Oil gushes into the Gulf of Mexico as I write today; it's been doing this for over a month now. And only now are some people becoming aware of the extent of this devastating crisis. The Exxon Valdez spilled 250,000 barrels of oil into Alaska's Prince William Sound in 1989. On conservative estimates, U.S. government scientists indicate that at least twice as much oil as that has now gushed into the Gulf of Mexico, making it the largest oil spill in U.S. history.
Today we find out if the latest of many BP attempts, the "Top Kill," was effective in stopping (more likely slowing down) the oil. To date every attempt has failed and the human cause of this tragedy is clear. Are we praying for God to intervene in this horrible assault on his creation? I found surprisingly little of a Christian response on the Internet, so I offer this prayer which I used for leading in prayer in church last Sunday.
We pray today for the preservation of our natural environment,
especially the Gulf of Mexico and the lands and waters it touches:
Please stop the oil from gushing into the ocean;
Guide those who labour to contain the oil
that endangers the creatures of sea and land;
Strengthen those who work to protect them;
Have mercy on those whose livelihoods will suffer;
Forgive us for our carelessness in using the resources of nature,
and give us wisdom and reverence so to manage them in the future,
that no one may suffer from our abuse of them,
and that generations yet to come may continue to praise you
in the beauty of your creation;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The NCC put together a church bulletin insert with facts and prayer.
Let's continue to pray. We should be desperate to see this oil stop: our Father's world is being ruined.What have we done?
