Without doubt, the greatest asset and attribute of the Nashville Institute for Faith and Work is the diversity of our community - a network of followers of Jesus from different Christian traditions and churches across our special city. In the wake of this week's tragic shooting, we stand together in love and grief with our brothers and sisters at Covenant Presbyterian Church and the Covenant School. Members of the NIFW community have been directly impacted by the evil that took place in deep and personal ways. We love you and we stand with you in your grief. No words can make sense of the pain and loss you have experienced. We join you in looking to the Lord who is near to the brokenhearted. We turn to God with you, with our tears and wordless expressions of pain, asking the Spirit to make sense of these prayers and intercede. We plead to the Lord for more grace on your behalf, one moment at a time, with hope in the God who sympathizes with our pain and has overcome sin and death with resurrection life.
-With much love, the NIFW Team
The below prayer is a heart-felt prayer that was written by Christ Presbyterian Church, Cool Springs Director of Ministry, Melanie Rainer, and shared at the Community Prayer Gathering hosted at Christ Presbyterian Church following the tragedy at The Covenant School in Nashville. Originally posted on christpres.org/prayer.
A Liturgy for Nashville
Written on Monday, March 27, 2023 by Melanie Rainer
Lord, hear our prayer.
We love this city. And we know that you love this city.
We know this place, these people, these roads.
And today, we grieve. And we know that you grieve.
Lord, hear our prayer.
As the landscape of Green Hills has changed,
as the traffic has grown more dense and the buildings have grown taller,
Covenant has been a steadfast presence,
reflecting your steadfast love.
Nashville is a city of sounds, the soul of our city is written in keys and chords and words.
And Covenant is a church of music. A church of beauty.
She is the bride of Christ, a refuge for the weary,
A gift to our city.
A city of sound, and a church that echoes heaven.
We praise you for Covenant. We grieve for our friends. We grieve for your people.
Lord, hear our prayer.
God, we ask you not to dry our tears, but to increase them.
Let us feel what we are afraid to feel today.
Let us face the worst of the world with hearts that are deeply engaged
In love, in hope, in pain.
Let us be not only the hands and feet of Jesus today, but the love and compassion and merciful
tears of a Savior who cried for his friends when death came to Lazarus.
Lord, hear our prayer.
For the children, God.
For their parents.
For their friends.
Be near. In the ways only you can.
For the Dieckhaus Family.
For the Scruggs Family.
For the Kinney Family.
For the Peak Family.
For the Koonce Family.
For the Hill Family.
Lord, hear our prayer.
You are a God who promises justice like a river,
God, let it be swift.
You are a God who promises peace beyond understanding.
God, show it to us now.
You are a God who promises to bind up our sorrows.
God, wrap us in your love now.
You are God who promises to heal our wounds.
God, heal us now.
You are a God who saves our crushed spirits.
God, save us now.
You are a God who promises to go before us.
God, go before us now.
You are a God who holds all things together.
God, help us trust you.
You are a God who promises there will be no more tears. No more death. No more crying.
God, let it be true.
Lord, hear our prayer.
