On Tuesday evening, a gunman killed 8 people—6 of whom were of Asian descent—at spas in the Atlanta area. In the wake of these shootings, our Asian American brothers and sisters are hurting. Even now, loved ones are sending anxious texts to one another: Are you physically safe? Are you emotionally okay? Can you avoid going out in public for a few days?

American Bible Society grieves for our broken world in which violence and fear of violence are so prevalent. We lament over news and repeated news of lives lost to ignorance and hatred—and over continued cruelty that reinforces the daily apprehensions that so many people from minority groups in the U.S. carry. We acknowledge the sin of racism and the enduring traumas it causes. And we look to God and His Word for both guidance in our response and true comfort for hurting hearts.

First Corinthians 12 compares the global church to a physical body. Verse 26 says, “If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts suffer with it” (GNT). We come alongside the American Church, inviting all believers to assume our responsibility to suffer alongside and care for our AAPI communities. We seek to acknowledge the real grief and alarm many are experiencing in this moment while also naming that Jesus’s perfect love drives out all our fear (1 John 4:18) and declaring that God’s peace guards our hearts and minds (Philippians 4: 7).

Please join us in praying:

• God, we seek your nearness for the families and friends grieving the loss of their loved ones.
• God, we lament with you and with our Asian American brothers and sisters over this violence and terror.
• God, we repent of our own pride, bias, and earthly desires (Colossians 3:5) and ask you to cleanse our hearts.
• God, we ask you to build unity in the church so that believers stand in solidarity both in times of celebration and of sorrow.