P-R-A-Y.
Why is this word so significant? Why is it so especially powerful in the lives of believers? Further, why has the United States as a nation gone from a praying nation, to a nation without prayer? I think all these questions lead to very interesting answers. But let's begin with what Jesus said, "Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart" (See Luke 18:1). So if Jesus the Son of God instructed his own disciples to pray always, then it is obvious that we should continue with a life of prayer. Prayer has historically been the primary way to communicate with our Heavenly Father about our needs and desires and more importantly his will for our lives. To stop this communication would be like ceasing to breathe, correct? In this series I would like to show two things: 1) the result of a nation that ceases to pray and the results of that decision and 2) the hopeful expectation for persons that continue to pray for answers when they are faced with the problems from not praying. Although I feel I entertain a very small audience with this devotional, I'm convinced I serve a God with a much broader audience and by providing you with words of encouragement you can likewise encourage someone else. Let's look at some facts about the U.S. courtesy of the Department of Justice, Center for Disease Control and Census Bureau.
Since the Supreme Court ruled prayer in schools unconstitutional at the behest of atheist Madalyn Murray O'Hair in 1963, we have experienced the following:
This is all from the years 1964 until 2006. Shall I continue?
Is this just a coincidence? I don't think so. Just this past March, a new study found that 1 in 4 teenage girls (ages 14-19) has a STD (sexually transmitted disease). I apologize for beating you down with statistics, but in writing this I had to confirm what I had been hearing from youth workers and youth pastors. A large number of our children (ages 19& under) in this society have been raised without the influence of prayer in their lives. And that has to account for the decay in moral values and the desensitization that is so prevalent in our society. So, what can be done? Is there an answer to this growing problem? My suggestion in the next devotional.