Tag Archives: Prayer
America has scrubbed almost every hint of religion from the public square. Prayer is gone from public schools. The Ten Commandments are taken out of courthouses. But one display of religion has been spared the axe: legislative prayer.
Every year since 1952, the first Thursday in May is dedicated to prayer. As Christians, prayer should not just be a spiritual discipline that we exercise on the National Day of Prayer. Rather, prayer should be characteristic of our everyday life.
Illinois State Representative Grasse was called upon today to give the opening prayer in that chamber. Instead of taking a few minutes to thank God for His goodness and then humbly ask for His help, wisdom and direction for their work, she decided to lead the assembled officials in a moment of utter irreverence.
Posted in Faith, Illinois Politics
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Tagged Benjamin Franklin, Bhramari Pranayama, Constitutional Convention, George Washington, Hinduism, Illinois House of Represenatitves, Nicolle Grasse, Prayer, Tibetan chanting, yoga
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Dear Christians in Illinois—let us humbly pray to God Almighty for our nation and our state.
Pray faithfully in secret and grow in your prayer life by reading God’s written revealed Word and responding with heartfelt praise, sincere thanks, and bold-and-specific petitions for Christ’s church, candidates, and other civil magistrates. If you are a pastor pray faithfully and regularly in your Lord’s Day worship services for our state, our nation and the nations.
Posted in Faith, Marriage/Family/Culture, Religious Liberty, Sanctity of Life, Sexuality
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Tagged Abortion, candidates, Illinois Family Institute, John Calvin, local elections, Prayer, Voting
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Many, if not most (dare I say all of us), who belong to Christ need to pray more. We need to call upon the Lord with confidence that He cares more than we do. He knows more than we do. He has resources far beyond what we have, and He is far more just, wise, loving, and kind than any of us are. Prayer cannot be an afterthought for the believer.
In a world where so many of the challenges in our state, our nation, and our world seem insurmountable, where should we start? In a world where many of our neighbors and even some self-professing Christians believe prayers are useless and the only thing that counts is “good deeds,” how should we as Christians respond?
Which side are you on? Do you know? There are only two. From the moment you get up in the morning until you go to sleep at night, you take one side or the other.
Posted in Child Exploitation, CRT/Racism/BLM, Faith, Federal, Islam & Sharia, Marriage/Family/Culture, Pornography, Religious Liberty, Sanctity of Life, Sexuality
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Tagged C.S. Lewis, Hamas, Illinois General Assembly, Israel, JB Pritzker, LGBTQ, Martin Luther, National Sex Ed Standards, Ole Hallesby, Prayer, SB 818, The Screwtape Letters, Which Side?
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Never underestimate a heart of hatred. Every day in the news there are acts of unspeakable brutality around our world. Over the last several days, Israel has witnessed again just how deep the work of the Evil One can unfold in a human heart. On Wednesday of this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed his nation detailing atrocities that had occurred during the terrorist incursion into Israel last weekend. It wasn’t just killing. It was how people died.
Posted in Faith, Islam & Sharia, Religious Liberty, Sanctity of Life
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Tagged Benjamin Netanyahu, E.M. Bounds, global jihad, Hamas, Israel, jihad, Khalid Mashal, Prayer, President Biden, Terrorism, the Friday of Al-Aqsa flood, The Weapon Taking On Jihad
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As Christians, we have the amazing freedom of coming before the throne of the Almighty, Holy, Omnipresent, All-Powerful Creator of the universe to petition Him in prayer – without being destroyed – because of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. It’s an incredible privilege, and what’s more, we’re told in James 5:16b that “the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” Prayer is powerful because we are talking to a powerful God. As we wrestle against “the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12), prayer is one of the strongest weapons we have.
Posted in Faith, Federal, Illinois Politics, Marriage/Family/Culture, next gen, Religious Liberty, Sanctity of Life
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Tagged 40 Days for Life, Abby Johnson, Abortion, Planned Parenthood, Prayer, The Power of Prayer
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Did you know? When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Joe Kennedy, the high school football coach who fought for his right to pray after games, they overturned a decision that had long restricted religious expression in public schools. This was a historically significant ruling that restores the civil rights of teachers, coaches and employees across America to live out their faith and pray on a public school campus.
Posted in Religious Liberty
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Tagged ACLU, Hiram Sasser, Joe Kennedy, Kelly Shackelford, Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, Lemon Test, Lemon v. Kurtzman, People for the American Way, Prayer, SCOTUS, U.S. Supreme Court
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40 Days for Life is an internationally coordinated 40-day campaign that aims to end abortion locally through prayer and fasting, community outreach, and a peaceful all-day vigil in front of abortion businesses.
IFI, along with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, Concern Women for America and thirteen other Christian organizations, filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court this week in favor of Coach Joe Kennedy, who was fired from a public school in Washington State because he prayed briefly at the 50-yard line after football games.
I don’t know about you, but I find God’s instructions in Deuteronomy 6:6-7 both challenging and convicting. It’s in this passage that God commands parents to teach their children in His ways diligently—as we sit at home, walk along the way, rise up, lie down, and so on.
In other words, we’re basically supposed to be training our children in the ways of God all the time. It’s a constant, unending priority. If you’ve got kids, one of your primary job descriptions as a human being is to be your child’s diligent teacher.
It’s a responsibility I want to take …
In the past several weeks, we’ve seen a hard progressive push toward more radical legalizations to abortion. The state of New York recently passed a law that would permit abortions up to the moments of birth. There have been discussions to allow the ability to have an “abortion” even moments after birth. (Process that with me for a moment). As a Christian husband, father and a Pastor, I am terribly saddened, disgusted and broken over the moral DNA of our culture and most of our officials in Washington.
So, what are we to do? How can we respond?
Here are …