OPINION:
After months of primaries, hundreds of stump speeches, scores of interviews, a few debates, two conventions and far too many far too heated arguments conducted face to face and keyboard to keyboard over political disagreements, America is just 13 days away from Election Day 2024.
Polls indicate most of us have made up our minds about who and (in the case of ballot initiatives) what we’re going to vote for. So, what’s the best way to spend our time between now and Nov. 5? What’s the most productive, the most impactful, thing left for us to do?
Pray.
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Now is the time in this election cycle to turn away from the pundits and turn to the Prince of Peace. As 1 Timothy 2:8 exhorts us: “I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling.”
And it’s important to remember the reality into which we will speak our prayers. Consider Psalm 121:1-2. In the ESV translation, it begins, “I lift my eyes up to the hills.” Notice the “h” is lowercase: We are not looking for ultimate guidance, for the assurance of hope, to Capitol Hill with an uppercase “h.” The rest of the passage reads, “From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” It does not say, “My help comes from the White House, or the Senate, or the Congress, or the statehouse, or the county government complex or the mayor’s office.”
Make no mistake, the men and women who fill these offices of government are important to our nation, state, and communities. But in our prayers for our nation, state, and communities, we must lift our eyes, and our voices, to a higher and more important power. It is our right, our responsibility, and our privilege, to vote. But it is God’s plan that will be fulfilled – even if the results of the election leave us disappointed. He remains on the throne even if the candidate(s) for whom we cast ballots don’t remain in, or get elected to, the positions they’re seeking.
What then, shall we pray? Here are six – and this is critical – nonpartisan prayers we can offer up over the next couple of weeks.
1. Prayer for Divine Guidance
“Heavenly Father, as we approach this presidential election, we seek Your guidance. Grant us wisdom to discern the candidates’ hearts and intentions. Help us to choose leaders who will honor You and lead our nation with integrity and justice. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
2. Prayer for Righteous Leadership
“Lord, we pray for righteous leaders to be elected who will uphold Your values and serve the people with humility and grace. May those in positions of power be filled with Your wisdom and compassion. We trust in Your sovereignty over this election. Amen.”
3. Prayer for Unity and Peace
“Dear God, in a time of division and strife, we ask for unity among our people. Help us to engage in respectful dialogue and to love our neighbors, regardless of political differences. May Your peace reign in our hearts and communities during this election season. Amen.”
4. Prayer for the Candidates
“Lord, we lift up all the candidates running for office. Protect them and their families, and may they seek Your will in their campaigns. Give them clarity of purpose and a heart for service. May they be guided by Your truth and righteousness. Amen.”
5. Prayer for the Nation
“Almighty God, we pray for our nation during this election. Heal our land and bring us back to You. May we turn from our ways and seek Your face, trusting that You will hear our prayers and heal our nation. In Your mercy, we ask for Your intervention. Amen.”
6. Prayer for Voter Participation
“Father, we pray that all eligible voters will participate in this election. May they be informed and motivated to exercise their right to vote. Help us to remember the importance of our voices in shaping the future of our country. Amen.”
Perhaps there is no better last word on the subject covered here than this one from our country’s first president. George Washington wrote this, in a letter to the states on June 8, 1783, less than three months before the end of the Revolutionary War and about six years before he became the leader of the nation that military victory birthed:
“I now make it my earnest prayer, that God would … most graciously be pleas’d to dispose us all to do Justice, to love mercy and to demean ourselves, with that Charity, humility & pacific temper of mind, which were the Characteristicks of the Divine Author of our blessed Religion & without an humble imitation of whose example in these things, we can never hope to be a happy Nation.”
Amen.
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Gary Schneeberger is assistant to the president for media relations at Focus on the Family.
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