A Call to Pray and Fast
With all the is going on in our country and our world and with all the attention around our national debt, I decided that next 6 days and 14 hours offer a great opportunity to pray and fast…Here’s why…
Unemployment, National Debt, Cancer, Illness, Rising Healthcare Costs, Violence in the name of God, Violence for no reason at all, Organized Crime, Human Trafficking, Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Natural Disasters, Plane Crashes, Train Crashes and every other kind of Accident. Radiation Contamination, Global Warming, Shrinking Pensions, Rising Taxes, Corrupt Government, Government Incompetence, Capitalists, Socialists, Democrats, Republicans, Liberals, Fox News, CNBC, Sarah Palin, Barack Obama, Faulty School Systems, Racism, Ethnocentrism, Ethnic “Cleansing,” War, Falling Property Values, Rising Gas Prices, Rising Grocery Prices, Generational Injustice, Socioeconomic Discrimination, Caring for the Poor, Raising the Debt Ceiling and the news that the Space Shuttle Program has ended.
Did I miss anything…I am sure that I did. It takes a great deal of energy to focus on and document the things that make us fearful, frustrated, angry, and discontent. Over the past few years, I have watched, listened to and connected with different people who have expressed very real fear and/or frustration the items I listed above. I am not judging them. In Fact, I fall into my own sense of disillusionment at the uncertainty of our future often enough. Furthermore, not all the tweets and posts that move across my screen are bad. I am thankful that people take the initiative to voice their views and perspectives at the issues that face our world today.
However, after reading what seems to be a rising level of anger and frustration in posts and tweets from genuin believers in Christ. And…after reading how those with republican views and those with democrat views both believe that God is on their side, I decided that for me it was time to step up my prayer life. This is not a move to over spiritualize or romantize real problems. We can point fingers at individuals and institutions in Government all over the world. We can blame big business. We can even blame the poor and needy. However, change in our world has to start in hearts and minds of individuals. All of us contribute to consumerism and entitlement. All of us drift toward taking more than we give.
And So…for the next 6 days and 14 hours I am making a special appeal to God in prayer and fasting.
I pray for our leaders around the world. I pray for Godly wisdom. I may not like them personally. I may not share their views, but I pray for them. I pray for our world. A very small percentage of the the injustice, the pain, and the suffering around our world ever makes it to the news. Train Accidents, Nuclear Meltdowns, Floods, Acts of Terrorism and the like are only a fraction of the disillusionment that is known to billions on a daily basis. I pray for your direct intervention on them. I pray that the violence we perpetuate in your name would not keep people from knowing you…that Your Love, Joy, Peace, Patience. Kindness, Goodness, Gentleness, Faithfulness and Self Control would sink deep into the souls of all mankind and that you would us draw to you.
I fast that my focus on You God would be elevated. That my physical needs and desires would take a tangible back seat to your will for our world…that I might remember all who go hungry every day without the luxury of choosing to fast…that I might acknowledge and symbolize that I too am responsible for the changes I seek in our world. I ask governments and corporations to tighten theirs belts, but often I am not willing to give up my view of entitlement and comfort.
I invite all who read this post to join me in this fast…I’m not looking for follows. I’m not looking for acknowledgement. However, I do believe that the current events in our world today warrant an extra level of prayer and fasting and I think it would make a statement of solidarity for church in our world if people re-tweeted this call for prayer and fasting.
Perhaps I am alone in this thought. But, I would rather see our leaders around the world covered in prayer as they face tough decisions this week than I see a bunch of frustrated thoughts and opinions flood the cloud.