May 1st - Prayer of Solidarity for Immigrants

By Mukarabe Makinto-Inandava
Amahoro International/Shalom Ministries/WCMCC

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.

-Hebrews 13:2

Heavenly Father, you called Abraham to leave his country
Jehovah Jireh, you sustained him in foreign lands.

Holy Father, you put the wanderer in families;
That is why we bring before you today, in the name of Jesus-Christ, all the uprooted people in our midst;

For the immigrant in our families, in our church, in our neighborhood,
Give us your sensitive and loving heart to embrace them;

For the immigrant crossing the dry and high desert,
Grant us enough compassion to give a cup of water;
And give them strength for the journey.

For the immigrant braving the high seas on the coastlines of Europe;
When they feel lonely, scared, hungry and discouraged,
Father give us your Spirit to help us open our doors and welcome them;

Lord this is your world so vast and so rich you have given us;
And yet, we the people called to be your feet and your hands,
We have hardened our hearts; we are no longer moved by things that move your heart;
Forgive us Lord and help us see the immigrants the way you see them: souls you came to redeem.

Lord, where you called us to be the Samaritan to the immigrants; we chose to be the Pharisees and the Priests-we turn our backs to the immigrant families being torn apart by unjust systems we have put in place;

Father your church is praying for the Nation today;
And yet we remain silent when the governments we elect are enlarging prisons, erecting walls and pushing the immigrants back to their lonely deaths in deserts and seas and behind bars.

Father, please grant us, your church, to be the voice for the voiceless,
Give us your wisdom and guidance to exercise our power through prayer and action by actively voting for and supporting just and humane policies in favor of the oppressed, hungry, poor, and the immigrants.

Father, you are our hope and we praise you for your mercies endure forever. We have prayed in the mighty name of Jesus who died for us all, including the immigrants. Amen.