CAN YOU IMAGINE…?   #399

Good Morning, Meetpastordan, Readers…Pam and I were at a fund-raising event a couple of years ago that honored the leadership of an organization that helps the poor, the needy and the disenfranchised. At each place-setting was a card with this message: “Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith.  Where there is despair, hope. Where there is darkness, light.  And where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love.  For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying to self that we are born to eternal life.”  

Most of you will recognize this as the Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi.  I came across that card again yesterday when I was scavenging through a drawer looking for something else. I saw the card, then sat down and read and re-read it numerous times.   What beautiful words; what a timeless message, and what Truth!  I couldn’t help but think, “Can you imagine…?”

In this dark, perverted world in which we live today, the teachings of man have been exalted over the teachings of God. Therefore, the truth and the power of the Saint Francis Prayer have been, for the most part, snuffed-out. Today’s culture is characterized by sadness, hopelessness, and fear, which is fueled by hatred, anger, lying, and cheating. If you doubt that, I challenge you to turn on various news stations and compare the number of stories motivated by the attributes stated in the previous sentence, with the news-stories reflecting the attributes found in the Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi.

The offense of my last statement is enhanced even more when we realize that we are a nation that was founded on Judeo-Christian principles. When this great country lived and operated according to that blueprint, we experienced God’s blessings and were shielded by His protection. But unfortunately, we are now following the familiar path of every civilization or nation before its collapse. We have yielded to a world view that exalts secular teachings over God’s Word, and in order for that to work, God’s Word has to be ridiculed, marginalized and slandered at every opportunity. Just look around you; just listen to the news. Does this look like, or sound like paradise? What we are witnessing today is man’s best effort at playing God.

But, can you imagine what it would be like if someone were to step forward, clothed in humility and truth, exclaiming, “Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace and Your love?”  Wow! Would he be exalted as the answer to our prayers, or would he be stoned to death for having the courage to speak contrary to worldly thinking?  Is our country ready for Godly leadership, or has it bought into the ways of the world for so long that it wouldn’t even recognize the life-jacket that was being made available?  Obviously, all who read this will have their own opinion, but it doesn’t hurt to dream…right?

The Holy Bible is resplendent with stories regarding the rise and fall of individuals and nations.  Quite simply, when individuals or nations were in line with God’s will, they were blessed.  When they were disobedient and out of line with God’s will, there was calamity, wars, fire and brimstone!

The lessons to be learned here are as clear as the proclamation that was sounded by prophets throughout the ages: “Repent!  Turn from your sins and turn to God!”  When people yielded to this message, they experienced mercy, as stated in 2 Chronicles 7:14, “Then if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land.”  James 4:10 reinforces that message: “When you bow down (come in humility) and admit your dependence on the Lord, He will lift you up and give you honor.”  You can see the importance of humility (realizing your own insufficiency) in both of these Scriptures.  Contrast that with the teachings of man, which are patterned after Satan’s original lie in the Garden: “If you eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (as opposed to the tree of Life), you will become just like God In fact, you can be your own god.” (Ref. Genesis 2:17-18)

Now let’s look at those who follow the teachings of Jesus Christ.  We too are called to live according to the standards set forth in Saint Francis’ prayer, and we TOO know how hard it is to achieve that end!  In fact, humanly speaking, it is impossible for us to achieve it through our own effort.  But because we are in Christ, we have something the rest of the world doesn’t have.  It is our “secret weapon”. Our power comes when we realize our own insufficiency, and turn to the indwelling Holy Spirit. We ask Him to give us His wisdom, strength, courage, patience, insight, revelation, perseverance, whatever it is we need, to accomplish our calling. That is God’s gift to us so we can become the person He created us to be. (Ref. Ephesians 2:10)

Another challenging perspective contained in Saint Francis’ prayer is the stark contrast between this fallen world and the Kingdom of Heaven.  What is being replaced is “worldly attributes” with “Heavenly attributes.”  For instance, hatred is replaced with love, injury with pardon (mercy), doubt with faith, despair with hope, darkness (evil) with light (goodness), sadness with joy.  We are shifting the focus from “self”, and focusing on our fellow man: we are seeking to console rather than being consoled; we are seeking to understand rather than being understood; we are seeking to love rather than being loved; seeking to give rather than receiving, and seeking to forgive rather than being forgiven.  And the gift from all of this is knowing that ‘in dying to self, we are born to eternal life.”  Thank you, God!

Can you imagine a world like that?  There is one available to all Christ-followers…the Kingdom of Heaven.  As Christ-followers, we can begin experiencing the joy of that Kingdom perspective right here…right now.  But along with our joy comes these charges: to pray for revelation in the hearts and minds of those who do not know the Truth, and to pray for a leader who will have the anointing to lead our country back to its founding principles.

Can you imagine our nation fostering those principles??  I can!  I remember when our country had a moral compass; I remember when we recognized inalienable rights; I remember when this statement was revered: “All men are created equal”, and I remember when we pledged our allegiance to our country’s flag. Today, my solid foundation is found in this Scripture: “God works for the good in ALL things for those who love Him, and are called to His purpose.”  

I invite you to join me in prayer for this great country. James 5:16 tells us that “God reveres the prayers of the righteous.” Amen!

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May God Bless You…

Dan Presgrave (a.k.a. Pastor Dan)