* “ABC pulls ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after FCC chair criticizes host’s Charlie Kirk comments’ from Rebecca Keegan and Daniel Arkin, NBC News

* “Fears mount as CDC advisers meet on child vaccine schedule” from Joseph Choi, The Hill

* “Trump and Starmer sign U.S.-U.K. tech deal on AI, nuclear power’ from David Brennan, ABC News

God of truth,

I’m worried about my country. I know I was lucky to be born in a place where, despite all our failures, has a Bill of Rights and claims to be a place where no one is above the law.

Our government is ignoring those rights, silencing its critics, because many of our media companies, who are supposed to be informing us, are giant corporations who care more about money than they do about free speech and freedom of the press.

You know all this. I know there are many places in the world where comedians don’t have the right to criticize their leaders. It is one of the things I love about this broken nation of mine. And it’s going away.

As Wanda Sykes said, this is the time to pray. I am praying. I am asking that those who are responsible to uphold freedom of speech and the press do so, whether they like the speech or not.

And I ask it not just for the United States, but that everywhere people can speak without fear of being silenced by their governments.

Give courage to media companies to stand behind the critics. And let people stand up for the right to speak boldly about our government.

Healing God,

Thank you for the work of immunologists and health care workers who want to prevent disease.

Bring light to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Let them make decisions that will not put children at risk when evidence shows that vaccines are safe.

Bring reason and wisdom to their decision-making, and let truth reign.

Mighty God,

As powerful men meet to make decisions that will affect the world, remember the vulnerable. Let them not be left in poverty. Cause technology companies to consider the people who use the technology and will be affected by it.

Move the hearts of politicians and CEOs to see the effects of their decisions and to adjust them in ways that benefit all people.

Let it be so.

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* “Suspect in Charlie Kirk killing formally charged with murder, faces death penalty” from Reuters

* “Israel launches ground offensive deep inside Gaza City as U.N. report accuses it of genocide” from The Guardian

* “Republicans release 7-week spending bill as Democrats warn of a potential shutdown” from NPR

God of love,

I’m sad. Reading about Tyler Robinson and Charlie Kirk and my country makes me sad. It’s a story of division, in families and in our nation.

There’s a young man who may be killed by his government because he killed another young man. There’s so much grief and confusion.

Paul wrote that all things work together for good for those that love God, who are called according to God’s purpose.

I confess that I doubt. But I also ask for you to work good in this gut-wrenching situation, where so many people are angry and hurt.

Let your church be a source of comfort and clarity, and let people tell the truth, no matter the cost.

Prince of peace,

65,000. 65,000 people lost in Gaza. The pictures of tanks and remote-controlled explosive armored cars in Gaza City, and thousands of people fleeing on foot. It’s unbearable. And that is to me, sitting in my comfortable home thousands of miles away.

How, God, can you bear it? Why don’t you act?

I refuse to believe anyone is beyond redemption, but I also refuse to believe Netanyahu and his supporters in the United States should be allowed to continue to destroy so many people.

What Hamas did two years ago was wrong, and it deserves justice. But so too is Israel wrong, and the Palestinians deserve to live.

Please intervene.

God, our Provider,

The leaders in my country are fighting. They have so much power, and they seem to have lost sight of the fact that they have been given that power to help the people they are supposed to serve.

Provide for health care for all people in the world. Give us leaders who choose service over power, and the greater good over the short-term win.

Give wisdom to those who want to do what is right in Washington, D.C., where right seems so elusive.

Let it be so.

* “Long-term unemployment at post-pandemic high, straining workers and economy” from The Washington Post

* “Rubio urges Qatar to keep helping with Gaza as Israel batters enclave” from Reuters

* “The investigation into Charlie Kirk’s killing continues. Here’s the latest.” from CNN

Merciful God,

People are discouraged. They are trying to find work, and there is nothing for them. Young people, older people, it doesn’t matter. And the longer they stay out of the workforce, the harder it is for them to find work.

Give hope. And provide the leaders in business and government who can make real changes the wisdom and courage to do so. Give them compassion, empathy, and creativity. Plant in them the desire to make the United States a place that is good for all its people. Guide the Fed as they meet to make decisions.

I don’t pretend to understand economic policy enough to know what the right thing is, but I know that the powerful have the means at their disposal to make things better if they choose to. Bring justice for the poor and the unemployed.

Prince of Peace,

Israel and Palestine need you. Bring comfort to the families of the 1,200 people who were killed and the 251 who were taken hostage in October 2023, and to the 64,000 and more who have been killed in Gaza since.

Give your protection to those displaced by this war who live in fear every day, as well as to those who are risking their lives to help them.

Change the hearts of the leaders of the United States, who seem unwilling or unable to negotiate for peace. Give wisdom and guidance to those in Qatar who are attempting to broker peace.

Let those leaders on both sides of this conflict who have embraced violence be brought to justice, and stop them from continuing.

If my heart is broken for these people, I know that yours must be even more. I am powerless in this situation. And so I cry to you to intervene. To bring peace and understanding where there has been only hatred and fear.

Source of Truth,

I didn’t know much about Charlie Kirk before he was killed. Now I see such different reports of him that I feel like they must be talking about two different people. He represents the divisions in the United States. Let your truth be known, and give my nation a desire to hear it, no matter how it makes us feel or if it confirms our biases.

Let this moment mean something. Let lawmakers decide that if they need enhanced security, we all do.

Our fear of each other is what fuels our need for guns. And that is a vicious circle. How long, oh, Lord, will you watch as we in the United States kill each other?

Turn the hearts of our leaders. Turn the hearts of our people. Let us follow the examples of other nations who have decided that lives are more precious than weapons.

Let it be so.

I am angry. And I have been fueling my anger with sarcasm and social media.

I have not been loving my neighbor as myself, and I certainly haven’t been loving my enemies.

My well of compassion for those with whom I disagree with has run dry, and I have not looked for a new source.

So here I am, asking for forgiveness and for the eyes to see the world as you do. To love as you do. Without limit, without regard for my behavior or for anyone else’s.

I am afraid for my country and its role in the world. I have not trusted you, and if I am honest, I am afraid to trust you. You have not prevented tragedies in the past, and I have no reason to believe that I or this moment is special.

But still. I want to be part of bringing your kingdom here on earth like it is in heaven. I don’t want to wait until I die.

I will do what I can. And I will ask you, God, to do what I cannot.

My prayer for my country tonight is that we would know the truth and that the truth would set us free. That we would hear it and know it and act on it.

Let it be so.