I had mixed feelings, but overall was disappointed after watching the 37-minute video shown at the bottom of this post from yesterday’s National Day of Prayer service in the Rose Garden of the White House.
On the one hand, I thank God we are no longer listening to Obama’s lies and witnessing his offensive actions against God and against His people. I thank God we now have a man in the White House who appears to be doing his best to honor God by holding this event in the Rose Garden. He also signed two executive orders that appear to help uphold our religious liberties, at least for now.
I also thank God for Paula White because it appears she has been a good influence on Donald Trump. She opened the service today and even quoted 2 Chronicles 7:14, which is one of the best scriptures for an event like this because it identifies the key to restoring our nation to a right relationship with God, which is by humbly repenting from our sins. Her opening remarks were the highlight of the video for me, but it was all downhill after that.
Much of what was said by the other speakers sounded good, but things are not always what they appear to be. I was hoping to hear something that would give me hope for our future, some evidence we are seeking to get right with God because that is our only hope because righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people (Proverbs 14:34). Unfortunately, not one speaker confessed or repented from any sins, either personal or national sins. Instead, they went out of their way to avoid the topic.
Vice-President Pence’s Comments:
Vice-President Pence even went so far as to re-write 2 Chronicles 7:14, removing repentance from it altogether, which is a big problem since it is the key to the whole verse. So, let’s compare the Bible version with his version:
If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:14)
And here is the transcript from Pence’s comments today:
“From the founding of this nation, Americans have claimed that ancient promise, that if His people who are called by His name will humble themselves and pray and seek his face, that he will hear from heaven and heal their land.”
By omitting God’s requirement to “turn from their wicked ways” and the need for God to “forgive their sins,” Pence deleted the most important requirement for getting right with God, which is a huge problem because without turning from our wicked ways, God will not hear from heaven, will not forgive our sins, and will not heal our land. So, Pence turned one of the greatest verses in the Bible into a lie.
To make matters worse, I don’t expect to hear any outcry from the American people over this, not even from Christians, because so many of us have bought into the lie that we can have God’s blessings without meeting His requirements. This idea seems to be rampant throughout our nation and throughout the Church. We are in such a deep sleep; we no longer know or care what God requires. It is no longer about Him. It is all about us.
Pastor Jack Graham’s Prayer:
Three spiritual leaders each prayed short “prayers” for our nation. The first came from Pastor Jack Graham, Pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church, a 40,000-member mega church near Plano Texas.
“We do humble ourselves before you our great God. We thank you for your amazing grace that brought us into your family and brought us here together today, for your love that restores and renews us and this nation in times like these. How we thank you for your provision and protection in our lives and upon our nation. We pray for President Trump and his family. We pray for Vice-President Pence and his family. And for the members of cabinet, we pray that you would give them wisdom and strength and guidance as they make decisions that lead the way to restoring America and renewing our hopes in you. We do know Oh god that our ultimate hope is in you and you alone. You are our life and you are our only hope. We pray for one another, that we would be strong in our own faith in our commitment and our courage to obey you. And we remember on this day those who suffer, those who hurt, especially those today we remember who are persecuted for their faith and we pray that you would comfort them and bless them. We ask you Oh God that every life, all of us Oh God, what do our part where we live and how we serve in expressing your love to people. Now unto Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ask or think or hope. To Him be glory in the church throughout all ages, forever and ever. And we pray this in the deer name of Jesus. Amen.”
Given the context of where our nation is today spiritually and what we must do to survive, this prayer completely missed the mark. America has a sin problem and the only solution is repentance. Unfortunately, Pastor Graham did the same thing Vice-President Pence did; he white-washed his prayer to remove all the messy stuff about sin and repentance. The closest he got was saying, “We do humble ourselves before you,” and asking for the “courage to obey you,” but those statements fall way short of repentance because true repentance requires confession of our sins.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-10)
Somewhere along the way, we lost our way. Even our spiritual leaders who should have known better shifted their focus away from what God requires to make it all about what we want. We have forgotten how the Lord Jesus taught us to pray.
9 “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name.
10 ‘Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread.
