Radically liberal Democrats control most of our government; their power seems almost unstoppable.  With Al Franken in the senate, a filibuster proof majority is pretty much achieved. Just about everything we have come to know as “American” is in danger.  Fighting along traditional political lines is a necessary endeavor, but I fear that in and of itself it will prove to be insufficient.  The odds are against us for the foreseeable future, because we are in more than a political battle—we are also in a spiritual one.   We need supernatural assistance to prevent further descent down the slippery slope toward socialism and self-destruction.

It seems fair to state that, in many ways, our government is steadily attempting to turn away from the ideals of our founding fathers and away from God.  Please help spread the idea that our combined prayers across the nation would be a powerful weapon against the evils occurring in our country.    History proves that nations who rely on God can count on his assistance and mercy.  Here is but one biblical example:

“All Judah was standing before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their young sons.  And the spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel,  …, and He said, “Listen, all of Judah, inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat!  The Lord says to you; “Do not fear or lose heart at the sight of this vast multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s.   Go down against them tomorrow.  You will see them coming up the ascent of Ziz, and you will come upon them at the end of the wadi which opens on the wilderness of Jeruel.  You will not have to fight in this encounter.  Take your places, stand firm, and see how the Lord will be with you to deliver you, Judah and Jerusalem.  Do not fear or lose heart.  Tomorrow go out to meet them, and the Lord will be with you. …In the morning, they hastened out to the wilderness of Tekoa.  As they were going out, Jehoshaphat halted and said:  “Listen to me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem!  Trust in the Lord, your God, and you will be found firm.  Trust in his prophets and you will succeed.”  After consulting with the people, he appointed some to sing to the Lord and some to praise the holy Appearance as it went forth at the head of the army.  They sang:  “Give thanks to the Lord, for his mercy endures fovever.”  At the moment they began their jubilant hymn, the Lord laid an ambush against the Ammonites, Moabites, and those of Mount Seir who were coming against Judah, so that they were vanquished.  For the Ammonites and Moabites set upon the inhabitants of Mount Seir and completely exterminated them.  And when they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they began to destroy each other.”  (2 Chronicles 13-23, New American Bible)

So, should we pray that Democrats (those who hold what seem to be anti-American ideals) destroy each other?  Should we pray for their conversion to more solid Judeo-Christian values?   Should we pray, more specifically, that God will pluck Barack Obama  from his motorcade, knock his BlackBerry from his hand, and President Saul will convert to Paul?   Should we pray for our own increased power to make positive changes in America?   Most preferably, we need to pray for God’s assistance and that His Will be done (likely far better than we can imagine).  If we don’t let Him down, He won’t let us down, either.

Here is one suggestion that could be done in the near future.  August 4 is the date of President Barack Obama’s birthday.  Unfortunately, our country elected a president who defends “fourth trimester” abortion, who’s working toward nationalizing healthcare (which will further fund abortion), who’s on a warpath toward socialism….there’s probably no need to repeat the list.  Yet, he is our elected leader and needs our prayers . . . for his conversion.

Please consider joining me in this Christian endeavor and spreading this invitation to prayer far and wide:  

The Event:  A Celebration of Barack Obama’s Birthday

 

The Theme: America’s return to its Judeo-Christian values, starting with our president.

 

The Date and Time:  August 4, 2009, between 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. (the hour of our Savior’s death and the Hour of Divine Mercy)

 

The Place:  Wherever you happen to be at the time

 

BYOP:  Bring your own prayer/s, or consider praying the ones below:

There are many ways to pray for God’s intercession for the conversion of Barack Obama. What’s most important is that we join together in prayer.  “Again (amen) I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.  For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”  (Matthew 18:  12-20).

