Prayer for People of Maui

Creating God, we pray to you for the people of Maui. You, our Creator, have designed us to live as a family sharing a common home. The devastating fires in Maui have left our brothers and sisters without homes and often without family members. We ask that you bless their attempts to reunite families, sort through the ashes of their homes and workplaces, and do it in a spirit of respect and care. Comfort them in their grief. Console them with dreams of the new more sustainable way of life, lived in community on the island, which has been so often seen as paradise.

Saving God, you have encouraged us as we see families and neighbors providing one another basic needs. Guide their continued recovery as they need resources from a greater distance and people far away. Teach them to cherish the beautiful environment, the heritage of the indigenous people of Hawaii and the historical artifacts now lost to them. We pray that these outside experts will come with listening hearts, and the people of Maui themselves will decide how to rebuild. Protect them from those who would profit from their losses.

Sustaining Spirit, give them perseverance as the weeks of recovery stretch into months and years. Rekindle their hope as they face each new decision, and each new problem that seems like a mountain. Give them the courage and stamina that they will need for the full recovery. May the spirit of hospitality and aloha which characterizes the Hawaiian people spread to those who come offering help.