Pray For Our Nation

The Bible explicitly teaches us to pray for our leaders ..... and as Paul taught, prayer should be "without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Prayer isn't something we as Christians should "restort" to in need, in hard times, it's a constant part of our intimate relationship with the Lord. 

We must remember as Christians that the Bible tells us that all authority is put in power by God (Romans 13:1-8), AND that we are to pray for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1-2) - kings, presidents, governors, etc. 


God's word also teaches us that He uses kings/governments as instruments to punish His children. He did it to Israel & Judah. In fact, I was surprised to read in Isaiah 45:1 God Himself referring to King Cyrus of Persian (a pagan king who took Judah into Babylonian captivity) as God's "anointed", meaning he was doing God's work by punishing His people. The original word in the Hebrew is Strong's H4899

מָשִׁיחַ

mâshı̂yach

maw-shee'-akh

From H4886; anointed; usually a consecrated person (as a king, priest, or saint); specifically theMessiah: - anointed, Messiah.

If that doesn't surprise you, it should!


God never leaves us wondering, He tells us exactly why He did it.............. "I am the LORD, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God I will gird you, though you have not known Me; That men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun That there is no one besides Me.I am the LORD, and there is no other"

Stand Silently, Praise Loudly

One of the greatest comforts of our Christian life is knowing that the battle is not ours. There are SO many passages which point to this, one of my favorites is 2 Chronicles 20: 15-19:

"thus says the LORD to you, 'Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God's......'You need not fight in this battle; station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.' Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out to face them, for the LORD is with you.....The Levites, from the sons of the Kohathites and of the sons of the Korahites, stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel, with a very loud voice. "

There are many passages which say the same thing or illustrate it with Israel and in the New Testament with Christians. Too many to number, but here are some:

• Exodus 14:14 "The LORD will fight for you while you keep silent."
• Deuteronomy 1:30 "The LORD your God who goes before you will Himself fight on your behalf, just as He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, "
• Haggai 2:5 "As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, My Spirit is abiding in your midst; do not fear!' "
• Proverbs 21:31 "The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But victory belongs to the LORD. "

These are not mere sayings, there are numerous examples of the few of God through an angel or His people, defeating the multitude of the enemy. Such as the angel of the Lord killing 185,000 in one night (2 Kings 19:35 / Isaiah 37:36)......100,000 killed by 7,232 in (1 Kings 20:29).......etc.

The fact that there is Spiritual warfare which is unseen to us is well documented in the Bible. What is amazing is that many people who don't want to believe the Bible, DO believe in the supernatural....as long as it doesn't ask them to obey and believe!

The Old Testament story of Balaam and his donkey is very interesting, starting at Numbers 22:22 the donkey sees an angel which the man does not and refuses to pass. Balaam gets mad at his animal and starts to strike him, at which point the angel appears to Balaam and explains that the donkey's actions saved Balaam's life!

No matter what, we must always remember to wait silently for God to act on our behalf, and when it's all over, praise LOUDLY, no matter what the outcome! I praise Him for everything! He is awesome!

Memory Verse: Isaiah 35:4

Isa. 35:4
Say to those with anxious heart, "Take courage, fear not Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you."

In context this passage speaks of the Millennium, but it reminds us not to worry, a Christian has access to all the power of the host of angels in heaven. So when I find myself in a worrisome situation I concentrate on the power that is within me and I say "bring it on!" ;o)