Prayer Pal

1 Kings 15:3 Abijah committed all the sins his father had done before him; his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his forefather had been.  2 Chronicles 13:14, 18 Judah turned and saw that they were being attacked at both front and rear. Then they cried out to the Lord. The Israelites were subdued on that occasion, and the people of Judah were victorious because they relied on the Lord, the God of their ancestors.

Faithful God of our forefather David, Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your dominion endures through all generations. You are trustworthy in all Your promises and faithful in all You do. Compassionate and gracious, I'm thankful that You are slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. Who is like You, Lord God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty, and Your faithfulness surrounds You.  Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; love and faithfulness go before You. Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim You, who walk in the light of Your presence, Lord.    Help, O Lord, for godly leaders are fast disappearing!  Leaders who are loyal to You have vanished from the earth! O, gracious God, may our leaders not be like Abijah who flattered You with lip service when his heart was full of deceit. Turn their stubborn, strong-willed, and seditious hearts toward You so that they will be men of integrity like David. May they be people who will willingly live by Your standards, sincerely honor You, and promptly restore religion to our land. Teach them to acclaim You, and to walk in the light of Your presence, Lord, so that bountiful blessings from heaven will fall on our beloved land. LORD, just as You gave Abijah the liar victory when his people cried out to You in order to preserve the promise You made to King David, be merciful to us as we cry out to You for our nation. We are being attacked from the front by fearless and faithless politicians and from the rear by ritualistic and relevant religion. In Your love and faithfulness protect the church that bears Your name, and forever keep the country that was founded on Your principles. Amen.

Many of our leaders, political and religious, sound regal, like true men of God, but they are no more than resounding gongs. They cry, "God bless America" only when a crisis occurs, but their hearts are far from God. Pray that their hearts would turn toward God, and that God would be merciful, as He was to Abijah, and not destroy the land we love.