Colleen H. | Wisconsin
Jan 22, 2017
Mr. President Trump, I pray God will be merciful and give you much guidance in your leadership.
Rhonda S. | Arizona
Jan 22, 2017
Heavenly Father, You have heard Your people. We come to You in Jesus' name and ask that You will heal our Nation, that You give our President wisdom, grace, and courage to lead this country back to the Bible.
These two prayers are samples of the many that have been sent through
I've been privileged to be with IFA from our founding in 1973. Our prayers have often been for those in authority, but in a general way. Now, we believe we are ready to encourage prayer for specific elected officials. This is the thrust of "Pray for America's Leaders."
In the early 1930s, a Washington AP bureau chief, Byron Price, coined the phrase, "All politics is local." Congressman Tip O'Neill popularized the phrase in 1935 when he entered politics. Many of us, frustrated with our inability to influence national politics, have turned local--witness the emergence and impact of The Tea Party.
The spiritual analogy is to "pray local"--for those in our communities, districts and states--and in this way bring added leverage and effectiveness. "Pray for America's Leaders" is specifically designed to help us. Mayors, council-folks, state representatives, governors, U.S. congressmen and senators are deeply in need of prayer.
So the question is how we can do better? And how can IFA help? Our proposal is this:
First, that each of us begin to pray for his or her U.S. Congressman. We believe that by this step, our network is such that each of our 435 members of congress will be covered in prayer.
Click Here to Identify Yours.
Second, that you add one other elected official--for example your mayor, or governor or U.S. Senator. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you.
We envision four possible levels of engagement with your elected official(s):
1.
Awareness: come alongside in prayer, asking for wisdom,
discernment, courage, ability to stand for truth and for principle.
2.
Ally: praying into specific initiatives as you gain knowledge through
publicly available information.
3.
Contact: An initial relationship, as personal contact is established.
4.
Confidant: A trusted partnership, where strategic and timely
information is shared.
While this may seem a modest proposal, we believe the reach and power can be transformative--with benefits reaching the entire nation through the increasing health and capacity of public servants who are closest to us.
"Lord, help us to effectively intercede for those elected officials you put on our hearts as we grow in awareness of their needs and build close bonds of trust."