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’ (Matthew 6:9-13)
The first two verses of the Lord’s prayer reveal our highest priority, praising God and seeking His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Verses 12 and 13 show the importance of aligning our ways with God’s ways, which is what it means to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. When we do that, all the other things we need will be given to us. (Matthew 6:33) The flip side of this truth is that when we ignore God’s priorities, He is no longer obligated to hear our requests.
Jack Graham’s prayer omitted the most important requirements, which makes it a great example of how not to pray. It sounded like the me-gospel, which has permeated our nation, a false gospel that subtly claims God exists to do our will rather than the other way around.
Prayers offered by unrepentant hypocrites will not save our nation, but righteousness will. Prayers without righteousness are a waste of time, but the effective prayers of a righteous man can accomplish much (James 5:16) God does not hear the prayers of the unrighteous because He sees through their hypocrisy and knows they want nothing to do with Him, but His eyes are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry. (Psalm 34:15) Even the prayers of the Lord Jesus were only heard by God because of His reverence for the will of His Father, submitting to Him (Hebrews 5:7).
Trump Embraced as a Brother:
Vice-President Pence made another interesting comment when he was introducing President Trump. He said, “Our President is a believer. He loves his family and he loves his country with an unshakable faith in God and the American people.”
When he said that, Paula White nodded her head in agreement. President Trump did not disagree. Coming from the Vice-President, who claims to be a born-again believer, and with agreement from Paula White, a recognized Christian leader, it was a strong statement, a public embrace of Trump as a Christian brother.
Only God knows where President Trump stands spiritually, but the significant thing about Pence’s statement is it changes the way the righteous must deal with Trump because the standard is much higher for anyone who claims to be a brother than for those who openly live as heathens. The righteous are permitted to associate with heathens because they don’t even claim to know God, but we are instructed not to “associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister, but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people.” We are instructed to judge those inside the Church and to expel the wicked person from among us. (1 Corinthians 5:11-13) So, Pence’s public embrace of President Trump as a Christian brother redefines our relationship with Trump and how we must relate to him going forward.
Many former Presidents have claimed to be Christians, including Obama. Only God can see what is in their heart, but we can see the fruit of their words and deeds. Hopefully, we will see good fruit confirming Trump’s faith, but if not, we are commanded to stop associating with him and to expel him from the Church. In the meantime, we can and should be praying for him to grow strong in faith and wisdom.
Conclusion:
In the past few years, God opened my eyes by giving me some dreams revealing the future of America. What I saw was so terrible, I would much prefer to be proven wrong. Since repentance is our only hope, I would like to find evidence of it in our land, but so far, the evidence indicates we are right on track to fulfill what I saw, as confirmed by many prophetic warnings this year about a big shift coming soon, the start of a new season, and a time of trouble.
What hope is there for a nation whose political and spiritual leaders refuse to call for repentance, even re-writing the scriptures and altering their prayers to delete God’s clear requirements?
Yesterday’s National Day of Prayer ceremony was not a good sign for America’s future. It appears we are full of hypocrisy, claiming to know God while ignoring His requirements, demanding what we want while ignoring what He wants. We are playing spiritual games with God and we cannot win that game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttK1tbJjPiY
Author: James Bailey
James Bailey is a blogger, business owner, husband and father of two grown children. In 1982, he surrendered his life to the Lord Jesus Christ. In 2012, he founded Z3news.com to broadcast the message of salvation by reporting end time news before it happens.
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Some time back Jonathan Cahn gave a speech (sermon) to Congress, or a prayer breakfast. It was one of the greatest sermons I believe I have ever heard, and he did not mince words when declaring the state of this country, and his challenge to our leaders. He is the man who should have been there, in my opinion. He is like a modern day Elijah.
I agree. He understands the problem and the solution. He would have done a great job.
I am in the Midwest this month taking care of a family member who is gravely ill. Since my last visit home from Asia nine months ago I notice some people waking up spiritually. Friends of mine from CA to MI are hearing God call them to repentance, prayer and evangelism. None of them read z3, none of them know about the prophetic words for our nation, yet all say the same thing- the end is near, time is short, they are praying for Gods kingdom to advance and are actively sharing Jesus. I visited a weekly prayer meeting where in the past they mostly prayed for the sick to get better. THIS TIME they prayed in power for revival, evangelism and outreach. I was surprised in the best way!
