Monday, July 4, 2011

A Prayer on Our Nation's Birthday


First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, for kings and all those who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good, and it pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:1-4, HCSB).


King of heaven,
Lord of lords,
Ruler of princes,
Thank You for this land of my earthly pilgrimage;
For the faithful Christians among the founders of our nation;
For the multitudes, from colonial days to the present, who have sought and found freedom here to worship You openly;
For that freedom to gather in Your name without fear of police raids, imprisonment, or execution;
For Your protection of this land and its people.

Even so, despite the rich blessings You have given us, we are a nation of sinners, I myself at the head of the line.
Have mercy on us, for the sake of Christ,
For trusting in human wisdom, riches, and might instead of in You,
For cherishing political independence more than spiritual dependence,
For seeking the expedient more than the obedient,
For the oppression of the few by the many,
For failing to live within the abundant means You have provided.

Have mercy on me, Lord, for my sad neglect of Your command to pray for rulers and all who are in authority.
I am quicker to complain than to intercede; forgive me.
If we lack Daniels in our government because we have not asked, Lord,
I ask You now, for Your name's sake:
Raise up faithful Christian men and women to lead this nation, the nations of the world.
Equip them with courage to make hard choices
And integrity to serve You by serving this land.
Remind Your people, including me,
To ask and ask and ask again.

Thank You, Father, for the encouraging examples of spiritual revival in our history.
Would You do it again in this generation?
Revive me, Lord God,
My family,
My neighborhood,
My city,
My state,
This nation,
Your church among all peoples.

May Your kingdom come,
Your will be done on earth
As it is in heaven,
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.


(Gratitude list #739-744 woven into the prayer)


Sharing with Ann, Jen and their communities today...



11 comments:

  1. What an inspirational prayer. Thank you for sharing. You not only put words to my heart, but you also added needed prayers I'd neglected to even consider. Blessings to you and our nation.

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  2. @Amy You're welcome; I'm glad you found it helpful. Others' prayers enlarge mine, too. God bless you, too.

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  3. "I am quicker to complain than to intercede." Amen.

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  4. "For seeking the expedient more than obedience". I also say "Amen".

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  5. Beautiful prayer which will enrich mine.

    Blessings,
    Pamela

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  6. What a beautiful and inspirational prayer of request, thanksgiving, and praise.

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  7. Yes, Amen! Beautiful!

    Visiting from Jen's place

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  8. Thank you, ladies, for coming by and joining your prayers with mine. God bless you.

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  9. Trying to get my comment to post once again.

    Your prayer is beautiful and so full of truth and heart-felt requests. I, too, am a complainer rather than a prayer. I loved the part about not having "Daniels" in the government. Food for prayer.
    Would love to pray your prayer every day.
    Blessings,
    Janis

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  10. @Janis@Open My Ears Lord Janis, I'm sorry you had trouble with the comment process; if there is something I need to fix or change, please let me know.

    Thank you for persevering! I appreciate hearing your thoughts. You are welcome to use the prayer daily if you wish; thanks be to God for using it to your encouragement. I know I need to pray for our leaders more consistently, too.

    Daniel 9 influenced and informed my thoughts in this area, so you may be better off examining the source.

    God bless you, as well.

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Thank you for sharing your day with me! Your presence here is a gift. *You* are a gift. Right now I am unable to reply to every comment, but please know I read and pray for each and every commenter. Grace and peace to you in Christ.