"Almighty God; We make our earnest prayer that Thou wilt keep the United States in Thy holy protection; that Thou wilt incline the hearts of the citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and obedience to government; and entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another and for their fellow citizens of the United States at large. And finally that Thou wilt most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility, and pacific temper of mind wihch were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion, and without a humble inimtation of whose example in these things we can never hope to be a happy nation. Grant our supplication, we beseech Thee, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."
February 18 is Presidents Day, the national holiday when we officially honor the two most important leaders of our country, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, and all those who have served as President of the United States, including our present President, George W. Bush. It is election year and as it turns out February may be the most important month of the year in determining who will be up for election in November as our next President. We should keep all those running for office in prayer. It is our Christian duty first and foremost to keep our leaders in prayer, and surely that must include those running for high office. As Christian citizens it is also our Christian duty to do our best to determine who among them would best work to establish and execute the laws that God would have us live by, the relations God would have us have with other countries and so on - keeping Jesus' prayer, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven" in mind as well as what the Bible teaches about putting the welfare of the "widow and the orphan" first, that is, the least and the last first.
George Washington's prayer for America [above] is a wonderful guide to Christian citizenship. Bipartisan in spirit and content, unashamedly witnessing to his faith, our first President set an example we all can follow. We may especially need to heed his call to "cultivate a spirit of subordination" in an age when our motto is "No one tells ME what to do." In a democratic society we must subordinate ourselves to each other - that is what Washington is calling for. Obedient to the law, yes, but more importantly to go beyond that to......"affection and love for one another" (Romans 12:10) and "to do justice and to love mercy" (Micah 6:8). Washington's language is steeped in the Bible. Above all we are to follow the example of the Savior, and more than follow His example, to let Him guide us.
Yours in Jesus Christ our Lord,
(Rev.) Robert R. von Oeyen, Jr.
