Lord God of heaven and earth, we come before you this morning to thank you for the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Junior. As this day reminds us, it has been a mighty long road toward equality and fairness for all people, and we confess that we still have a long way to go. There is still darkness in our hearts, injustice in our land, and bondage in this world.

     We ask that you would change our hearts—that you would remove every shred of racism and classism and sexism that resides there. When we look at our fellow human beings, let us see them as you see them. Let us see them for who they are and who they might become in you, not based on the color of their skin, the language that they speak, their nation of origin, their gender, their money or their lack thereof. May we never see others in any way that for one moment allows us to consider ourselves superior to any other. Change our hearts. Make us new. Set us free. Fill us with love for our neighbors.

     Change not only our hearts, but change our nation as well. We have been blessed to see many, many things change since Dr.King’s day. We have seen unjust laws struck down. We have seen children of many backgrounds attending the same schools. We have seen people begin to learn to get along with those who are different, and we have even seen a man of color elected to the highest office in our land. Lord, please bless and lead our President and this great nation. Let us move forward more fully toward liberty and justice for all. May we be a haven of fairness and opportunity, and may we shine brightly in this world.

     Since Dr. King’s day, our world has grown smaller through satellites, internet, and cell phone. People, money, and images zoom around this globe in virtually no time at all. Dr. King once said that “Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” We do not want to hide our heads in the sand and plead ignorant. Lord, this morning there are more people held in the bonds of slavery than at any time in history. Set them free! We have seen images of the devastation in Haiti last week, but every week there are hundreds of thousands of children sold for the cost of one dinner out, and we have remained silent. Forgive us. Let those of us gathered in this room rise up with Dr. King to fight injustice and inequality in this world, in this nation, and especially in our own hearts. On this day, allow our hearts to be moved to take action for your kingdom in our homes and community. We ask for your presence and your blessing here this morning. We thank you for each one gathered here. Amen.