# Prayers for drought relief in rural Australia

> The Moderator Rev. Simon Hansford, has prepared the following prayer for those affected by the drought in rural Australia. Please feel free to use this prayer in church services and for personal reflection.

1 June 2018 · News

Canonical: https://insights1.uca.org.au/articles/prayers-for-drought-relief-in-rural-australia/

**The Moderator Rev. Simon Hansford, has prepared the following prayer for those affected by the drought in rural Australia. Please feel free to use this prayer in church services and for personal reflection.**

We pray for the land
 we hear the promise you have spoken in Isaiah
 of the refreshment of the creation;
 of water in the desert,
 of renewal for the land,
 of hope, of life.

We name our simple need – rain for our thirsty land.
 Our tanks and dams are nearly empty,
 like our hopes for this season.

Please, loving God, bring us rain
 to renew the ground, to replenish our dams,
 to bring some chance of feed,
 to bring the possibility of some reward
 to those who have toiled so hard.

We turn to you in faith and hope.

We pray for our community
 We pray for all those whose lives
 are under the shadow of drought.

We think first of those who work with the land,
 for farmers and their families,
 for those who rely upon the land for their life and relationships.

We pray for contractors, merchants and truck drivers,
 for rural counsellors and support workers,
 for all our rural community.

May the refreshment of your Spirit,
 present in miraculous and truly human ways,
 be with all of us as we move forward into the days ahead.

We pray, too, for justice;
 for fair prices for our stock and our wool and our crops.
 We pray for governments, banks and corporations –
 to be driven by the wisdom
 of community, justice and compassion
 not simply the folly of the dollar and the bottom line.

We pray for each other,
 keep us aware of the needs of those around us:
 for those who are struggling,
 who are grieving,
 who are ill, who are dying.

Restore those who are far from you
 with the knowledge that they are loved and valued.

Give them not just a sense of renewal,
 but a sense of hope and purpose for lives
 that are finding the journey hard.

Let us see the miracle of healing
 in relationships,
 in lives,
 in communities,
 where there is illness
 and hope is far away.

Keep us always conscious of the task we have
 in ministry and mission in your world.

We offer all these prayers in the name of Jesus.

**Amen.**

Filed under: belief-matters