Pray for America

America the beautiful...land of the free... Aren't we so fortunate that we live in this great country? I believe we are. We get to choose our careers, choose where we want to worship, feel free to say Jesus's name in public, and show our pride in being Christians. But sometimes I'm disappointed in America and sometimes feel ashamed of what our country is becoming. I watched and listened to all the main stories on the evening news the other night and my heart was broken at the mess people are getting into - bank robberies, people being stabbed to death, homes being broken into, car-jackings, ...and the list goes on and on. Back in May, the man who was my wedding photographer (Ray Emery) and his wife were brutally murdered in their home - beaten to death by a hammer in the middle of the night. The guy guilty of it had a record a mile long. The story was written about again in the newspaper a couple of weeks ago when investigators believe they found evidence showing that Mr. Emery's wife was possibly sexually assaulted either before or after she was beaten in the head with the hammer. The newspaper article stated that when he was asked about it, all he said was, "prove it". I'm so glad I wasn't one of the interrogators. I probably would have lost my cool and beaten the tar out of him one good time. (In my personal opinion, I think the justice system is moving a little too slowly, and this guy should have already been "taken care of", if you know what I mean.) Stuff like this happens everyday in the United States. What a sad thing to think about. And what a scary thing to think about. I fear for our safety each day, especially Gavin and the future for him. I'm so scared that some crazy person is going to do something stupid and hurt us. My fears are one way Satan pulls me away from Christ. He always finds a way to get inside my brain - he gives me bad thoughts, worry, what-ifs, and bad dreams. There's a verse I claim when I start feeling Satan make his move on me. It's 2 Timothy 1:7, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." Whenever I feel Satan getting closer, or whenever Jason goes out of town and I'm alone at night in the house with all the weird noises, I pray this verse over and over. And I can literally feel a peace come over me and calm me down. (I even prayed this verse when I was getting my epidural when I was in labor with Gavin! I hate needles! And I survived!) But getting to my point. There are so many things we need to be praying about with this nation. One of the biggies is the the election this year. I received an email a couple of days ago that had been forwarded to several people down the line. It was about Barak Obama's background. It talked about how he grew up in a Muslim family and how he was sworn into office on the Koran, not the Bible. So, seeing that this is very disturbing information, I forwarded it on to several other people. My critical-thinking brother-in-law was one of them. So, being the fair person he his, he did his homework and found that several of the facts in the email were untrue. But even though the email wasn't completely factual, it made me think about what kind of effect the next president can have on this nation. What if someone like that took office? What would happen? Although President Bush is far from perfect, I believe he is a good man and good president; but as it stands, I believe America is quickly going to hell in hand basket. The man that is put into office this year can help get us there or stand for the Truth. In church this past Sunday, our congregation was challenged to pray for the election. The verse we were given was 2 Chronicles 7:14, "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." Friends, we are called by His name, and it is time now. Although the election isn't until later in the year, we need to begin praying now. We need to earnestly pray that God will not take his hand off America just yet. We need to pray that God's Will will be done and the right man will be put in office. We need to pray that Christians will come out and vote for a Godly man who stands for Godly principles. We need to pray for the healing of our nation. Will you pray with me?