Thanksgiving Prayer for Farmers

Thank you, God, for farmers!
For those people who have touched the soil,
who have known it intimately,
the feel of it in their fingernails,
the taste of it, the way it smells after the rain.
For those who have cared for animals,
touched them, heard their cries,
nurtured them carefully.
Being a farmer can be a hard life,
the bills don’t match the income,
the weather doesn’t co-operate
or the markets are fickle.
Be with farmers, Lord,
and particularly the farming families in our church,
in hard times as well as good.
Help us to create a society where farmers are appreciated
and compensated fairly for their work.
Help us to personally be thankful for their work,
that sustains us in the most basic way possible.
We pray for farmers and communities around the world
where the rain did not come,
or the rain came too hard, or too late,
for those whose soil is depleted,
or who cannot afford the cost of production.
So many in the world are hungry today
because of a poor or non-existent harvest,
or because war interrupted the harvest.
Open the hearts of the world, open our hearts,
to be generous, to share the bounty that you give us.
All of our farming relies on the good earth,
and we pray for the earth today too.
Help us take care of it, help us cherish it,
help us pass it on, safely, to a new generation.
Guide our governments to make wise decisions regarding the earth.
Particularly we pray for our Canadian politicians,
that you would open their eyes to the long term health of our rich land,
giving them the courage to make decisions that will benefit
Canadians a hundred years from now.
Help us work for justice with indigenous peoples
who loved the land long before the settlers came,
and who were cheated and dispossessed.
We are so thankful for Niagara, rich in soil and generous in weather,
a garden of delights for all who live here.
It’s your gift, and we thank you for it.
Amen.