Yesterday, instead of our leaders honoring God’s name and praying for His Kingdom to come the prayers were for people to be “comforted and blessed” (to quote pastor Grahams words). The lack of spiritual discernment and “comfort Christianity” displayed in the rose garden was disappointing and not surprising. Yet I praise God for the growing remant across our land! As in the days of Israel when Ahaz, Jezebel and the prophets of Baal ruled and 7000 did not bow the knee to Baal. (1kings 19:18), so too now our Father is growing His remant. Keep praying and sharing Jesus z3ers.! We can and WILL bring more people with us into the KIngdom.
I totally agree with your article. Sometimes, I wonder why I am being shown the dark things but God does speak of the gross darkness covering the earth. I noticed an interview Donald Trump had done. The reporter asked him, “had He asked Jesus to forgive him?” His reply was “I don’t see it that way, I haven’t needed to ask for forgiveness of anything.” That was enough fruit for me. I have been going through a deep research on the past and where our leaders have taken us through the years. They are all corrupt. They have even said before that Christians were so easy to control. They said, because they want to see the good in people. And as long as they talk of God we would fall into their plans just like they wanted. We are headed down a journey that will wake up the ones that are asleep. I don’t take joy in seeing what I see. But I will not apologize for what God is showing me either. God Bless the ones that are awake and seeing TRUTH
And too willing to believe that anyone who uses the name “God” is talking about the creator who became flesh, dwelt among us and died for our sins on a cross. Because lots of Americans “believe in god” … but which one? The god of peace and ease? The god who serves me? The god of angel armies who is ALWAYS on my side? (Even if I sin and don’t think I need to repent?). A few years ago I was challenged to speak the name of Jesus instead of using the generic term “god”. I now look to see who is talking about “god” versus courageously using Jesus name without apology.
One other thing. Brother James you seem to have a real gift for analyzing a situation, stating all the facts—usually with plenty of documentation, coming to a logical conclusion, and then presenting it in such a way that it seems to be the proper conclusion. And when critics offer differing opinions–some seeming to be angry, you present a measured response that is not over- reactive, but is sensible, objective, and in a Christian attitude. To me , you sum things up well, and present a good overall perspective that seems reasonable. This is just my opinion.
Thanks for the feedback Jesse. Sometimes I have to rewrite my comments a few times until I calm down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=837Yd5xsLm0
Good morning God
How are You?
I’ve come to be with You
I’ve come to hear Your voice this morning
And worship You
And worship You
Too many times I’ve gone without You
Walked on my own through the day
Too many times I’ve missed my timing
Following my own way
Following my own way
Good morning God
How are You?
How is Your world today?
I’d like to be with You my friend
And walk with You today
And walk with You today
Too many times I’ve gone without You
Walked on my own through the day
Too many times I’ve missed the moment
Following my own way
Walking without You again
Oh that My people would listen to Me
And Israel would walk in My ways
Then would I heal in mercy
And be with them all of their days
Oh that My people would listen to Me
And Israel would walk in My ways
Then would I hear from heaven
And be with them all of their days
I went to one here in Grand Rapids. I too wish we would have spent time praying to confess the sins of our nation. It was encouraging and it did inspire me to pray more for others. But we are in desperate need of repentance now. There is so much evil being unleashed that I cannot stomach any more bad news. It is all so sad.
God’s righteous judgment is for our good.
Hi Marilee! I’m in Grand Rapids, too! I missed the service but continue to be disgusted by our collective lack of repentance as a nation. Especially in our community, a much touted place of conservative Christianity, the lack of emphasis to cry out in confession of our sin and turn from it makes us wonder how God continues to allow us to live at all. That’s patience, mercy and love beyond measure.
HI Jodi. We pray at our church every Monday afternoon at Cascade Christian. Also, I pray at a Moms in prayer group Friday mornings. Do you have groups in your church?