According to Catholic belief, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. is a special time to implore God’s mercy.   St. Faustina says of this hour:

“At three o’clock, implore My mercy, especially for sinners; and, if only for a brief moment, immerse yourself in My Passion, particularly in My abandonment at the moment of agony. This is the hour of great mercy … In this hour I will refuse nothing to the soul that makes a request of Me in virtue of My Passion.” (Diary of St. Faustina 1320)

Here is my own prayer for Barack Obama’s conversion (and please consider sharing yours):

Heavenly Father, our Supreme Leader and Creator of our beautiful land:  our nation was founded upon our desire to freely worship You.  We acknowledged our dependence upon you, and we prospered.   We remain ever dependent upon You– for our strength, our security, our freedom, our blessings, and our future. 

 

We especially pray for President Obama, on his birthday, for his conversion to leadership based on our Judeo-Christian heritage and the ideals of our founding fathers.    May he better acknowledge the Ten Commandments.  May he use his power to protect the unborn, the elderly, and every human being.    May he come to trust in the greatness and potential of our citizens, who benefit from encouragement and opportunities to be responsible.  May he come to realize that our fine country is indeed great and that we need not apologize for who we are.  May our president help set a good example for other countries to emulate, rather than encouraging us to be brought down with nations that have turned their backs on You. 

 

We take solace in the examples of miraculous conversions throughout history.  We place our faith, hope and trust in You.  We derive our courage from You alone.  Divine Leader, continue to bless and have mercy on our country.   Amen.   

However you decide to pray, bear in mind the wise words of Alexis de Tocqueville, spoken after his visit to America in 1831:

 “I sought for the greatness of the Unites States in her commodious harbors, her ample rivers, her fertile fields, and boundless forests—and it was not there.  I sought for it in her rich mines, her vast world commerce, her public school system, and in her institutions of higher learning—and it was not there.  I looked for it in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution—and it was not there.  Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power.  America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great!”

When reading the following verses from Lamentations (of the “New American Bible”), I can’t help but think of those who recently celebrated in Chicago’s Grant park:

The joy of our hearts has ceased,
Our dance has turned into mourning.
The garlands have fallen from our heads;
Woe to us, for we have sinned!
Over this our hearts are sick,
At this our eyes grow dim:
That Mount Zion should be desolate,
With jackals roaming there! (Ch 5, 15-18)

We have endured poor presidents and hard times periodically in the past, but with Barack Obama as our leader, will we actually hit rock bottom? Will we find ourselves like the Isrealites in the sixth century B.C. in an age of crisis, with nowhere to turn, but back to God?

*Look , O Lord, upon my distress:
All within me is ferment,
My heart recoils within me
From my monstrous rebellion.
In the streets the sword bereaves,
At home death stalks. *

Give heed to my groaning;
There is no one to console me.
All my enemies rejoice at my misfortune. (Ch 1, 20-21)

Our nation will almost for certain experience some harder times ahead. Deceit and denial of truth, especially moral truths, lead to chaos and reduction of freedom. Yet, in our nation, we still have many great thinkers and moral people who will have the clarity of mind to help lead us in the right direction and who will not stand for the destruction of our basic principles. Also, there may well be many people who will have a conversion of heart and soul, who will turn to the true God.

As I watched the throngs in Grant Park cry their tears of joy, (and in some cases, “pray” to the “Obamamessiah”), I prayed to God for them and for our country. I’m sure I was not the only one.

You, O Lord are enthroned forever;
Your throne stands from age to age.
Why, then should you forget us,
Abandon us so long a time?
Lead us back to you, O Lord, that we may be
Restored:
Give us anew such days as we had of old. (Ch 5, 19-21)

Perhaps it was due to getting married, settling down, and the thoughts of starting a family, but in the year 2000, the moral significance of the presidential election seemed of particular importance to me. My husband and I prayed fervently for God to have mercy on our country. The fact that we had to wait six weeks for an answer seemed to add credence to the moral state of our country. We prayed our thanksgiving when George W. was finally elected.

