Author: John Page 24 of 159

II Corinthians 2:18 “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

Colossians 3:2 “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.”

Lamentations 3:21-26 “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.”

II Thessalonians 2:16-17 “Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.”

Titus 2:13-14 “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

Luke 2:10-11 “And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”

Likely, we are all relieved to finally emerge from the 2022 political season. For many, it is a time characterized by concern, anxiety, disappointment, divisiveness, and strife. And, though we are closing the books on the 2022 election, November 2024 is right around the corner and there is already jockeying for a favorable position in those upcoming races. Thus, we are plunged back into the same unsettling emotional cycle that we had hoped would be absent for a period of time. And, we don’t even get to enjoy a brief period of recovery and renewal.

It feels like we need a political cease fire for our own sanity as we grasp for relief from the plenteous sources of despair. But, that perspective neglects the proper Christian view, especially with the Christmas season upon us. Thus, now is the time to recalibrate.

We are to set our affection on things above. We are to look towards the things that are unseen. We are to have abundant hope because His compassions fail not. We are to grasp unto everlasting consolation and good hope through the grace of our Lord and Saviour. We are to fear not, and instead embrace great joy. We are to remember that Jesus is the blessed hope who has redeemed us from all iniquity.

PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR LIVES TO BE FOCUSED ON THE HOPE THAT COMES THROUGH CHRIST ALONE. During this season, may we recall the reason for hope, and allow that truth to permeate our minds, hearts, and spirits throughout the calendar – regardless of whether or not it is an election year.

Matthew 5:13-16 “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

II Chronicles 7:14 “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicket ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

II Timothy 2:2 “And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.”

The PLUS posts of these past several weeks have described the faithful intervention of Pastor Brad Wells and GraceWay Baptist Church (https://gracewaydc.com/) as they have made up the hedge and stood in the gap through weekly prayer at the Supreme Court for nearly seven years. But as you have been following along through these posts, I sincerely hope that it has not just been an exercise in observation. In reality, the intent has been to make it an exercise in replication and multiplication.

All Christians have a responsibility to be salt and light in our spheres of influence and realms of impact. We have been given the recipe for national revival in II Chronicles 7:14, and we need His people to start following it today. Unless you live in Washington DC, you don’t have the prayer venue of the Supreme Court that is available to you weekly. But, each of us has an institution of significance in our own community – a city hall, a county courthouse, a school, or a public library. And, we can meet there with a group of like-minded believers to pray weekly for our nation, our community, and our leaders.

As a result, we are merging the PLUS ministry (which still encourages individual Christians to pray daily for our nation and our leaders) and the Supreme Prayer ministry (which encourages Christians to pray together weekly at an institution of significance for our nation and our leaders). The new tract is shown below or can be found at https://prayatlunch.us/plus-tracts/.

How can someone implement Supreme Prayer?

1. Set a regular time to meet together at an institution of significance in your community.
2. Start your time together with a few songs of the faith.
3. Solicit prayer requests from those who have joined you about our nation, your community, and your church – have someone pray for these as a group.
4. Break up into smaller groups for follow-on prayer.
5. All the while, be sensitive to those who may be watching who could use an invitation to church, an explanation of what is happening, or a presentation of the gospel.

AMERICAN CHRISTIAN, PLEASE IMPLEMENT THE SUPREME PRAYER MODEL WEEKLY IN YOUR COMMUNITY. It is a way for all of us to make up the hedge and stand in the gap. Use this concept as an exercise of replication and multiplication in your own community to help prompt a revival that can spread throughout our land.

Please enjoy the following guest post from Pastor Brad Wells (https://gracewaydc.com/):

Jonah 1:2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.”

Jonah 3:2 “Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.”

He was an unlikely candidate for ministry, but the day I saw Leslee Daniels walking toward me on that dirt road, I felt God say, “This is the guy.” Perhaps it was the dreadlocks, or the disheveled clothing, or the homemade cigarette tucked behind his ear, but he didn’t quite look like a preacher. I asked him to become my sports news announcer at our radio station in Papua New Guinea, and about a year later, Leslee accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior.

Fast forward seven years on March 3, 2013, Preacher Les took the pulpit and began his message, “Arise, go to Ninevah, that great city, and cry against it…”

After weeks of praying and seeking counsel, God’s voice sounded like thunder. The answer was clear—I was to leave my beloved mission field and move to Washington, DC to “cry against” it. As one of the many confirmations of this calling, God had used my “Timothy” in Papua New Guinea to declare it.

But, how does one “cry against” a city? This has been the quest of my life — and the lives of my dear family — for the past eight years. We started with a football in the park. Then a service on the Capitol lawn. I spent many hours walking the streets and witnessing as I was given opportunity. Regular church services began at a local art center in January 2015. Visits to congressional offices, singing and passing out tracts at metro stops, door to door canvassing— we “cried” any way we could think of.

