Opening Blessing
Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the Universe,
the Holy One of Israel, the Judge of all the earth. (Genesis 18:25)
You are righteous in all Your ways and faithful in all You do. (Psalm 145:17)
The heavens declare Your glory,
but the earth groans beneath the weight of sin. (Romans 8:22)
You made mankind in Your image—
to love, to create, to protect—
but men have turned to destroy,
and the world has become a valley of blood and tears.
The Story of Humanity’s Fall
From Eden’s rebellion to Babel’s arrogance,
from Pharaoh’s chains to Babylon’s idols,
from Rome’s crosses to modern wars,
the earth has known more pain than words can hold.
“The earth was filled with violence.” (Genesis 6:11)
Kings sought glory in conquest;
priests abused power in Your name;
the mighty crushed the weak.
And still You wept, saying,
“They know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)
The Age of Cruelty and Torture
Lord, man has not only sinned—
he has learned to invent pain.
Throughout the ages, men built devices of horror:
the rack, the iron maiden, the stake, the gallows,
the guillotine, the gas chamber, the camp, the cell.
They nailed, burned, drowned, starved, and flayed
those made in Your image.
“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
ruin and misery mark their ways.” (Romans 3:15–16)
From crucifixions in Rome,
to dungeons of inquisitions,
to laboratories of human experiments,
to prisons where screams are silenced by walls—
the world has perfected the art of suffering.
And now, in our age,
torture takes new forms:
psychological torment, trafficking, exploitation, humiliation,
digital violence that never ends.
O Lord, how deep must man fall before You intervene?
How far can cruelty go before You say, “Enough”?
The Tears of Women and Children
Lord, You see the tears no one else sees.
You hear the cries that history forgets.
You saw Hagar cast out into the desert,
and You said, “I have heard the boy’s cries.” (Genesis 21:17)
You saw Tamar shamed and silenced. (2 Samuel 13:19)
You saw Rachel weeping for her children. (Jeremiah 31:15)
You see, even now,
women beaten by those who vowed to love them,
girls sold into slavery,
mothers watching their children die of hunger or war.
You see children turned into soldiers,
their innocence stolen;
children abused by those in power,
their trust shattered.
You see the unborn killed in secret,
the infants abandoned,
the orphans wandering the streets of war.
“Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.” (Psalm 82:3)
O Lord, how long must women and children weep
while men harden their hearts?
When will You arise to rescue them? (Psalm 12:5)
The Blood of the Ages
The centuries have run red.
From the killing fields of Cambodia
to the ashes of Auschwitz,
from Armenia to Rwanda, from Bosnia to Darfur,
the blood cries out from the ground. (Genesis 4:10)
We remember the transatlantic slave trade,
the whip and the chain,
the Middle Passage where human lives were counted as cargo.
We remember the colonial cruelties,
the genocides of tribes and nations erased from the earth.
We remember Hiroshima’s fire,
Vietnam’s burning jungles,
the towers that fell on 9/11,
the endless wars that followed.
We remember the faces in Syria’s ruins,
the refugees of Gaza and Ukraine,
the persecuted church across the nations.
“Their cry has reached the ears of the Lord Almighty.” (James 5:4)
The World Today
We live in an age of knowledge but not wisdom,
of luxury without mercy,
of voices that shout truth down.
The strong exploit the weak;
the powerful rewrite what is right.
We see dictators rise and the free become enslaved.
We see lies celebrated as progress.
We see corruption praised as cleverness.
We see justice bought and compassion mocked.
“The heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.” (Jeremiah 17:9)
Even nature groans —
floods, fires, earthquakes, and plagues shake the earth.
“The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.” (Romans 8:19)
Lord, this world is weary of its own evil.
It has become too much, too long.
When will You return to set things right?
The Cry of the Saints
Two thousand years have passed since the Cross,
and still we wait.
Still Your people are persecuted and killed.
Still Your name is blasphemed.
In North Korea, believers starve in prisons.
In China, Your Word is banned.
In Nigeria, churches burn.
In the Middle East, faith is met with the sword.
“How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true,
until You judge the earth and avenge their blood?” (Revelation 6:10)
Even the martyrs cry from under the altar,
and the Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” (Revelation 22:17)
The Hope of Redemption
Yet, O Lord, Your mercy endures.
“The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, but patient, not wanting any to perish.” (2 Peter 3:9)
You have not forgotten Your covenant.
Your Son will come again—
not as a Lamb to be slain, but as a King to reign.
Then the Rider on the white horse shall appear,
and His name shall be called Faithful and True. (Revelation 19:11)
He shall judge the nations in righteousness. (Psalm 96:13)
He shall break the oppressor’s staff. (Isaiah 9:4)
He shall heal the wounds of the abused,
and comfort those who have been broken. (Isaiah 61:1–3)
The Kingdom to Come
You have promised a day when:
“They shall beat their swords into plowshares.” (Isaiah 2:4)
“The wolf shall dwell with the lamb.” (Isaiah 11:6)
“There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain.” (Revelation 21:4)
“The meek shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5)
No more violence, no more tears,
no more fear, no more shame.
Justice and peace will kiss. (Psalm 85:10)
The knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth
as the waters cover the sea. (Habakkuk 2:14)
Final Blessing and Benediction
Until that day, O Lord,
give strength to the weary,
faith to the faithful,
and courage to those who still stand for truth.
Let us not be overcome by evil,
but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:21)
Let our light shine in this darkness. (Matthew 5:16)
“For yet a little while,
and He who is coming will come and will not delay.” (Hebrews 10:37)
So we pray, with tears and hope:
Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the Universe,
who judges the nations with justice,
who defends the fatherless and the widow, (Psalm 68:5)
who heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. (Psalm 147:3)
Come quickly, Lord Jesus —
for the earth is weary,
the blood has filled its cup,
and the cries of the innocent reach Heaven.
Come, Lord Jesus. Come soon.
Amen.
