A week ago, I heard multiple political commentators predict that an assignation attempt was imminent with the man poised to receive the Republican nomination for President of the United States. Indeed, for many months, our country has felt like a powder keg ready to ignite.
That keg exploded on Saturday.
We all watched in horror as a political rally ended with a beloved husband and father dead, two others critically wounded, and blood pouring from the ear of our former President as a bullet narrowly missed his brain.
The truth we live in today is stranger than fiction. And like you, I have many questions about how something like this could happen. Those questions must be asked and answered.
But as believers, we know those answers won’t heal what divides this nation. Neither will a political party or a politician or another piece of legislation.
Healing comes from a higher source.
Only God can heal what divides our country. And as believers, we have a part to play in that healing. We must lead the way. In Episode 110 of CHRISTIAN PARENT/CRAZY WORLD, I share 9 ways we can be agents of healing in our deeply divided nation. This article offers a brief overview of those guidelines.
The root of what ails this nation is spiritual, so the first five guidelines focus on spiritual remedies. The following four address ways to calm the vitriolic nature of our political discourse by humanizing those we disagree with and emphasizing the deeper spiritual need.
To be agents of healing in our nation, we must:
1. Seek God’s perspective for our nation first.
We all have a favorite news outlet, commentator, or podcast host. When breaking news hits, there are certain voices I want to hear. And too often I go to those sources before seeking the Source of everything.
We must remember that God’s opinion is the only opinion that matters, and we have an open invitation to spend time with Him. Because of Christ’s work on the cross, we can now commune with the Creator of the Universe, the One who is sovereign and in control.
We can do this anytime, anywhere. But hearing His still small voice requires discipline and solitude. Jesus repeatedly gave us the example of how to commune with God. He retreated from the crowds that were constantly vying for his attention in order to pray (Luke 22:39-51).
My pastor recently said that it takes him a good twenty minutes of soaking in God’s presence before he can shift his mind from the cares of this world to seeking the mind of Christ. Hearing from God takes concentrated time and commitment. We must lock the door, turn off the TV, silence the phone, and focus on Him. God longs to commune with us, to guide us and reveal His Word to us—but too often, we are so distracted by a deafening world that we cannot hear His quiet voice.
If we want to be agents of healing in this deeply divided world, we must spend a lot of time with the Healer. We have to make communing with Jehovah Rapha our top priority.
2. Fast regularly.
I don’t particularly enjoy fasting, but I do enjoy what it produces. Fasting creates ears that hear God’s voice and hearts attuned with His will. This powerful spiritual discipline disengages us from the world and engages us with the heart of God.
Scripture is clear about what fasting accomplishes. Jesus fasted in his ministry here on earth, and when instructing his disciples, He emphasized that certain miracles could only be accomplished through prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21, Mark 9:29). Combined with intercession, fasting breaks strongholds (2 Corinthians 10:4).
Fasting can take many forms. Traditionally, fasting consists of abstaining from all food or certain foods for a period of time in order to focus on the Lord. But we can also fast from the news, social media, and other distractions. This practice extracts us from the world while drawing us closer to God. And drawing closer to God is the best way to facilitate healing in our world.
3. Prioritize prayer for our nation and leaders.
I know this seems obvious, but how often do we fail to pray for our leaders on both sides of the aisle? I know that I am guilty of this. We want our leaders to seek God, but are we praying for them to encounter God? We want our nation to be unified, but are we praying for the revival needed for unity to come?
We must pray specifically for our governing leaders. Start with Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, J.D. Vance, Chuck Schumer (Senate Majority Leader), Mike Johnson (Speaker of the House), our Supreme Court Justices, your state and local congressmen and women, your governor and mayor, and anyone else God lays on your heart.
If you don’t know what to pray, start with Scripture. Pray that:
- God would give our leaders a spirit of wisdom and revelation so they would know Him better. Pray that the eyes of their hearts would be enlightened so that they may know the hope to which God has called them, the riches of His glorious inheritance in His holy people, and His incomparably great power for those who believe (Ephesians 1:17-19).
- Pray for God to create a pure heart and renew a right spirit within them (Psalm 51:10).
- Pray that they would know the truth and the truth would set them free (John 8:32).
Download this FREE RESOURCE containing a list of Scriptures to pray for our nation and a bookmark with our governing leaders to aid your prayer journey.
It is really hard to hate someone when you are praying for them. Jesus told us to pray for our enemies because prayer unifies us (Matthew 4:44). This is our faith in action, and the Christian faith is the only hope we have for unity in this world.
4. Pray as a family
Get together with your whole family at least once a week and pray for our nation and our leaders. You could do this every night at the dinner table or before bed with your spouse and young kids.
We need to model what it means to intercede for our nation with our children. Our kids learn how to pray from us. This is what it means to train up our children in the way that they should go (Proverbs 22:6).
If that makes you feel uncomfortable, or you are worried about what to say, use these Scriptures as your foundation. And remember this—prayer warriors aren’t born, they are formed. God isn’t looking for a perfect prayer. He is looking for you to participate. So make it a point to pray for our country as a family.
5. Pray corporately.
I know that most of us don’t have time to add one more thing to our schedules. For years, I didn’t go to our church’s 6 a.m. Monday morning prayer meeting because I have young kids and I’m not a morning person and it is really far away and… (etc., etc., etc.) But this year, we decided to prioritize prayer. Every Monday, dark and early, we get the kids up and we pray with our church family.
