The United States of America is a nation conceived by and birthed through prayer. From the first colony of Pilgrims led by William Bradford that settled in Plymouth, MA to our first President, George Washington, who risked his life to secure the freedom we enjoy today, prayer was regarded as an indispensable part of daily life. Universally understood by countless generations of Americans has been the belief that any chance of prosperity and any hope in preserving the American way of life for our families, communities, and government, depends on our continual dependence upon God for His divine providence and protection.
So evident is this belief that the words “In God we Trust” are stamped on our currency, “One nation under God” is echoed in our Pledge of Allegiance, and “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights” is enshrined in our Declaration of Independence from which our American liberty has been proclaimed.
The Decline of Prayer in a Nation in Crisis
Inherent in acknowledging God’s involvement in the affairs of our nation is the necessity to petition His favor through prayer for the provision of our needs, wisdom for our leaders, and security of our people. While this may be obvious to many American Christians who steadfastly uphold our homeland in prayer, a recent Pew Research Study has shown that prayer has steadily declined over the last several years with “fewer than half of Americans (44%) who say they pray each day.” This heartbreaking statistic is troubling when considering the growing, increasingly complex challenges and issues threatening to unravel the fabric of our society.
For decades, America has taken comfort in being a paragon of military strength and a vanguard for technological innovation, fostering a sense of security and stability that many have taken for granted. Americans have taken pride in the collective self-sufficiency of our leaders, our servicemen and servicewomen, and our state-of-the-art weaponry to defend the interests of the United States against internal threats and those from abroad.
At the same time, the predominant Judeo-Christian worldview that once underpinned the foundational beliefs of our society has steadily declined, resulting in an erosion of Biblical values and morals, growing hostility towards Christ-centered standards, principles, and wisdom, and an abandonment of prayer. The result is evident in perversion in classrooms, chaos in the streets, lawlessness in government, and the tearing apart of nuclear families—all of which testify to the degradation of our society.
Looking forward, the question we must ask ourselves is, how will we as Christians respond to factors threatening to unravel this great nation in which we live? When faced with external dangers such as hostile foreign entities, cyber warfare, nanotechnology, bioengineered diseases, and terrorism, or when confronted with internal perils such as inflation, racial division, socialism, and political corruption, will we be content to rely upon our own intellectual prowess and military fortitude to protect our people, to retain societal stability, or even bring cultural, and dare I say spiritual, reform?
If history is any sort of teacher, it demonstrates that this is nothing short of a misplaced sense of security and a false hope. Time and again, nations have fallen, and cultures have collapsed due to trusting in their own self-reliance.
Rediscovering Our Spiritual Weapon
The time has come for America to return to the Christian heritage of our forefathers and utilize a weapon so often neglected. It’s time for prayer to be restored as a regular component of the daily lives of Americans. I’m thankful for the wisdom of President Harry S. Truman and the US Congress who established a National Day of Prayer in 1952, recognizing the importance and necessity for prayer to be incorporated into the fabric of our nation.
It’s wonderful that the citizens of our country are reminded once a year to fight on their knees through prayer on behalf of our homeland. Yet praying once a year simply isn’t enough if we want to see America continue being a beacon of light, hope, and freedom among the nations of the world. We as American Christians need to seek God’s face in prayer daily to guide our leaders, protect our families, and uphold the godly values that have made this remarkable nation unlike any other in history. Every day ought to be a National Day of Prayer!
By now you’re probably wondering why I am referring to prayer as a weapon. Isn’t prayer more of a request for provision, a plea for help, an expression of gratitude, a gesture of faith, or a declaration of worship to God? Yes, absolutely! Prayer is every one of these things. In addition to these, prayer is a tool granted by God to believers for obtaining His protection as well as for assaulting the kingdom of darkness. It’s an instrument given to His followers to both confront and defend against evil.
In other words, prayer may be appropriately viewed as a weapon. As followers of Jesus engaged in a great spiritual battle (Ep. 6:12), I am reminded and encouraged by Paul’s words to the Corinthian believers, that “the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God” (2 Co. 10:4-5). Such weapons undoubtedly include prayer!
Tactically speaking, when you think about any type of weaponry, it’s important to recognize that a weapon may be used for either offensive or defensive purposes, or both. We see this in Scripture when David used a sling and a stone to offensively attack the giant, Goliath, who defied the God of Israel (1 Sa. 17:45-50). We also see this in Nehemiah when the people who rebuilt the wall of Jerusalem did construction with one hand while simultaneously carrying swords in their other hand, ready to defend themselves against potential attacks from their enemies (Neh. 4:17).
The same principles are true with prayer. As we pray, we can come before the Lord with an offensive mindset, appealing to Him to proactively destroy evil agendas, ideologies, behaviors, and works which seem to manifest themselves with increasing frequency, threatening the stability of our country and culture.
It is suitable and beneficial for Christians to pray that God would prevent or eradicate initiatives, laws, or causes that are contrary to His will, His character, and His Word. It’s fitting that believers would ask God to change the hearts of our fellow countrymen and those hostile toward godly values and morals. Jesus Himself instructed His followers to love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them (Mt. 5:44).
Equally applicable is coming to God in prayer with a defensive mindset, seeking His protection from dangers and threats having the potential to bring disruption, division, or destruction. As the flow of illegal drugs into our country persists, as homicide of the preborn is celebrated, as sexual perversion proliferates, as atheism, spiritualism, and demonic doctrines embed themselves into entertainment, education, commerce, and politics, the need for God to shield America with His protective hand from internal and external dangers is woefully apparent. Our need for God to fight on our behalf to retain, restore, and defend the Biblical roots of our nation is greater than ever!
The Power of Prayer Cannot Be Neglected
As Christians, it isn’t enough to simply rely on political, military, or academic leaders to solve our nation’s problems or protect our freedoms. We need to recognize that the most powerful weapon at our disposal is the one faithfully proven to be effective time and again throughout the pages of Scripture.
When Moses cried out to God in prayer, the Red Sea was parted to save the Israelites from destruction (Ex. 14:15). When Elijah prayed, the heresy of religious leaders who corrupted God’s people was laid bare through God’s consuming fire from heaven (1 Ki. 18:38-40). When Daniel prayed, revelation was given from God to declare and interpret King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, leading the world’s most powerful leader at the time to acknowledge God’s supremacy (Da. 2:26-47). And when Jesus prayed, it strengthened Him to endure what no other man could, enabling Him to obtain salvation for humanity through His death, burial, and resurrection (Lu. 22:41-44).
Clearly, in each of these instances, the might and power of prayer was shown to obtain deliverance, counter false ideologies, change the mindset of powerful leaders, and provide strength needed to overcome sin and evil. What a mighty weapon indeed!
Commit to Pray for America Today
If heroes of the faith like these understood and valued the importance of prayer, we too as followers of Christ should do no less. We cannot afford not to pray! I am reminded of the words written by the Apostle James, “The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much” (Ja. 5:16b).
Would you join me and commit to praying for America? Starting today, will you partner with me in praying daily for our families, our communities, our churches, our culture, and our leaders? Let’s join together and make every day a National Day of Prayer where we Christians in America collectively seek God to defend the interests of our fellow countrymen and turn the heart of our nation back to Jesus!
Let’s not neglect one of the mightiest weapons in our arsenal but rather deploy it as we stand in opposition against the schemes of the devil! As we fight together on our knees, we may just be surprised to see how powerfully God will move in our nation. Let’s pray!
Mark Henry is an author, speaker, and the Lead Pastor of Revive Church in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, and a Contributor to Harbinger’s Daily.
DAILY DEVOTIONS, NEWS AND INFORMATION 