I urge ... that requests, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for everyone -- for kings and all those in authority. 1 Timothy 2:1-2
God commands us to pray for those who rule over us. The rulers are really God's representatives over His people. We are to view them as ministers of God who are "appointed" by Him for our good and to punish evil.
Our rulers are in need of our prayers. They need them first of all because they are human and are subject to the same human frailties and sins as we are. Therefore, we are commanded by God to pray for them. We pray that God will give them wisdom in making their decisions because many of these decisions have worldwide implications. We also pray for their physical safety. It seems that our rulers' lives are in constant danger, and assassination has always been a part of our world history.
All of us have to confess that we often forget to pray for those who rule over us. We are very quick in criticism of them. While we have the right to be critical of our leaders. We also have the responsibility to pray for them. We ask God's forgiveness for our failure to pray for our rulers. Jesus died and rose again to redeem us from this sin also.
PRAYER: Father in heaven, we pray for those in authority over us. Cause them to be guided by Your Spirit; for Jesus' sake. Amen.
(Devotions from "The Abundant Life" copyright 1998, CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time e-mailing of this link to a friend. For information on other devotional material, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit CPH at www.cph.org.)
Today's Bible Readings: Jeremiah 43-44 Hebrews 11:20-40
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