Today is European Maritime Day and at this moment around 750 delegates are meeting in Ravenna Italy for a two-day conference looking at everything to do with the blue economy and the marine environment. Their theme this year is “Sustainable blue economy for green recovery” and discussions will be taking place on how the oceans can be treated better so that it will benefit the whole world. So, today shall we pray for the marine environment and our treatment of it?
Loving Father God, we pray today for the seas and oceans. We know that you created them to be places of plenty, where fish and other sea creatures would be able to live and multiply. You gave them a purpose, a reason and you wanted to see them healthy and full of life.
Lord, we know that we have not always been responsible stewards of the oceans. We are sorry that we have taken too many fish, not considered what we have been allowing to enter the water and not thought of how it will be able to recover from our thoughtless actions.
Help us to be mindful of not taking too much from the ocean, of not filling it with microplastics which are eaten by the fish and cause so much harm to them and of not putting our waste into it, so that it become dirty and uninhabitable. Help us to be more conscious of how the decisions we make can affect the world around us and may we work to be more sustainable in all our actions.
We pray for all those, in this nation and around the world, who live by the sea and for those who depend on it for their livelihoods. For those who fish, those involved in shipping, those involved in the tourist trade, those who work on oil platforms, those who work with the coastguard, lifeboats or serve in the navy and all others whose lives are affected by the sea. We pray too for those who live in places where sea levels are rising and who are concerned about what the future might hold for them and their communities. Lord, we ask that you will be with each group and that they will know our love and presence with them in all they do.
Lord of all, hear our prayers and show us how we can be part of the solution. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen
Catherine Booton