Praying for America - When a mom is already so busy doing everything else
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My hair was wet and cold, I should have dried it before I took the kids to school this morning, but my husband was on a conference call in our bedroom and I didn't want to disturb him. Then my children were all out of sorts about the way I scrambled their eggs, and one child looked sideways at his brother when they were supposed to be brushing their teeth, so that was a whole other something to focus on this morning. Now here I am with a cold scalp, praying against the cold that always threatens to creep into a mother's heart.
Today is the National Day of Prayer
Every morning I wake up and thank God for the day. I do, I truly do. I greet my children joyfully, with loving touches and warm food. Every morning I actively choose to practice grace here in our home. But, friends, this constant inner focus can take it out of a woman! Loving and caring, correcting and praying for the hearts here in the girdle of these four walls is a full time job! Sometimes there's nothing left over for anyone else.
Today is The National Day of Prayer
Driving to school we pass a flag raised high and I remember what day it is, halfway through a tongue twister at the time. Working on tongue twisters on our way to school - tongue twisters to help my boys with their speech impediments. Over and over again we practice: The girl hit the tiger with her purse... "Ouch,"said the tiger, "That hurt!" And then we go over our spelling words and a few multiplication facts and out they hop with a blessing to honor their teachers and be kind to their friends.
Today is The National Day of Prayer
I drive to the grocery store to get a gallon of orange juice for the other brother sick at home. Miraculously I remember that this is teacher appreciation week, so I grab three thank you cards as well. A pit in my stomach forms hard and fast when I see the Mother's Day cards beside the thank you notes, and I realize I'd forgotten all about it - never sent cards to the three mothers in my own life. And now I remember again that I'm supposed to be praying for America as well.
Today is The National Day of Prayer
But I'm just hurrying home to get Vitamin C into the body of my eleven year old with bronchitis.
Today is The National Day of Prayer
My child is resting now, under a heavy blanket in his dark room with the humidifier hissing soothing eucalyptus. I take a moment to write those thank-you notes to their teachers, because I really am so thankful for them. And, as I switch out another load of laundry, I think of how hard it is to tell teachers and mothers how much I love and admire and appreciate them, because I'm knee deep in tongue twisters - twisted all up in the rearing of my own children here in my own life.
Today is The National Day of Prayer
What to do then? What to do when you're a praying woman who's not been able to move beyond those prayers most immediate, for her immediate family? For health in the home and faith down in their bones. Except to stop. Stop. Stop, if ony for a few moments. Stop. And move beyond your needs and theirs, and join the chorus rising from mothers and fathers and children and grandparents and working men and women all around our country today. What if we all just stop, all of us, from sea to shining sea, for just a moment, in the middle of the twisted up day and pray for our nation. One Nation. One People. Twisted up and desperately in need of God today.
Today is The National Day of Prayer
So Let's Pray:
Dear Lord, you don't only graft people into your family tree... you are willing to graft nations! Nations of men and women, boys and girls, who recognize You as their sovereign ruler. So graft us in, Lord. Graft America in, I pray. Graft us in through faith, and let us partake in the inheritance of your peace and protection as we turn to you! One person at a time, one mother at a time, one family at a time. Turning to you in the busyness of life, stopping to pray.
Lord, I lift up President Obama and our other leaders to you today. I pray that they sense your Spirit alive and guiding them. I pray that You convict where conviction is needed, affirm and strengthen them where Your affirming strength is needed, and give light to the unknown dark corners of what to do in our fight against terror. Give our leaders wisdom in the face of terror Lord, faith in the face of every threat. Let them know, even now as ISIS takes their stand upon our soil, that Greater is the One living inside of us, then he who is living in the world. (1 John 4:4)
And I pray for families, Lord, families that are praying families praying for one another, and families that do not know you, and don't know how to pray. I lift them all up to you, Lord, for they are America. By Your Spirit lead and guide each person today. Bring them radically back to You - and in so doing, lead our entire nation to Yourself. I pray all these things, here in my home, in the middle of my everyday life, trusting that You are faithful. You are God. Amen.
Blessed is the nation whose God is The Lord,
the people chosen as His inheritance.
(Palm 33:12)
Prayer and Fasting:
For those of you who are journeying with me in this 40 day sugar fast, let us use this day to shift our focus off of ourselves and onto the world beyond our own needs, our own struggles, our own desire to exerience the nearness of God. Let us focus today, and in the remaining 15 days, on those around us. Fasting and praying for our husbands and children and neighborhoods, our schools, and even our nation. What do you say? Is the Lord prompting your heart even now? Is there someone specific you feel led to pray and fast on behalf of? Your husband? Your children? Or maybe beyond into the lives of your friends and neighbors? Missionaries, pastors, those held in literal bondage today throughout the world? Oh, to use the power unleashed through prayer and fasting for the captive releasing, bondage breaking benefit of others!
It's not easy, moms, when there are so many needs right here in our homes, but let's ask the Lord how He would have us fast and pray for these remaining days. Amen? Amen.