On February 13, 2016 the news of the passing of late Justice Antonin Scalia reached our heavy hearts. One of the most conservative justices on the Supreme Court and a giant of constitutional law, he had bolstered a slim majority. How could we expect to hold any legal and moral ground if another liberal justice was appointed?

It was with this incredible sense of urgency we gathered on the frosty steps of the Supreme Court for the very first “Supreme Prayer” that Saturday night. We repented of the sins of our crumbling nation and begged God for mercy — and the miracle of another conservative justice.

We gathered again on February 20^th; and on the 27th. Before we knew it, we had been praying at the Supreme Court for over six years. Our numbers have grown. God has given us far more than we asked for — three conservative justices!  No greater evidence of their unprecedented significance was the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the victories for religious liberty in 2022.

Weekly prayer at the Supreme Court is another way to “cry against” this great city. Standing between the Capitol and the highest court in the land, we cry to God for mercy.

And, Pastor Les joined us for a Supreme Court Prayer Meeting in 2018. It seemed as if the calling had come full circle, though there is significant work that still needs to be done in prayer for our nation and our leaders.

AMERICAN CHRISTIANS, PLEASE CRY AGAINST YOUR OWN GREAT CITY BY GATHERING WEEKLY FOR PRAYER WITH OTHERS. Arise and cry against it!

Luke 11:1, 8-10 “And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples … I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.  And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Philippians 4:6 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”

Esther 4:14b “and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

The weekend after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision was released this past June, GraceWay Baptist Church (https://gracewaydc.com/) met as they always do to pray for our nation on Saturday evening. While their normal spot was blocked by security fencing and the entire area was abuzz with thousands of protestors, these prayer warriors found a nearby spot to pray. As they did so, there were many who jeered and some who cheered. One assumption was made by most of the crowd – that these people who were praying were there as a result of that week’s Supreme Court decision. Those who asked were surprised by the answer – “not exactly”.

Yes, the members of GraceWay had been praying for the Dobbs decision, and they praised God for the results of the ruling in that case. But they had also been praying for the Carson decision and for the Coach Kennedy decision, and many others that would impact our nation. And, while the temporary crowds would be gone soon, these importune prayer warriors would be there praying next week, and next month, and next year.

They would be praying faithfully for the President, and for the Congress, and for the Supreme Court. They would be praying fervently for our nation and for our leaders. They would be praying with importunity for revival in our land!

The power of consistent faithfulness and importunity was stunning as compared to the fickle crowds that were there on that rowdy evening. On the cold, dark winter Saturday nights that would follow when the calendar changed from summer to fall to winter, members of GraceWay would still be praying when no one was around. It wasn’t about the crowds, nor the weather, nor the exact circumstances. It was about faithfulness and importunity that God would work a miracle in our land that would bring about widespread revival.

AMERICAN CHRISTIANS, PLEASE PRAY WITH IMPORTUNITY FOR REVIVAL IN OUR LAND. God promises us that we shall see results as a result of doing so.

Ephesians 6:12-18 “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Standing therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints”

Luke 14:23 “And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.”

I recently came across a powerful older Christian song by Steve Camp entitled “Run to the Battle” that provides a stark reminder about the potency of GraceWay Baptist Church’s weekly prayer at the Supreme Court (https://gracewaydc.com/). The song starts with the following lines:

“Some people want to live
Within the sound of chapel bells
But I want to run a mission
A yard from the gates of hell”

Unfortunately, Christians can cling to the complacent comfort within the confines of our cloistered churches. But, the mission field is outside the walls of our chapels and churches, and God has called us out to bring people in. As the battle rages, God is calling Christians out onto the front lines. The Supreme Court, and institutions at every level across our nation, are the front lines. It isn’t about militancy, but it is about faithfully following God’s calling for us to saturate such mission fields with His presence, His love, and His truth. On a week like this, it is also a call for us to fulfill our citizenship responsibility by praying for the midterm elections, voting, and voting based on Biblical values.

Of course, we can’t do so alone, and God has armed us with His protection and provision. And, it is important to remember that the armor is made for us to advance towards the battle and not retreat from the battle. In fact, we may not be protected if we do the latter instead of the former. The song continues:

“Do you have your armor on?
We’re in the middle of a raging war
We’ve been training for so long
Have we learned to use His sword?
We may not be many
But we serve a mighty Lord
And He’s made us more than conquerors
So what are you waiting for?

Let’s run to the battle
We got to run, run to the battle”

PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD ENGAGE WITH SOCIETY ON THE FRONT LINES WHERE GOD HAS CALLED US TO REPRESENT HIM IN THE NEEDY MISSION FIELDS OF OUR LAND. At the Supreme Court, at the polling places as we cast our votes this week, and elsewhere, may we run to the battle!