And something I never expected happened—this is honestly my favorite hour of the week.
I’ve learned that God will meet you at the place of your sacrifice. In that precious hour of prayer, we intercede for our nation and our leaders.
2 Chronicles 4:14-16 gives us the prescription for a country’s restoration:
“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.”
We are God’s people, called by His name. If we want God to heal our land, the church needs to prioritize prayer. There is power when we gather with other believers to pray. (Matthew 18:19-20) Commit to a weekly church prayer meeting or small group and intercede for our nation with fellow believers.
These next four guidelines should be implemented in our relationships, especially when we find ourselves in conversations with people who are on the other side of the political aisle:
6. Challenge policies, not people.
While our political views must be influenced by our faith, they must not come before our faith. Our faith must inform our politics, not the other way around. If we get that order wrong, we will inevitably prioritize our position over the people we disagree with.
In a politically charged conversation, remember that God deeply loves the person you are talking to. Don’t let their controversial or offensive beliefs obscure what they really need.
And to be clear, it isn’t your enlightenment they need most—it is Christ. You can’t heal the divide in our country. But Christ can.
Express your views in a way that glorifies the God who made you—and the God who made those who oppose you. We must not be more intent on being right than being righteous. That means we must never prioritize our political position over people. If we do, we will further the divide between us.
7. Respect, don’t ridicule.
The news media and social media are rampant with vile characterizations of our leaders and their followers. Nasty labels are an easy way to score cheap points in the game of politics. It is easier to discount someone who is a racist, fascist, communist, sexist, or bigot than it is to contend with their ideas.
In the field of debate, using a nasty label is called an ad hominem attack. Such tactics signify that the debater has a weak argument. But more importantly, such tactics do not glorify God.
As Christians, we must avoid the trap of labeling then discarding our opponents. That is how the world works. That is not how God works.
As Christians, we are called to honor our leaders, not emulate them (1 Peter 2:13-17). The fact that our leaders sometimes hurl hateful labels at each other and at us is not an excuse for us to do the same. We must respect people we disagree with and honor our leaders if we want to be agents of healing in our country.
8. Don’t assume a motive.
This is probably the most pervasive but overlooked mistake people make in political discussions. We know what someone’s political position is, and we assume that we know why they hold that position.
But we don’t. Consider this: God condemns sins like greed and envy in Scripture, but He doesn’t allow men or women to administer a punishment for those sins.
Why not?
Because we’re not qualified to do so. Judging greed and envy is above our pay grade.
God allows us to judge another person’s actions, but He does not allow us to judge another person’s motives. Because only God is qualified to judge a sin of the heart.
So, when someone supports a candidate or a policy, do not assume that you know why. Do not suggest a person’s political position makes them a… fill in the blank. Do not assume someone’s political position is rooted in prejudice or hate.
Debate the method, not the motive, because you don’t really know what motivates another person. You can only judge how effective their methods are at accomplishing the goal. And remember, when we assume a sinister motive in someone, we deepen the divide between us.
9. Recognize that what really persuades people is not an ARGUMENT, but an EXPERIENCE.
So often the beliefs people hold are not deeply contemplated and thoroughly rationalized positions. And even if they are, those positions will cave like a house of cards when presented with an experience that contradicts it. Personal experience trumps an argument every time.
We must converse in such a way that people will want to experience the God we know. If we fail to do this, we may win the argument, and yet push that precious life farther from God, and in doing so we will increase this deep and dangerous political divide in our country.
Let’s end with a prayer for our country:
Dear Heavenly Father, our nation has lost its way. You are the answer. You are the remedy to what ails our land. You are our hope. Bring conviction, truth, life, direction, and protection to our leaders. Purify us. Make us holy. Convict us. Forgive us. Restore us. Unite us. Heal us, and heal our land so that we might glorify your holy name. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, Amen.
To learn more about how you can be an agent of healing in our nation, listen to Episode 110 of CHRISTIAN PARENT/CRAZY WORLD, and subscribe at Catherine’s website to receive a FREE list of Scriptures to pray over our nation and bookmark with the names of our governing leaders. If you like what you read from Catherine today, be sure subscribe to her podcast on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode!
Catherine recently wrote a follow-up to this piece, which you can read on her website: https://catherinesegars.com/2024/07/23/ears-to-hear-discovering-gods-voice-amidst-the-chaos-in-our-nation/
Photo credit: ©SWN/Image created using DALL.E 2024 AI technology
Catherine Segars is an award-winning actress and playwright—turned stay-at-home-mom—turned author, speaker, podcaster, and motherhood apologist. This homeschooling mama of five has a Master’s Degree in Communications and is host of Life Audio’s Christian Parent/Crazy World (named 2022 Best Kid’s and Family Podcast by Spark Media), a podcast that navigates through tough cultural and theological topics to help parents establish a sound Biblical foundation for their children. She is also an award-winning writer whose regular articles on family, faith, and culture reach hundreds of thousands of readers. You can find Catherine’s work at www.catherinesegars.com.
Listen to Catherine's FREE Christian Apologetics Podcast for Parents - Christian Parent, Crazy World, available now at LifeAudio.com!
