V-MAIL TO THE FRONTLINE

PART 43

PRAYER IV: STANDING IN THE CROSSROAD

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land”. (II Chronicles 7:14) Father, please help us see our need to pray. Give us a strong desire to pray. Give us the strength and determination to overcome our flesh and emotions. Give us Agape love for everyone – that we might have a burden to pray. May we have the revelation that life and death is in the power of the tongue. Forgive us for our murmuring and critical attitude. Forgive us for spending more time lashing out in resentment than praying to you. We ask that you draw our leaders to you through your Holy Spirit. May they be convicted to seek your face, repent of their sin and have a hunger for your Word. Give them your divine wisdom and the reverential fear of your presence. For thine is the Kingdom, and the power and the glory forever, in Jesus Name, amen.

What happened to America? This is a question in past tense because we are presently standing at a crossroad. In one sense we are looking back at the devastating destruction of our morals and Christian standards. The enemy has been very subtle with his strategy of slowly desensitizing the conscience. At the same time we are also realizing that our future will suffer because of the consequences from our past. The first word of this verse carries the weight of heaven and earth! “IF” is at the center of all spiritual principals and conditions and will decide every destiny. Selah. As Eve was not aware of the danger from the serpent, the masses also believe they can play with black widow spiders and not be bitten. I am sad that we have come to this point but I am filled with joy and hope that we are seeing how fervent prayer can still make a positive, eternal difference!

Generally speaking, I believe this country began with good intentions. I am convinced there were good people that loved God and desired a land where they could worship Him and to establish a society that could live according to the Bible. I am not saying that everyone was pure in heart, neither am I persuaded that all things were done according to the leading of the Holy Spirit, but I believe most of them prayed – and with that, I believe God heard their prayers and moved on their behalf. Followers of Christ like the pilgrims, puritans and founders of our constitution had spiritual vision and passion and at the core of faith you will always find courage and determination. Their spirit and God’s Spirit was willing but their flesh was weak – just like ours and the Lord accepted them when they repented and judged them when they sinned – just like us! I am sure they rejoiced in their victories and wept in their defeats but the Lord is merciful and compassionate toward those who fear Him and love Him. Unfortunately as the people multiplied, so did the idolatry and rebellion against His Holy righteousness and as praying was replaced with carnal politics we began the devastating descent into humanism.

The potential has always been there for God’s people to lead the world to Jesus, but as the humility and desperation to seek God’s face weakened – so did the reverential fear of the Fathers demands and requirements. The commitment to walk in His divine reality of holiness grew lukewarm and the refusal to repent and surrender our will to the obedience of God’s perfect will became passive. Little by little, one compromise leads to another and before you know it there is full blown disobedience and blatant sin. When the gates are open, the horses run freely and only God can bring chaos back into order. It only takes one generation that ceases to uphold the standards of purity and holiness, to lose the awareness and sensitivity of God’s presence. Children that were raised in Godly homes grew up to have their own families and decided NOT to pass on to their children what they were taught as absolute truth. The strong convictions of theological doctrines and strict principals of sanctification were weakened with worldly pleasures and the love for materialism. When pride causes praying to cease, every life in that network is directly affected. Many times we do not realize the full impact of our prayers or the lack of them. Selah.

Did the education system produce the dangers found in the parable of the sower and the seed? Did the birds of humanistic relativism and tolerance devour the Words of God that had been sown in the hearts of the children? How much poisonous influence did the unlimited flood of entertainment have on the developing minds of our youth? Were the strong convictions for God’s absolute truth weakened with worldly philosophy and the drive for success? Did the parents work so many hours trying to make more money that God’s Word was replaced with the frantic lifestyle associated with bigger and better “stuff”? How many parents neglected to lay hands on their children and anoint them with oil to protect them against the strategy of this world to sear their conscience? Did the aggressive criticism against being dogmatic about Jesus and the Bible cause the feeble to buckle with peer pressure and abandon their cross? How did the church react to this obvious satanic attack on the family? The church was only as strong as the Mothers and Fathers courageous commitment to follow God. Selah.

