God, today we give you thanks for millions of laborers who have worked to build this nation. From ditch diggers to road pavers, from machinists to mechanics, from builders to demolitionists, we give you thanks for the contribution of all who have contributed to this great land.
Likewise Lord, we recognize that this nation was built on some labor that we'd like to conveniently forget. The institution of slavery, coerced and uncompensated labor, was a reality in our nation only two to three generations ago; one hundred and fifty-five years ago abolition finally outlawed the evil practice of owning other human beings and forcing them into servitude and labor.
And while we've come some distance from that time Lord, it is clear that divisions still exist in our nation. Open our eyes Lord to see one another as your beloved creation, human beings, created in your image, of sacred value and worth. Help us to not be divided by color of skin. Help us to not be divided by political persuasion. Help us not be divided by ideas, but unite us in love, by the power of your grace.
Work in our hearts to foment a commitment of laboring towards a future where the goal is not an absence of racism, but that the goal would be a world that is marked by anti-racism, such that we can live into our baptismal vows fully of resisting evil, injustice, and oppression, in whatever forms they present themselves.
~ Pastor Andy Bartel