One... Stress

Prayers for our world

Our world is stressed and people in the world are stressed too.

Climate change, pandemic, war… the earth and the people of the earth are feeling the cracks and pressure of stress.

In our One series we come simply to God.

“The earth and everything on it,
including its people,
    belong to the Lord.
The world and its people
    belong to him.”

Psalm 24:1 (CEV)

In our 5 Senses Virtual Prayer Room we offer a one word or one sentence prayer using a single sensory object.

One prayer seems such a small offering and doesn’t feel like we are doing much for the wider global picture of pain and suffering and fear. Yet we take hope in the offering of one small voice joining with another one small voice. There is power here. It is not our power to own or control. This power is beyond us and more than us. It is much bigger than our offerings, yet our offering is part of this power.

We can take comfort and confidence from the privilege we have to give and to care for others, in our one prayer and in our small acts of courage and kindness. We don’t have answers or solutions to the stresses in our world. In praying we bring our fear, our hope, our cries, our pressures, our anguish and our pain to God.

One life, you got to do what you should
One life, with each other
Sisters, brothers

One life but we're not the same
We get to carry each other, carry each other
One

from “One” by U2

We might be one person praying one prayer, but we are not alone. We are praying with others and we are praying to our God who feels the pain of the earth and the pain of all the people. Maybe this will bring us some peace or maybe this is a way of simply sharing our stress.

Read more about our One series here. Both of today’s prayers can be used in group settings such as a church or small group.

Our first prayer uses a stress ball. Here’s more about how a stress ball works.

Our second prayer uses a pair of socks. This prayer is behind our paywall. Here’s some interesting history on socks. I guess a pair of socks isn’t exactly a single object, but rolled into a ball two become one, so I’m calling it a single object for the purpose of our prayers this week.

May you find some peace as you carry others

On the journey

Caroline

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Stress Ball Prayer

Hold a stress ball in one hand. Imagine it is the globe. Push into the ball, feeling the resistance as it changes shape beneath your touch. Push and release a few times. The sensation of pushing and meeting resistance actually helps our nervous system cope with stress. As you push into the stress ball, pray a one word or one sentence prayer for a stress in our world.