A Prayer for the Middle East

A Prayer for the Middle East
October 11, 2023
Rev. Matt Pooley

Almighty God, from our perspective, it doesn’t seem that long ago that we were provoked to pray in new ways for Russia and Ukraine as war broke out between them. Almighty God, you know better than any of us that talk of war and intentional acts of violence and chaos all run rampant across many parts of the world, including so many nations on the African continent. Lord, in the midst of the already-existing and fomenting places of war across the world, now our hearts are broken, we are in shock, and our souls are stirred to anger as war is declared between Israel and Hamas after the brutal aggression of Hamas in southern Israel last weekend.

Almighty God, we profess that you watch over the rise and fall of every nation. We equally profess that you know the hairs on the heads of every man, woman, and child on this planet. In your global awareness and your intimately personal awareness, we pray that you will work in the lives of everyone who suddenly and instantly lost a friend, family member, or neighbor in the attacks committed by Hamas.

Lord God, we lift to you every person, trained or untrained, who is suddenly forced into the crisis scenario of providing medical care to thousands of injured people. Strengthen them and work through them in ways only explainable through the power of your Holy Spirit.

Lord God, we pray for every individual on a military level and on a political level who is already involved, and who will become involved, in the increasing violence in the days ahead. Let your protection and peace be on display even in the visceral theater of war.

Lord God, we pray for fellow disciples of Jesus who live in Israel, Gaza, and every nation in the Middle East. God, Your Word declares that in your providence, you set the boundaries of people and nations, determining their appointed times in history. Not only that, but Lord, you did this so that every person might long for You, feel their way to You, and find You in Christ. (Acts 17:26-27) In that providence, you have men, women, and children living throughout Israel and the rest of the Middle East who have ordinary homes and lives. As disciples of Jesus, they also have the Holy Spirit’s extraordinary power to be a witness to Jesus to all who have been bombed out, to those who are fighting, and to those who are desperately trying to stay out of harm’s way. Gracious God, unleash the power of your Holy Spirit through the witness of Christians spread across the regions in conflict right now.

Lord God, I think of extended family and missionary friends of my own who live or minister in Middle Eastern nations such as Lebanon. I pray for my own extended family and friends in that particular nation. Together with anyone who may read and pray this same prayer, we lift to you everyone we know personally who lives frighteningly close to the war and violence.

Lord God, among those of us who follow Christ, there are some of us who see this turn of events in Israel, and we confess that we either have a fleeting thought or a long-dwelling anxious thought about whether this is the beginning of the end of time. Lord, there are so many thoughts and feelings wrapped up in that train of thought… We admit that again and again throughout human history, we have been here before. Your own disciples in the New Testament era tried to read the signs of the times. We confess that we have not stopped doing that in the centuries since. God, on one hand, Your Word calls us to be ready for that day. To stand ready with candles burning, keeping vigil for the glorious coming of Christ to render final judgment on the earth (Matt. 25). In that spirit, Lord, help us to stay awake and to stay alert. 

On the other hand, God, Your Son told us that not even he knew the day or the time of His return. You alone have that knowledge. Help us to release our fretting about dates and times and world events to you; instead, turn all our energy toward the commands you’ve given us: to love You, to love our neighbors, to love our enemies, and to do all of that in such a way that the things that we think, do, and say contribute to Your true mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ among all peoples. Lord God, show us how to do that right where we are in our own neighborhoods. Again, show the disciples who live across the Middle East to do that right where they live too.

Lord God, Your Word declares that in your mysterious providence, you chose to bless the entire earth through a particular line of humanity, out of which came the people of Israel. The long history of righteousness and unrighteousness of your people Israel is dear to your heart and your mission for the world, so we lift the people of Israel to you. At the very same time, your chosen lineage of Israel was blessed to be a blessing to all ethnicities and cultures and tribes. Even to those who hate the people, the principles, the symbols, and the history of Israel. Lord God, we pray with boldness unhindered for the people of Israel. We equally pray for the people of every political faction and nation spread across the Middle East. Yes, by the loving command of Christ, we pray too for those like Hamas who have instigated and will continue to instigate aggression against Israel.

Lord God, we pray for your protection over innocent people. At the specific date and time, not knowing what the days ahead will reveal, we pray for the 130-plus Israeli hostages; reveal Christ as a strength and shield to them and to their anxious family members. Work your miraculous protection to bring as many, if not all, of them home safely. 

Lord God, we pray that the same transforming power of Christ that turned around the life of a man like Saul of Tarsus would transform the lives of any and all perpetrators of violence in this new war. We pray, O Lord, that your justice would be done; and that your compassion would abound. We admit that we don’t naturally see how justice and compassion go hand-in-hand - we tend to want justice against those we’re predisposed to frame as enemies; and we tend to want compassion for those we’re predisposed to see as victims. Lord God, you know better than us — let your justice and your compassion both be on full display.

Lord God, we pray for anyone who does not live in the Middle East but has historical, cultural, or ethnic ties to people groups in the Middle East. We pray for those who live thousands of miles away from the new war in Israel but whose hearts are ravaged all the same from a distance.

Lord God, as we continue to respond to whatever news we hear in the days ahead, show us how to think, act, and speak clearly and compassionately as only Christ would have us do. When we find ourselves in conversations with others and our opinions and convictions are flying every which way, Lord God, humble our minds and our hearts under the lordship of Christ and through the lens of Scripture. God, work so thoroughly in our hearts and minds that the things that we say in conversation do not just flow out of our own prejudices, leanings, and convictions; but that they might flow out of the truth and grace of Jesus Christ. In our personal conversations in the weeks ahead about the constantly unfolding events in the Middle East, use those conversations and relationships to point us and our conversation partners back to Christ. We pray all this in His mighty name, Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, sovereign over the rise and fall of every nation. We mourn with those mourn. We hunger and thirst for righteousness. And only by your Spirit, we long for the day when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:6-11). Amen.