September 13, 2014 A Reason to Pray for our Nation Today marks two days after the anniversary of 9/11, if you remember just 13 years ago, you’ll remember we were called to prayer for our nation. What will it take to cause us to pray and truly seek God’s help? If we experience a crises in our lives or a problem we can’t handle that’s when most of us cry out to God. It’s been said, “there are no atheist in foxholes.” It seems when we’re afraid or going through a severe trial we pray and our prayer is much more fervent. It is when we come to a place of knowing we have no solution or answer in ourselves that we pray. On September 11, 2001 our nation fell to its knees and there was an increased interest in prayer. Our president called our nation to a national day of prayer and we saw people from many religious backgrounds come out to pray. We’ve forgotten in this country who is really able to intercede or to get a hold of God and be heard. Muslims, Buddhist, Christians and all people from all sorts of pagan religions gathered to pray. In Chapter 6 of 2 Chronicles Solomon had asked God to make provisions for them when they sinned. So, we note that God prefaced His answer with some of the reasons that might drive people to their knees and cause them to pray and seek the face of God. What will it take to cause you to pray or us as a nation to pray and cry out to God? What will we have to go through and experience before we will wake up and begin to pray? We notice that 2 Chronicles 7:13 begins by saying, if there is a Drought in the Land, surely people will pray. “If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, …” God said, if you experience a drought surely you will pray. After Solomon’s reign as king, Israel did experienced a drought under king Ahab. Ahab married Jezebel and introduced the people to the pagan worship of Baal. Naboth, a Jewish man who owned a vineyard outside the palace was killed and his vineyard was stolen. God then used the prophet Elijah to announce to the king that it would not rain for 3 1/2 years. After 3 1/2 years, king Ahab sought the man of God to pray and to ask God to remove the curse, so it might rain. Before it could rain, they had to deal with their sin as a nation of idolatry. It led to a showdown between the God of Elijah and Baal the pagan god the people worshipped. When God sends a drought in the land, and the it threatens our existence, we’re glad to pray. Men who had no time for God and no time to pray are suddenly moved to pray. When we lived in West Texas, where the annual rainfall is 12-15 inches we saw this among the farmers and people. When it didn’t rain and vegetation began to die, they called a prayer meeting because they were desperate and their lives and livelihood was threatened. My friend, realize it or not, there is a drought in our land not just of rain, but in God moving. There’s been a great departure from the church. As people no longer go to Bible Study (Sunday School) and 1/2 to 3/4 never darken the door of the church. As a nation we’re so steeped in religion and tradition and live as if we have no relationship with God. Someone said, “Now days people only go to church on THREE occasions: when they’re hatched, matched, and dispatched.” That is when they are born, we throw water on them; when they are married, we throw rice on them; and when they die, we throw dirt on them. God wants to awaken the sleeping church to the drought that’s in our land spiritually, so we’ll pray. May we see the drought that is in our land and be moved to return to God’s house to Study His Word, Seek His Face and may He reclaim His own as we make fresh commitments to Him. If there’s a Drought in the land surely people will pray, but have we?
Posted on: Sat, 13 Sep 2014 12:19:35 +0000
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