Advent: A joyful prayer
Editor's note: Each week of the Advent season, Bread for the World is posting a prayer for our members and friends.
Joy
"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing,
give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
(1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
God of joy, we seek you.
Here and around the world
we see misery and pain.
Our world is imperfect and
darkness clouds our vision.
God of joy, we seek you.
As we bring light to dark places in the world,
we pause in this advent season to prepare anew
for the birth of your son, Jesus, a sign of your love for us:
joy and assurance when we need it most.
God of joy, we seek you.
May your joy fill our hearts
and grace our lips so that we might
reflect your joy to all the world.
Amen.
God of joy, we seek you.
Tools
from our Resource Library
For Education
Feed the Future
Feed the Future, launched in 2010, grew out of the U.S. response, led by President George W. Bush, to the 2007-2008 global food price crisis. Prices of basic foods doubled or tripled in some countries and pushed an additional 150 million people into hunger and malnutrition.
U.S. Hunger and Poverty State Fact Sheets
These fact sheets provide a snapshot of hunger and poverty in the United States and in each state plus Washington, D.C.
Hunger and Poverty in the African-American Community
While hunger declined from 2017 for the general U.S. population, African Americans experienced a one percent increase, an increase of 153,000 African American households.
For Faith
Unity Declaration on Racism and Poverty
A diverse body of Christian leaders calls on the churches and Congress to focus on the integral connection.
Dear Members of Congress,
As the president and Congress are preparing their plans for this year, almost 100 church leaders—from all the families of U.S. Christianity—are...
In Times Like These … A Pan-African Christian Devotional for Public Policy Engagement
This devotional guide invites deepened relationship with and among Pan-African people and elected leaders in the mission to end hunger and poverty.
Sermon by David Beckmann at Duke University Chapel
Remarks delivered October 1, 2017 at Duke University Chapel in Chapel Hill in North Carolina.
Thank you for inviting me to preach here at Duke University Chapel. And I especially want to thank the Bread for the World members who have come this morning.
Bruce Puckett urged...
For Advocacy
Grassroots Advocacy Toolkit
A set of how-to sheets for carrying out advocacy and fact sheets on the current issues Bread for the World is working on.
For new and current Bread grassroots hunger activists.
Ideal as a starter toolkit for new Bread activists or as a set of updates for current activists.
...
U.S. Hunger and Poverty State Fact Sheets
These fact sheets provide a snapshot of hunger and poverty in the United States and in each state plus Washington, D.C.
Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2017
Unnecessarily long prison sentences, combined with the lack of rehabilitative programs for people in prison, exacerbate hunger, poverty, and existing inequalities.
Overly harsh mandatory minimum prison sentences have contributed to the rapid increase of our country’s prison population. The...