Prayer ping for those in the path of Hurricane Katrina, a category 5 threatening the city of New Orleans and that part of the gulf coast.
update: 12 noon GMT Sunday: Katrina is now a 160 MPH Category 5 storm, and still headed directly at New Orleans. Serious prayer needed. This post will stay on top. Look for new posts below this one.
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It’s very sobering to see New Orleans very much in the predicted path of Hurricane Katrina, who looks to become a VERY dangerous storm. New Orleans is below sea-level and always is among the “worst-case scenarios” discussed by those knowledgable about hurricanes.
Here is the projected forecast track:
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/refresh/graphics_at2+shtml/001042.shtml?3day?large
(This map is updated every three hours, you may need to hit refresh to see the current version)
As I posted on Titusonenine a little while ago: Let’s keep all the emergency officials in Louisiana and the Cental Gulf Coast in our prayers today. The decisions they make about evacuations, etc. may well be the difference between lives saved & lives lost. Also, prayers for some dry air to show up and tear Katrina apart wouldn’t do any harm either!
Time to re-post the hurricane liturgy I discovered online last summer:
L: Lord, have mercy.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: Christ, have mercy.
C: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord, have mercy.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: In the face of peril and apprehension, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: In the face of mighty winds, thunderous sounds, strong rains, and surging waves, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: In the face of complete uncertainty, as well as concern for our loved ones, here or elsewhere, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: In the face of our own vulnerable mortality, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: For the strength that God alone can give us, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: For all that it takes to keep our children calm and safe, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: For faith that can move mountains and remove all fear, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: For trust in God’s loving presence in our midst, even at this very hour, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: For trust that in life and in death, God will not abandon us, let us pray to the Lord.
C: Lord, have mercy.
L: Almighty God, we poor creatures place our lives into your hands that you might protect and guide us according to your will; Lord, in your mercy,
C: Hear, our prayer.
L: Do not hold our sins against us, but remember us in our faith and love for you; Lord, in your mercy,
C: Hear, our prayer.
L: Be our light in the darkness, our hope in the storm, our peace in the chaos, our trust in the unknown; Lord, in your mercy,
C: Hear, our prayer.
L: Mighty are your works, O Lord, and mighty is your saving hand. Turn your ear to our petitions and supplications; Lord, in your mercy,
C: Hear, our prayer.
L: God of heaven and earth, God who carries our lives and the lives of our whole community in your hands, be with is in the peril of this day/night. Help us to release our anxieties and fears into those same caring hands, knowing in faith that your will for us is life and everlasting good. Send your holy angels to watch over us and guard us. May they spread their holy wings to give us shelter against the storm. For you alone, O God, are all good, all life, all love, and that love is for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
C: Amen