Camp Mystic Prayer: When Hearts Are Broken

O God, our hearts are broken, our spirits shaken. Lives – so precious, so loved – have been swept away. Children, mothers, fathers, neighbors ... all gone too soon, leaving behind questions too deep for words. We do not understand. But You know our hearts, Lord. You hear our thoughts. We cry out to You from the depths of sorrow: Why this loss? Why this pain? Why these lives? Why now?

Lord, bring Your comfort. Reveal Your presence. And to those who cannot find You, who are angry or numb, meet us in our silence, our shouting, our confusion.

For You are not a stranger to suffering. You weep with the brokenhearted. You walk with us through the valley of the shadow of death. So, walk with every grieving one of us now and always. Hold those who feel crushed beyond repair. Bring rest to those who cannot sleep. Bring peace to those who feel forsaken, who cannot stop searching for answers to questions which may not have answers this side of eternity.

For those of us who are confused and cannot make sense of what has happened, help us to remember that understanding is not a requirement for Your love, and that our questions do not keep us from Your presence. You are big enough for our doubts. You are patient with our sorrow. You never promised to explain everything. But You do promise to be with us.

Help us to be gracious with one another’s pain. May compassion and prayer – not easy answers or explanations – be what we offer to others. When all we can do is weep, remind us that You weep with us. Make us instruments of comfort, even in our own confusion. May our love reflect Your love. May our presence be Your presence.

We offer up this prayer to You, our God, in sorrow – but also in hope. In time, God, bring beauty from these ashes. But today – just stay close. That is enough. Amen