My dear, precious Father,
As I write this letter to you, I thank you that You are always with me, and You know the desires of my heart. But my heart is hurting, angry, and questioning what has gone wrong!! What do we do now?
Oh, dear God, we really need to talk!
Father, there is so much social injustice and discrimination in our nation and world. I believe that this country has made progress from what I remember of the 1960’s and the Civil Rights movement. But there has been such an increase in rioting and protests over the past 8-10 months. Then there was January 6th and the mob attack on our nation’s Capitol building.
Social injustice and discrimination in the United States. Nothing new, but there has been a quickening of crisis after crisis. We have lurched from the obscenity of George Floyd’s death to protests in the streets to armed insurrection against democracy and the very foundations of our nation.
God, what has happened to this nation? This is the nation that has the motto: “One Nation Under God”! However, I believe that many have put themselves and other “idols” above You. We have become a slave to the prince of this world - Satan. We have worshiped idols – power, lust, ambition, greed, hatred - instead of You. We have turned our faces from You and looked to ourselves for answers. Satan laughs. Jesus weeps.
Paul in Romans warns us to not allow sin to control us.
Romans 6:12-18 Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. 13 Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. 14 Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.
15 Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! 16 Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. 17 Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. 18 Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living. (NLT)
God, I know that you know all of this, but I come to you asking for guidance.
Can we not work together to become one body/one nation for democracy; one body that is made up of different parts/members; one body that respects our differences and our similarities? Different members/cultures/experiences are what make this country great! Let us learn from one another; let us help one another with skills that another does not have. Every person is useful, helpful, and worthy in the sight of God and should be treated equally. Together we are the United States, but apart we are simply factions complaining/fighting against each other, not working to keep our democracy strong; not working to help one another; but trying to take control and gain power.
Father, I hear your response to this nation:
2 Chronicles 7:14 Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.
Can this nation humble itself, seek You, and put You FIRST before anyone or anything else? Yes, it is a very important step for us Americans, but each individual has to make that decision - to truly believe in You. I believe we can grow this body and become the light of Jesus throughout this land.
John 8:12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”
"You won't have to walk in darkness"! My God, we need Your light to dispel this evil darkness which overshadows this land. Others may say "Impossible"!
Matthew 19:26 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”
Remember: BUT WITH GOD EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE.
God, I love you; I honor you and praise you. For You are the only all-powerful and only wise God. You are kind and loving in all your ways. I give this to you, Father, for you are the One who fights our battles. Thank you for taking this from me, listening, and blessing me with your presence!
Amen!
God Bless,
Rachel
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