Pause for Prayer: 9/11

Loving God:

You call us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

You have taught us that there is no greater love

than to lay down one’s life for another,

that just such love is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets.

We gather today to honor those

who not only respond to others’ needs

but who indeed keep vigil 24/7/365,

watching and waiting to offer the first response

to any and all who are in trouble.

Especially when disaster and tragedy paralyze most of us,

these men and women swing into action to do for us

what we cannot do for ourselves.

Precisely in this way, Lord,

do our first responders mirror your love for us:

selfless love, freely given, with no strings attached.

This very day we remember the man-made disaster of 9/11

and those first responders,

so many of whom made for others the ultimate sacrifice.

And on the same day we are mindful

of the havoc wrought by natural disasters

and the men and women first on the scene

to offer life-saving help and care.

Today we remember and we honor all the men and women 

who serve us and support one another 

in their noble professions.

Let them be models for us, O God,

to help us grow more vigilant and more generous

in responding to the needs, large and small,

of those in our families, neighborhoods and town.

Look upon us with kindness, Lord,

and receive the prayer we offer.

Amen.

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