Do not misunderstand my world views concerning the role of America and the importance of Christians as God’s chosen people to lead the world to Christ. The nationality of a person has nothing to do with the spiritual identity of an individual, the same as the name of a denomination does not determine someone’s relationship with God. There are Christians that are Americans but not all Americans are Christians! The United States government is not the representation of God’s Kingdom but rather only the saints of God “within” the nation, and this principal applies to all countries and all Christians. I believe this nation has experienced the blessings of God and that He gave us an opportunity to be governed by His Word but, like Israel we have drifted away and turned to other idols. Actually Israel should be leading the world to Christ but for now we are to stand in the gap and pray for them until their eyes are opened.

There is a bad freedom and a good freedom. The carnal freedom that allows us to choose and make decisions on our own is what the flesh lives for. This type of liberty fights for the right to overindulge in the pleasures of the imagination, while Spiritual freedom praises God for the honor and privilege to serve Him without resistance. If Christians would be the light and salt that God has called them to be, and begin to pray and walk in the awareness of His presence, we could not only feed the world but also minister to their soul. But instead it has made the choice to be the aggressive enforcer of undisciplined freedom which has spoiled and desensitized the conscience of the masses – and for this we will be judged. The philosophy of freedom was misinterpreted and twisted into a carnal advantage to express the sin of rebellion. Lucifer is the father of strife and the master of chaos and as the spiritual leaders of God’s church became lethargic in the discipline of prayer, they slowly allowed compromise to deteriorate spiritual purity. The church was criticized for being too strict and was accused of being condemning but; there is a huge difference between delivering a Word of conviction and a word of condemnation. As the sermons became more watered down so did the convicting power of God’s Word and the Holy Spirit had nothing to work with. In this attitude of spiritual leniency, the medicine becomes too weak to heal anyone. As the flesh grows stronger and more aggressive, the reverential fear of God is reduced from a roaring fire – to a smoldering ember. This fear of being dogmatic to God’s Word, along with the strong sensual influence of our society is slowly cutting the spiritual lifelines of humility, tenderness, hope, love, trust and faith. The fire comes from God’s Word and we must not lose our zeal to stand strong for His truth without fear of criticism, rejection and persecution.

Can you see how much there is to pray for and what is at stake everyday? How many people all around us need us to intercede for them? Father is trying to communicate and get our attention but are we so desensitized and perplexed with the shaking of this world that we are not hearing His still small voice? Can you and I make a difference between someone receiving Christ and them living in darkness? Can the Lord encourage others through our prayers? Can our prayers help generate resources for God’s Kingdom? If we stand in the gap for those who are sick, and agree with them in their faith, could Father actually bless them with healing and deliverance? I hope we never come to the point where we try to rationalize what we believe. With prayer there is not luck or coincidence! We are not to live by the seat of our pants but to comprehend that our prayers are actually giving us divine favor. We should not panic when situations arise because we should instantly know that prayer can change any crisis! There is no disease so devastating that we cannot be healed. There is no financial problem that is hopeless because God owns everything and the hearts of all the doorkeepers are in His hand. When Sarah was old she was given a prophecy that she would have a child, she laughed, but the lord asked in Genesis 18:14, “Is there anything too difficult for me”? And in Mathew we hear Jesus saying, “But Jesus beheld them and said unto them, with men this is impossible; but with God ALL things are possible”. (Mathew 19:26) He was saying that men always try to find a way to “fix” their own problems but it does not matter how many degrees we have or how much money we have, human strength cannot change a heart or save a soul. We pray in the Spirit because it is the LORD that brings the victory! We have been given the Holy Spirit to HELP us DO the works of our faith! We can pray as much as we want and be a catalyst of as much change as we desire. How many miracles do you want to be a part of? Selah.