PRAYING

. . . here am I, send me!

O God, how long will the adversary reproach? Will the enemy blaspheme Your name forever? . . . Have respect to the covenant; for the dark places of the earth are full of the haunts of cruelty. Arise, O God, plead Your own cause . . . Do not forget the voice of Your enemies; the tumult of those who rise up against You (Psalm 74:10, 20, 22-23).

Lord, we are so disturbed by the voices of hatred around us. The atheist of our time are crusaders. They do not passively reject You. They want atheism as the national standard. No god is to be acknowledged publicly. Christian voices are silenced. Christian ideas are repressed. Intimidated by the angry mood of the dominant culture, we have retreated. A political crusade can't change hearts. New laws are not the answer. Light up the inner hearts of ordinary people. Restore the law of conscience. Whole sections of our cities look like war zones after dark. Residents hide behind multiple locks. We avoid such neighborhoods. The crimes are no longer confined to a small corner of the city. Upscale neighborhoods house high-class criminals. We wait for You; You wait for us. Forgive us for asking You to act apart from us. For asking that we be released from the mission for which Jesus died. Calvary was a beachhead. How can we now abandon the mission? How can we refuse to go for others, since You came for us? We have been out of the fight too long. We avoided the call to battle. We wanted an exemption. "Send others," we prayed. There are no others to send. We either respond now or lose the nation. "Rise up, God, defend your cause!" Amen.