watch over (something)

To "watch over" something means to guard and protect it. But "watching over" something is not as serious as "guarding" it. A professional "guards" things like expensive artwork, an empty office building, and so on. But regular people can "watch over" things like someone's computer or someone's teenage child.

People often say that God "watches over" people as well:

God, we pray that you watch over Richard and his family in this difficult time.

Lord, (prayer)

This is a common way to start a prayer in English.

Other common ways to start a prayer include:

Dear Lord, 

Dear God,

Dear Father,

O Father,

Heavenly Father,

We pray that you (do something)

This is one common way to pray in a group of people. You ask for something from God or gods like this:

We pray that you watch over us and keep us safe.

We pray that you help us to live in the ways that you have taught us.

We pray that you help Debbie as she looks for a job.

If you're praying by yourself, you can say or think "I pray that..." instead.

this difficult time

When something bad is happening, like an illness, a war, a disaster, economic difficulty, etc., a polite way to talk about the situation is to call it "this difficult time".

We all have to do whatever we can to help in this difficult time.

People in authority positions, like politicians, company executives, or school administrators often use this phrase.