The grand awakening is the group who sponsored the meeting. Here’s their link:
https://www.facebook.com/awakenGR/
they meet the 1st and third Tues at Crossroads Bible on Scribner.
They also announced Luis Palau coming in 2018. A little late b/c of all the words we have read. But at least they are salvation conscience. Three did get saved at the meeting which was wonderful!!!
My email is oaksnroses9@att.net
God’s righteous judgement truly is for our good. It is his love for us that causes him to judge us when we go wrong.
Once again the Spirit of God is heavily upon me and I agree with your article here! This is what the Spirit of God said to me – “I have cried out to you through my servants to come and repent before Me! If it were not for the remnant, I would have already sent judgment upon this nation! But I can no longer hold back the repercussions of the sins and the rebellion against Me! You chant this verse as though it were a magic charm, thinking that it will impress Me! All this has done is to create a false spirit of humility! There has been no repentance before Me, no desire to turn away from your sins, your arrogance and your rebellion! This little trinket of a display is a stench before Me! If you desire that I turn to you, then you MUST REPENT and turn back to ME! Then, I will hear your prayers. Seek me as My Word says in Joel 2:12-14 and repent and I will turn back to you!
WM, thank you for your word from the Spirit, far better expressing the exact thoughts in my heart. Maranatha!
Thank you, Jodi, for receiving this from the Spirit of God.
Amen Thompson–have you heard Damon Thompson. He gives it to us in the sermons Age of Famine and the Apostolic and Prophetic sermon –Basically the church calls itself names that have absolutely no meaning. This was so confusing to me when no one in church seemed to be obeying the Bible. They all acted like “all is well”….
I am sorry but I have not heard of Damon Thompson.
This is a bit off-topic, but an example of “leaven” in a local church.
I had occasion to walk in a local church last week. I happened to glance at the Visitor’s Registry, and was astounded to see a pile of nicely done 4″x 5″ cards, placed there for visitor’s or members to take.
The cards read as follows:
“Yoga and Wellness for Women
Yoga for the 50+ woman to embrace her age. A place to gather with like-minded women, infusing happiness, clarity, stillness, powerful tools of yoga and meditation to be the best version of who you are right now.
_Intimate small group classes
_Mini women’s yoga oasis
_Private consultant/ Reiki
Yoga is for Everybody”
In addition, one of these Yoga Card Advertisements was also taped to the
FRONT DOOR of the CHURCH!
Wow— what an example of LEAVEN!
James, this is quite a harsh critique for just one of many National Day of Prayer “events” happening around the country, albeit an important one as it involved the President and Vice President. The National Day of Prayer is a citizen-driven, grassroots movement, not a government organization. I bless President Trump that he wanted to participate and celebrate this special day of prayer by announcing his executive order to promote an atmosphere for greater religious liberties in our nation. The new Chairman of the NDP is Anne Graham Lotz, daughter of Billy and Ruth Graham. The Washington DC observance was in Statuary Hall of our Capitol Building, and because of the location, it had to be scheduled in the evening, when President Trump was in NYC meeting with Malcolm Turnbull of Australia. Her plea for a year had been to have it in the Rotunda of the Capitol to symbolize a unified agreement of the prayers for repentence, but permission was not granted by the Senate side, due to the objection of a particular Democrat (sounds like “shoe…”), so it was in Statuary Hall, because it is under House control. (Thank you Rep. Louie Gomert (TX) for carrying the ball!) the theme this year was “For His Great Name’s Sake” from Daniel’s prayer in Dan. 9:19. You know the story: Daniel representationally confesses and repents for the sins of Israel—“we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly, and rebelled, even turning aside from Thy commandments and ordinances”. (9:5) He agrees with God that they are deserving of the calamity brought on them by righteous God, and has no merits to plead except God’s own compassion and for His own Name’s sake that God forgive and relent. We know God heard Daniel’s prayer, because (in his “extreme weariness” (v. 21) an angel… Read more »
My comments were not directed at everyone as I thanked God for what Paula White shared, but it’s a bad sign for our country when they go out of their way to avoid any mention of sin or repentance, even re-writing the scriptures. Our leaders are a reflection of our people.