Walking along Lexington Ave. near West 115th St., Rev. Robert Rice says it’s going to take prayers and a lot more to stop the bloodshed and senseless gun violence around the city.

More than 470 people have been left with bullet wounds in the first four months of this year, at least 129 of them killed.

“We got to get past the code of don’t tell,” said Rice. “Forget that mess. We got to start working together with the police department. That’s another key to beating gun violence, by working together with the NYPD.”

Rice is an NYPD clergy liaison chaplain. He hits the streets of Harlem and East Harlem, often with his bullhorn and end gun violence palm cards.

After a recent shooting at a public housing development, he shouted into the bullhorn “two fifteen-year-old kids were shot and that’s unacceptable.”

He hands out palm cards with statistics about gun violence. While stopping people at random to talk about preventing shootings, he also says a prayer with them asking they not become a victim of gun violence.

Rice grew up at the Johnson Houses in East Harlem. While walking through the housing development, he admits — after decades of trying to stop violence — his efforts have have become emotionally draining and traumatic.

“I visited over 800 people who have been shot in two years,” the reveredn said. “Eight hundred people.”

He said out of that number, over 120 did not survive.

“I cry many times because I care. I care that we are losing these young kids at a record number. We are losing them because they are killing each other and going to prison or they are dying,” explained Rice.

He often leans on his own church leaders at Bethel Gospel Assembly for support and guidance. But he says this is his calling, to be on the streets with the people where he’s from.

“Most of these kids that are out here, don’t have fathers in the home. Their mothers are on drugs. They go through a lot of problems of their own with mental illness, and a lot of drug use,” said Rice.

He’s concerned the shooters are getting younger and younger, some barely teenagers.

“If you shoot someone there’s consequences,” Rice said. “You have to be arrested, but let’s catch them before they start shooting each other.”

He believes overcoming this epidemic will take buy-in everyone in the community. Despite the discouragement, Rice says he will continue working with teens to get them to see things differently — before it’s too late.