Wake Up America! Pray ! So much is going on in our nation –racism, attack on God’s Word and Way, personal and corporate financial distress, hatred, violence, leadership failures, ISIS, war , human trafficking and more.
The lyrics of the song “Wake Up Everybody” ,sung by now deceased Teddy Pendergrass which described the issues facing people in this world, is relevant.I really like the song. Part of the lyrics state:
Wake up everybody no more sleepin’ in bed
No more backward thinkin’ time for thinkin’ ahead
The world has changed so very much
From what it used to be
There is so much hatred war an’ poverty
The world won’t get no better if we just let it be
The world won’t get no better we gotta change it yeah, just you and me.
True, the world will not get any better unless we, you and me, pray and cry out to the Lord in fervent prayer, with a repentant heart, to heal the land. Once we soak in prayer, get our instructions from the Lord, then we must also “Do”— take action to make a difference.
Let’s join in corporate prayer on May 5th, 2016, which is National Day of Prayer throughout the day and pray from where ever you are—home, work, school etc.
This year’s 2016 theme: Wake Up America. Scripture: Isaiah 58:1a “Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet” The national theme, Wake Up America, emphasizes the need for individuals, corporately and individually, to return to the God of Fathers in reverence for His Holy Name.
Join with the nation of Believers to emphasize prayer for America and its leadership in the seven centers of power: Government, Military, Media, Business, Education, Church and Family.
For the May 5th observances, Dr. Tony Evans, is the 2016 Honorary Chairman. Millions of people will gather to pray at thousands of events around the nation. Gather your friends and family members together in prayer. We have an opportunity to see the Lord’s healing and renewing power made manifest as we call on YOU and all citizens to humbly come before His throne.
The apostle Paul urged that “requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone…that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. (I Timothy 2:1-3). It is time for us to pray as a nation corporately and individually. In this turbulent time of open racism, rumors of wars and aggression, and troubled communities and cites we need to go before the Lord to seek through prayer, “peaceful and quiet lives” – for ourselves, our families, our neighbors and friends and our nation.
Continue to pray for our nation as the “prayers of righteous persons are powerful and effective”. James 5:16. The sovereign Lord listens to our cries, waits to intervene on our behalf and to deliver and transform the ills of our nation. (See e.g. Zephaniah 3:17). I believe that prayer is required and imperative for believers individually, and corporately as a nation, to pray continually throughout the year, not just on the National Day of Prayer. There is a need for faithful, preserving intercession for our leaders, government, families, education system, the legal system, churches, the armed forces and the media. Our prayers will impact generations to come if we continue to seek the Lord’s guidance and protection and be obedient to His Word.
For the May 5th observances, Dr. Tony Evans, the 2016 Honorary Chairman, wrote a special prayer to be simultaneously read throughout the nation at noon (ET). This recitation will create a huge wave of prayer, flowing from one coast to the other, illustrating the unity of God’s people and acknowledging His dominion over the circumstances facing us.
“At this crucial time for our nation, we can do nothing more important than pray”, states Dr. Evans. Make this spiritual discipline a personal priority and take a stand with myself and others as we encourage others to incorporate prayer in their lives.
National Prayer
Dear heavenly Father, we come to You today as a humble people desperate for Your supernatural intervention on behalf of our beloved nation. First, we thank You for all the blessings You have bestowed on our land, blessings that have allowed us to bring so much good and benefit to not only our own citizens but also to the rest of the world. The very ideals upon which this country was founded were based on biblical truths, no matter how some try to rewrite history to deny that very fact today.
This is why our hearts are so broken over how You continue to be marginalized and dismissed by both our people and our institutions. We are also saddened by the fact that Your people have contributed greatly to the spiritual apathy that now engulfs us. Our satisfaction in remaining religious without being fully committed to living out the truths of Your Word has caused us to become co-conspirators with the forces of evil that are destroying us as a society.
It is for this reason that we personally and collectively repent of our carnality and recommit ourselves to becoming visible and verbal disciples of Jesus Christ. Enable us, by Your Spirit, to no longer be secret agent Christians but rather to publicly declare and live out Your truth in a spirit of love so that You feel welcome in our country once again.
Thank You for Your promise to hear our prayers when we call to You with hearts of repentance and obedience, which is how we are appealing to You today, Father. On behalf of Your church, we affirm afresh the priority You are to us that You would fill every dimension of our lives as we seek to bring You glory through the advancement of Your kingdom in our personal lives, our family lives, and in the lives of our churches and our government leaders. We confidently invite heaven’s intervention into all the affairs of our nation and we praise You in advance for Your answer.
In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen. National Prayer by Dr. Tony Evans, the 2016 Honorary Chairman
Linda Fegins, The Prayer Leader , May 2016