We Have it All Wrong
The country has gone through a crazy weekend, with many scared and others hoping for change. It has been the talk of social media and conversations, but we have been forgetting one important detail :
Our leaders are human beings. Donald Trump is the President, but he is also a human. Oftentimes, we tend to deify our leaders, but there is only one God. The Son of God, Jesus Christ, came to Earth two millennia ago and died for our sins. To give up one’s life is an extraordinary act of love, and one that transcends all of time and history. Jesus is our hope and joy, and keep in mind that God has a plan, for all of us. God knows what will happen, and we should continue to pray for Go to help us, regardless of who is in charge.
In the middle ages, monarchs were considered to be placed in power by God, and thus, infallible. Obviously, they were not, and neither are our current leaders. One thing that has not changed since then is the need for prayers for our leaders from everyone. Even those in disagreement with their policies. I am going to say it was likely similar in other countries, but I’m going to use some examples from one of the most notorious English monarchs, Henry VIII. He had several people sentenced to death, and it was customary for nobility to be beheaded on a scaffold.
When the condemned mounted the scaffold, the individual was usually permitted to give a speech, and they would confess their guilt, ask for prayers for themselves, and most interestingly--- ask for and even sometimes prayers for the monarch, the same one who’s signature sent them to the scaffold. Forgiveness was not easy, ad one of the more famous instances of prayers for the monarch came from William Tyndale, condemned to burn for translating the Bible, a very serious crime back then. His last words were, “God, open the King of England’s eyes.”
If people at worse odds with their leadership than we are or likely will be, can pray for our leaders, so can we. Also, prayer for one another.
Lord, bless this country and be with our leaders, most notably Donald Trump, and comfort the sad ones, and help us heal.
Amen
