Growing up, the Fourth of July was always a big deal in my little community—friends, fried chicken, and fireworks filled the day. Like most important events at that time, it was always celebrated at church. When I was twelve, America’s bicentennial celebration drew near, and plans kicked into high gear well in advance to ensure it would be unforgettable.
Fifty years later, one moment of that celebration remains a vivid memory. Our choir had worked up a special cantata—four-part harmony, with piano and organ and a full brass section. After an hour of toe-tapping favorites, there came a pregnant pause. Then, softly and building to a great crescendo, the men’s section broke into a heartfelt prayer for the land we all loved, taking a page from the words God spoke to King Solomon on the eve of the Temple dedication.
If my people, who are called by my name
Shall humble themselves, humble themselves and pray …
And seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways,
Then shall I hear from heaven, then shall I hear from heaven
And will forgive, forgive their sins—and heal their land.
That verse—2 Chronicles 7:14—soon became a favorite verse, a promise from the Lord that He would hear the prayers of His people and protect and guide them so long as they walked in His path.
A Cautionary Tale
Unfortunately, Solomon didn’t live to see that healing take place—his reign degenerated into rivalries, and after his death, the kingdom became divided into the Northern and Southern Kingdoms, Israel and Judah.
According to the Bible, the kings of Israel were evil; the kings of Judah (and one queen) were a mixed bag. The final king, Zedekiah, was repeatedly warned by the prophet Jeremiah to repent (see Jeremiah 37-38), but his advice fell on deaf ears. In 586 BC, Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians, the palace was captured, the king’s sons executed, the father blinded and dragged into captivity, and the Temple was destroyed (though it was rebuilt after the people returned from captivity about seventy years later in 515 BC, until it was ultimately destroyed when the Romans sacked Jerusalem in AD 70).
Israel’s story is a cautionary tale of what happens when a leader—and a people—turns their back on God. And so, in the fifty years since I first heard God’s promise to Solomon proclaimed in my small-town church, it’s hard not to panic as the values and beliefs we once held dear as a nation, as characterized by the pledge, “One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all,” have all but disappeared. Our social structure has been shredded by the breakdown of the family. Legitimate authority is disregarded and ignored. The country and the Church have become hopelessly divided, a collective sense of duty and common good all but gone.
And yet all is not lost. God is still on the throne … and still keeps His promises.
A Promise … with a Condition
Regardless of our political or ecclesial leanings, the pathway to the healing our nation needs remains the same for all God’s people: surrender, forgive, and repent.
- Surrender: “If my people … will humble themselves.” Am I willing to concede that God—who is ultimately in control—is working for my ultimate good, and that I can see only a small part of the picture? Am I willing to trust that, even in the most difficult circumstance, God is working to bring that good about not just for me but for everyone?
- Forgive: “If my people … will pray.” Am I willing to let go of my anger, and to forgive and show mercy towards those “on the other side,” pray for them as children of God, and practice charity and compassion towards those who most need it?
- Repent and ongoing conversion:“If my people … will seek my face and turn from their wicked ways.” Am I willing to admit my own pride and selfishness, and ask God to show me how to be a force for good in the world—at home, in my community, and in the world?
Prayer for Our Nation and the Church
Then … I will hear … and heal their land.
Thank you, Lord, for making us part of your everlasting Kingdom. Help us to be ambassadors of hope—sharing your love with those who need it most. Help us to be faithful to the calling you have placed upon us, and to pray for the leaders of our country and of our Church. Help me to do my part—humbly and generously—to work for unity and peace.
Holy Spirit, bless those who are struggling. Provide, protect, and console our brothers and sisters all over the world who seek to follow Jesus each day—and who suffer out of love for Him. Unite us together as one body in Christ, that the world might experience in a real way the Kingdom of God, here and now.
Photo by Ian Cylkowski on Unsplash
