapons. 

May our sighs be a prayer
for nuclear deproliferation;
for an end to the sin of imperialism and colonization.

May our sighs be a prayer for truth, peace, and solidarity to guide each of us;
May our sighs be a prayer for Ukraine and the whole world.

May our sighs fill our bodies with air 
to breathe through grief and fear and 
fill us with courage and connection, 
so that we are ready to act in solidarity with Ukraine, 
for an end to this war 
and all war.

Written by: Rev. Emily Brewer, Executive Director of Presbyterian Peace Fellowship