Author: John Page 140 of 166

I John 3:13 “Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.”

Please indulge me in a short thought experiment.  Consider if the following were published by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness in 2014:

“The Department of Defense joins the nation in celebrating Christian Pride Month during the month of June.

We recognize Christian service members and Christian civilians for their dedicated service to our country; the heroic contributions made by these Americans strengthen our national security.  Whether officer, enlisted, civilian employee, or family member, their inclusion gives our Department greater promise and possibility.

The Christian community has written a proud chapter in this fundamentally American story by reminding us that integrity and respect remain corner stones of our military and civilian culture.  During the month of June, let’s rededicate ourselves to equity, dignity, and respect for all, and celebrate the diversity of the DoD workforce.”

All of the above regarding the impact of Christians on our nation is true, more true than for any other population group.  American Bible-believing Christians have a lot to be proud of in this land.  We have served our country with dedication.  We have heroically contributed to our national security.  Christians have established a nation founded upon integrity, respect, equity, dignity, and respect for all.

Of course, in 2014, no such official letter exists exalting Christians for their contributions.  In fact, replace the word “Christian” above with “LGBT” and you will find a letter that was actually signed on May 13^th, 2014 and distributed on Under Secretary of Defense letterhead.

Regardless of how the popular culture views American Christians in 2014, its hatred should not deter us in our Christian citizenship responsibilities.  After all, Christian Americans and the message of Christ have given our nation promise and possibility throughout our history.  True promise and possibility for our nation in the future comes from the same.

PLEASE PRAY FOR A FUTURE OF AMERICAN PROMISE AND POSSIBILITY THAT STEMS FROM CHRIST HIMSELF.  After all, he is the only source of true promise and possibility.

Psalm 142:1-2 “I cried unto the Lord with my voice; with my voice unto the Lord did I make my supplication.  I poured out my complaint before him; I shewed before him my trouble.”

Though I did not originally intend to make a PLUS post today, I cannot let the 70^th anniversary of D-Day pass by without a thought.

General Eisenhower made the decision to launch the invasion of mainland Europe on June 5^th, 1944 after carefully consulting with his advisors and subordinate commanders.  Once he made this monumental decision, he did two noteworthy things.

First, he penned a note that perfectly models the duty of a leader to hold themselves accountable for failures within their organization, something lacking among today’s leaders.  He wrote the following in the case of a failed invasion, fortunately a thought relegated to an historical footnote:

“Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops.  My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available.  The troops, the air and the Navy did all that Bravery and devotion to duty could do.  If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone.”

Second, as the calendar flipped from the 5^th to the 6^th of June and he restlessly spent the long night awaiting word of the invasion’s outcome, he felt compelled to pray.  In fact, he wrote that “there was nothing we could do but pray, desperately.”

Christians in this land today must do the same.  We must pray, not just casually but desperately.  PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD PRAY DESPERATELY FOR OUR NATION.  We are engaged in a war between fundamentally opposed ideologies, and we cannot win without doing so.

Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

Battles are most easily won when an opponent surrenders willingly.  In fact, national strategies are often designed around creating the perception of overwhelming force so that an enemy capitulates before the battle even begins because they believe that a negative outcome is a foregone conclusion.  Deterrence theory is founded on these concepts, importantly relying upon actual or illusory capability, will, and credibility.  Even the less powerful can succeed through such a strategy if applied properly.

Our adversary is using a similar strategy in America.  Anti-Christian forces are pressing their current advantage in our land today through threats against those who stand for Christ.  Though they are no match of the ‘power of God unto salvation,’ they chip away at our will by planting the seeds of shame about our counter-cultural beliefs.  Once we become too ashamed of the gospel of Christ to continue our stand, they claim victory and move on to the next battle.  In many cases, we surrender without a fight because we are falsely convinced of their superior capability by their will and credibility.  We willingly capitulate, though the power of God is on our side.

PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD BE PROUD AND NOT ASHAMED OF CHRIST AND CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES.  Our lives have been transformed by the power of God at the moment of salvation, and we should never be convinced that our adversary is more powerful than that.  The only way we will lose is if we fail to fight.

Matthew 6:33 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

There are plenty in the media who would have the onlooker to believe that faithfulness is at odds with prosperity.  One is led to believe that there is a natural price to pay for those who stand for Christ and Christian principles, that even the most casual affiliation with conservative beliefs is detrimental to success.  The forced resignation of Brendan Eich is the most recent and public example of this line of thinking.  Yet, it is not always the case that the faithful will pay a worldly price for their stand on the side of Christ.  Consider the following article that outlines the story of Chick-Fil-A:

http://media.focusonthefamily.com/fotf/pdf/channels/social-issues/pp23-25-june-july-cz-cfa-1yrlater.pdf

Not only does this fast food chain have the audacity to close on Sundays, the most profitable day of the week in the industry, but it also has a CEO that clings to a Biblical view of the family.  The results speak for themselves.  This company does not just thrive in spite of its alignment with Christian principles, but thrives because of its alignment with Christian principles.

Don’t be swayed by the world’s arguments that you must compromise to succeed.  You don’t, and Chick-Fil-A is but one example that proves this important point.  PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD NOT FEEL COMPELLED TO COMPROMISE.  We shouldn’t just seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness; we must seek it first.  The results are left up to God.

Acts 6:7 “And the word of God increased; and the number of disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.”

Acts 12:24 “But the word of God grew and multiplied.”

It is fascinating to watch the explosive growth of the early church as the book of Acts progresses.  It grew steadily in early Acts, and then grew rapidly in latter Acts.  The phrase that was most often used to describe church growth was originally ‘added to’ (Acts 2:41, 47; 5:14; 11:24) and then it shifted to ‘multiplied’ (Acts 6:1, 7; 7:17; 9:31; 12:24). Growth went from additive to multiplicative.  It went from steady acceleration to full throttle acceleration.  It went from a slow Sunday drive to the Daytona 500.

Undoubtedly, the disciple’s prayer and supplication with one accord (see the previous post) played a substantial role in the growth shifting from low gear to high gear.  They were able to make an increasing impact because they pointed their prayers in the same direction.  They were able to have an enhanced influence because their supplication was unified in its purpose.

PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD HAVE A MULTIPLIED IMPACT ON OUR NATION’S CULTURE.  With a chance to have a multiplicative impact through prayer and supplication with one accord, why would we settle on an additive impact instead?