There was no political mumbo jumbo.
It was made quite clear - repeatedly, that no person was to receive glory that day.
The clapping and praising and crying out was to but One man - this God-man who is called Jesus.
Indeed, we stood to our feet when Dr. James (and Shirley) Dobson came out. It was a moment I'll not forget. It was beautiful to see with my eyes these precious souls who have poured out their lives for the One that matters. It was not that we desired to give them praise, but an overwhelming feeling of thanks was rising in my heart to the One who predestined them to be captured in their hearts by Jesus.
There was no fear in uttering the name of Jesus. Of course, we were crying out to God, but we were lifting high the Name above all names. It was beautiful. We also sang "America". The beauty of coming together and singing of how God shed His grace on us, as Americans was something indeed. We take it for granted every day. This country is not great because of the great men who have led us. This country is great because of the Great God who poured out His grace to those men.
We began with worship. We sang of the worth and beauty of Jesus Christ and we stood together proclaiming His grace and mercy. After that, was a solemn time. A time where we were led to reflect on our own personal sin - and repent for that before a Holy God. It was a time of ownership. It was not a time of blame, or a place where guilt was cast upon others. It was a time to acknowledge our fault - accept our responsibility as the church for allowing our nation to come to this place in history.
Dr. Dobson recounted the time in history where the German army was coming against the British and French armies in the 1940's. The Church of England called for a time of prayer and fasting. 3 days later, God answered their cries and the armies were saved. God hears us when we humble ourselves and cry out to Him.
It was humbling to stand and think of how far we are from acknowledging our need for Him each day. We have become altogether too self sufficient, only, we are not sufficient in ourselves at all. Thus, the debt and the lack of family unity and the current state of our nation. This drought can be ended by one word uttered from the mouth of God. That is fact. But, beloved friends, He LOVES US TOO MUCH to let us continue in the mindset that we are enough in and of ourselves! We need Him. We must cry out to Him alone for help. The time for trusting in our 401k and our great "plans" is over. Those financial things will not bring rain to the earth! (sorry, I digress...)
To get to the point here, I will give you the format and try to be brief in my elaboration :)
The four main prayer segments were this: Personal Repentance. Corporate Repentance. The First Commandment. And in closing, Prayer for Revival in America.
It was beautiful as the older generation stood and blessed the younger generation - and then in turn, the younger generation stood and blessed the older generation. Staggering to see a small boy (maybe 9 or 10) stand and pray with conviction for his generation to rise up and call on the Lord. My eyes could not contain the tears as he prayed. The thought that Jesus was up there at that moment - hearing him - and loving him - solidified something deep in my heart. God hears us when we pray. God delights in His children and He will not fall silent when we come before Him in humility and ask Him to help. He delights in us, beloved, and He made us to delight in Him.
There are many other things that took place in that place. I was blessed that in my inability to get to the prayer room in Kansas City, God saw fit to bring a piece of it to me (and the other 30,000 people who were there). It was just what my soul needed. Brokenness. Repentance. Accountability. Realization of our need. Confidence in our Maker. I know that the heart of the living God was moved. I know He heard us, and I am continuing to pray that the hearts of the people will be turned back to Him. I saw it in myself even as we were only 30 minutes down the road... The tendency towards forgetting all that we had just confessed before the Father. The tendency to look towards the next thing in my day, and my week. God allowed me to see how quickly I forget. So, I am asking Him not to let me forget. Every cloud I see in the sky makes me believe that He is about to send the rain. And, with that, I am asking that He would also reign over this great nation with His mighty power once again.
It is time. Jesus, please come with mercy.
