Tuesday morning I woke to news alerts on my phone about the terrorist attack in Brussels. Two bombs at the airport. One at the metro. Dozens dead and hundreds injured.
“Not again, Lord.”
I sat with my Bible and my journal. I wanted to pray, but words escaped me. So much devastation. So much evil. How do you pray in the wake of something so terrible? I wanted to pray specifically, so I asked God for direction.
“Lord, how should I pray?”
Then I began to pray. I felt God guiding my prayers. People and needs and tasks came to mind. As I prayed, I wrote in my journal the specific requests for specific groups of people. Like solid and accurate intelligence for law enforcement and adequate resources and physical stamina for medical personnel.
I know my list is not comprehensive, but it is far more specific than I would have come up with on my own. I’d like to share my list with you. Maybe it will be helpful and encouraging to you as you pray. For Brussels, the timing has passed for some of these requests. But most are still applicable. But this list would also make a helpful resource for the future. I’ve included a link to a pdf version for easy printing.
“But, O Lord, I pray we don’t need this list again.”
If God gives you other specific requests would you share them with us in the comments of this post? I’d love to continue to grow this list into a very useful prayer resource.
“Oh Lord, hear our prayers.”
Pray for Law enforcement:
- Good, solid intelligence and information
- Plenty of manpower and resources
- Good coordination between agencies, including international
- Physical stamina
Pray for Medical Personnel:
- Physical and emotional strength
- All the human resources, equipment and supplies needed
- Wisdom to quickly assess individual situations
- Steady hands and calming presence
Pray for the Injured:
- Provide the help they need quickly
- Surround them with believers who will pray and encourage them
- Overwhelm them with Your peace and ease their fear
Pray for the Families:
- Comfort for the families of those killed
- Support for the families of those injured
- Peace for the families of those waiting to hear
- Good communication about the situation to all families
Pray for World Leaders:
- Leaders around the world would rise up against this evil
- Ability to set politics aside
- Receive wise counsel from wise people
- Leaders around the world would unite in a global effort against terrorism
Pray for Rescue workers and First Responders:
- Protection from further violence as they work
- Physical strength, emotional stamina
- Good coordination and communication in the efforts
- They would provide a strong, calming presence to those they encounter
- Sustenance, like food and water, they need to keep going
Pray for the Terrorists:
- Any left alive involved in this attack would be caught
- Those on the fringe would give information to authorities
- Any other related plots would be exposed
- For God to convict them and bring them to repentance
- For God to draw them to Jesus
Add your prayers to this list in the comments. Lord, hear our prayers!
Thank You Father that we can KNOW You are Sovereign and Your plan & will will be done….thank you for this article. d
Thank you for this positive response to something so terrible.