This prayer of lament for a broken church can be used on World Communion Sunday to acknowledge the disunity even amidst our unity or on other occasions when this prayer is particularly appropriate.
God of grace and glory,
build your church.
Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
calm our chaos.
King of peace,
grant us your peace.
We lament the disunity
in the church today.
We lament the distraction
from the church’s witness.
We lament the suffering
of those most affected by disagreements.
We lament the brokenness
of our church community.
Forgive us, Lord,
for judging each other.
Forgive us
for leaning on easy answers.
Forgive us
for our pride and taking sides.
Forgive us
for our lack of grace and mercy.
We grieve
for those who have left the church.
We grieve
broken friendships and family relationships.
We grieve
for all who have lost their way in the chaos.
We grieve
for those who have no hope.
God of the Church,
hear our cries for reconciliation.
Show us your image in the other.
Make us burden-lifters for those with heavy hearts.
Make your church an oasis in a sea of chaos.
Open our ears
to hear your voice through the words of others.
Open our eyes
to see you in the faces and actions of those around us.
Open our hands
to serve all who have needs.
Move our feet
to step toward each other, not away.
Shine your light into our confusion.
Bring reconciling peace to all.
Bring healing to our hearts and the hearts of others.
Bring the good news of the gospel to the world.
We pray for each other, even those we disagree with.
Remind us that we are your children—
we are family, not enemies.
Show us your great love and unite us in humility and grace.
May our witness be strong so that by our love
the world will know that You are God.
God of grace and glory, build your church.
Spirit of wisdom and understanding, calm our chaos.
King of peace, grant us your peace.
Amen.
—Diane Dykraaf © 2026 ReformedWorship.org CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