We were soon blessed with a pregnancy. Our baby was due on September 11, 2001. Thankfully, he was born late. The news seemed all the more frightening, however, with the thought of bringing an innocent newborn into the sufferings of this world. I felt some twinges of guilt. At the same time, there was comfort in witnessing that our nation seemed to repond to 9/11 by showing its patriotism, respecting our president, and acknowledging our need for God. Church attendance around the nation increased tremendously. Yes, in time of great fear, we turned to God. President Bush took the protection and security of our nation seriously, which was appreciated by most. Sadly, though, as fears began to subside, the respect for our president and the increase in faith (which obviously had been weak), started to decline. Inversely related was the increased ranting of a number of “educated”/pseudo-intellectuals who proclaimed that our country deserved the terrorist attacks. A faux guilt complex became more prevalent than it should have. Anit-war sentiment set in relatively quickly.

Over subsequent years, as had been the case over decades’ time, our country continued to turn from God. Though a step “behind” Europe, many looked to Europe as a trend setter–the modern, sophisticated way to be. Never mind that as Europe rejected God, suicide rates increased, birth rates decreased, and abortion rates skyrocketed. Never mind that Europe was on its way to losing its identity and being taken over by radical Muslims. We became increasingly attracted to the evil and less confident of what is right and true. We felt an obligation to be “open” and to defend evil.

Moral relativism became more rampant, as did bold indoctrination in schools, selfishness, and increased depravity of the media. Many who wished to appear “good” obssessed with topics such as gender and racial equality and protection of the environment. Unfortunately, these tended to be disguises for further moral decline (e.g. reverse discrimination, a turn from natural law, and population control).

The subtleties of political correctness and moral relativism began to give way to blatant displays of atheism and hatred toward what is true and good. Like so many times in the history of mankind, many Americans wanted to play God. Also, as per history, whenever a nation tries to do so, the effects on the economy end up disasterous. When our economy did take a dive, it was all too easy to blame President Bush and the Rupublicans without doing any research on true underying causes (especially the policies of many of the Democrats). Couple the economic problems with ongoing war, and a nation in a state such as ours was simply not in shape to withstand suffering or sacrifices.

Then came the luring words of Barack Obama. His rhetoric should not have been luring at all, but to a culture that is less able and willing to distinguish between good and evil, Obama’s words were music to peoples’ ears. What self-interested person wouldn’t want to hear that their salary “should” be increased (e.g. nurses and teachers? Welfare, described as such or not, is alluring to many. The “magic” formula of “change,,” “hope,” and “courage,” along with the candidate being the correct color (to make the faux guilty feel good), and his having made poor moral choices (the attraction of evil) made him the preferred candidate for this election. Thus, it is not so hard for me to understand why women around me actually giggle when they here about Obama’s nefarious past associations. No fear there. Alarming numbers of Americans are angered and revolted by what is good, innocent, and true. “The One” who subscribes to a culture of death, who has a record consistent with socialism, and who associates with anti-American/anti-Christian people, was the obvious choice.

The problem is, for all Americans, we haven’t had to suffer the effects of an Obama presidency yet. The effects of evil won’t spare those attracted to it. Many will be disappointed when promises are broken. Words can’t fix the “all important” economy. The welfare recipients will be further enabled to be dependent, which leads to further breakdown of families. Broken families hurt the economy. Increased taxes harm the economy. Radical ideas about care of the environment, as evidenced by recent history, harm the economy.

Who will best be able to withstand the effects of our moral decline? God will leave the unfaithful to their chosen destiny, but happily, within our country there also remains a strong culture of life. The many good and faithful people will not bring themselves to extinction. In the words of Jesus himself, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower, He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does, he prunes so that it bears more fruit (John 15, 1-2).

I can’t say that I am devoid of fear, given our nation’s choice for president. The fact that we are expecting baby number four in two weeks reminds me of the original twinges of guilt I had with Baby #1. I do look forward to offering up the temporary suffering of childbirth for my family and for our country. When the suffering is over, I will see face to face another miracle–another living reason for hope–a change I can truly believe in, and an authentic reason for courage. Life will do that.