Author: John Page 137 of 166

James 4:17 “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”

It seems like a cliché, in a series that gives rationale for doing something as good as praying for our leaders, to remind us all of God’s perspective if we fail to do so.  Yet, it is important to remember that the only alternative to obedience is disobedience.

God’s command to pray for all in authority is good.  The results of doing so that include living quiet and peaceable lives is good.  The contingent promises of II Chronicles 7:14 are good.  Seeing all men saved is good.  Having leaders come to the knowledge of the truth is good.

We know the good, and the choice is ours whether to obey or to disobey.

Excuses abound for not praying for our nation and its leaders.  They are as simple as a dislike of population groups as Jonah had for the Ninevites.  They are as insidious as a lack of trust that this nation will ever return to the Lord, at best a lack of faith in God’s people to follow the precursors of the contingent promises in II Chronicles 7:14 and at worst a lack of faith in God Himself.  They are as plain as a disrespect for a particular leader.  They are as insidious as a belief that God has no plan for widespread revival in America, at best a worthless personal theory and at worst a presumptuous prophesy.  They are as straightforward as basic pessimism.  They are as insidious as a deeply rooted negativity, at best an infectious force to those around us and at worst a self-fulfilling deterrence to prayer.  Regardless of the excuse, God sees it as sin.

PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD TAKE SERIOUSLY GOD’S COMMANDS TO PRAY FOR OUR NATION AND ITS LEADERS.  We must not fool ourselves into thinking that the alternative is anything other than sin.

I Timothy 2:1-4 “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.  For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.”

Thus far during my PLUS posts, I haven’t specifically written about the need for American Christians to pray for our leaders.  I haven’t neglected the subject for any particular reason, and from the outset of the PLUS ministry have included those in authority as a regular part of my prayers for our nation.  Yet, in the midst of my transfer to a military position in Washington DC I am increasingly mindful of the need to do so.

The next several posts will include several reasons, with interspersed historical examples, why we must pray for our leaders.  In reality, one does not need to go beyond I Timothy 2.  In these few verses, the Lord highlights the need to pray for leaders as an important part of our responsibility to pray for all men.  Doing so is “good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour.”  While the posts in the weeks to follow will amplify the importance of doing so, this reason should be good enough for all of us.

PLEASE PRAY FOR ALL IN AUTHORITY, STARTING WITH THOSE HOLDING THE HIGHEST POSITIONS IN THIS LAND.  God would have “all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.”  God’s truth in the hearts of leaders throughout our nation is exactly what this land needs to correct from its errant course.

II Timothy 4:7 “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”

Strategy is often defined as creating coherence between ends, ways, and means.  The eccentric strategist Dr. Everett Dolman defines it in a more creative way — “a plan for continuing advantage.”  As he explains the nuance involved in such a definition he points out that the ends in one phase of a strategy are simply the initial conditions of the next phase of a strategy.  Such a perspective is a reminder that strategy is a long continuum, and excessive focus on intermediate ends may hinder advantage in the long term; it is the long term that really matters.

As I hand over command of my current organization tomorrow morning, I am mindful that Dr. Dolman’s unique definition of strategy has important applicability to selfless Christian leadership.  The organizational environment at end of my tenure as commander is simply the initial condition of the next commander’s tenure.  As a leader, I would be a failure if an excessive focus on short-term accomplishments hindered the long-term success of that organization beyond my tenure.  A truly successful leader will have established conditions within an organization that fosters a continuing advantage after that individual moves on, truly only possible if the equipping, encouraging, correcting, compelling and challenging of people within the organization is the leader’s prevailing focus.  Such a leadership style will cause an organization to succeed in the short term, but more importantly will cause it to thrive in the long term as it continues on its course.

This definition of strategy can also help inform Christians as we live our lives and contribute to our ministries.  Our perspective should be on the eternal, and our contributions are to span the entirety of our remaining lives.  An excessive focus on anything short of finishing our individual course while keeping the faith may actually hinder us in fulfilling God’s plan.  We are to invest our lives in such a way that we provide the gospel a continuing advantage in this land.

PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD KEEP OUR GAZE ON THE LONG TERM PERSPECTIVE OF OUR LIVES.  Even as we pass on from this life, our testimonies form the initial conditions for the next generation of Christians.  May we give them the proper springboard to foster a continuing advantage for Christ.

Romans 15:30 “Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ’s sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.”

Colossians 1:9 “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding”

On July 20^th, 1969, Neil Armstrong successfully piloted the Lunar Module to the moon’s surface.  It was a nerve-racking experience, fraught with uncertainty and danger, and demanding steady hands and wise decisions.  Neil Armstrong performed brilliantly in spite of inner turmoil that plagued him during the moments of the lunar landing.

In spite of his steel-nerved reputation as a man with a successful background as a test pilot and a combat veteran, Neil’s heart rate of 150 beats per minute during the lunar descent betrayed his outward calm.  Though he handled these stressors with aplomb, it wasn’t easy to shoulder the burden of crew survival and mission success with literally the whole world watching.

Christians around us face difficulties every day.  Regardless of their outward appearance, we are not always privy to their inward challenges.  It makes it all the more important that we follow the Biblical model and pray for them as we strive together.  In order to successfully serve Christ in this land, Christians all around us need to be “filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.”  We should pray for such a filling.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS ALL AROUND YOU.  Instead of judging them, we should pray for them.  Instead of assuming that their outward calm is an indication of inward order, we should pray for them.  Instead of trusting their wisdom and understanding, we should pray for God-given wisdom and understanding to pervade their lives.  We should do so “for the Lord Jesus Christ’s sake, and for the love of the Spirit.”  We should do so by praying for one another.

Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”

As humankind watched the liftoff of Apollo 11 on July 16^th, 1969 they were mindful of the previous Apollo missions that had paved the way for this event through their own amazing accomplishments.  Apollo 8, the mission that closed out 1968, provided its own noteworthy firsts.  On that mission, astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders became the first humans to travel beyond low earth orbit and the first to orbit the moon.  They were humbled to be the first members of mankind to see the earth in its entirety.

As they orbited the moon on Christmas Eve 1968, they participated in the most watched television broadcast at that point in history.  During that transmission they said the following: “We are now approaching lunar sunrise, and for all the people back on Earth, the crew of Apollo 8 has a message we would like to send to you.”  They then went on to read Genesis 1:1-10 out of the King James Bible.

Those three astronauts, with a vantage point unmatched at that point in human history, turned to the One whose vantage point is truly unmatched.  From a perspective unrivaled by previous humankind, they turned to the One whose perspective is ultimately unrivaled.  From a viewpoint that was breathtaking, they turned to the One who gave us breath.  From a point of view that marveled at the entirety of earthly creation, they turned to the Creator of the heaven and the earth.

From our perch on this planet we may not have the perspective of the Apollo 8 astronauts, but we still have access to the One whose perspective is ultimately unrivaled.  PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD TURN TO THE CREATOR OF THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH FOR TRUE PERSPECTIVE.  We need it to guide our lives so that we can properly send His message to all of humankind.