Each year the President of the United States delivers a State of the Union address. Every year presidents try to paint a picture of their party’s successes and show us how much our country needs what their administration has to offer. Depending on your worldview and the person in office, you may agree or disagree with their assessment.

But as important as the political and economic state of our country is, as Christians, we should be even more concerned about the spiritual state of our country. Are you? And what can we do about it?

Welcome, to “God’s Word Day by Day” where I blog through the Bible in a Year. I hope you’ll join me every day. If you’re not already signed up, you can do it here. This year I’ve added a couple of new features. First, check out the “Free Resources” tab at the top. You’ll find a downloadable, printable PDF with “Going Deeper Study Questions” for each day’s post. And … this year, you’ll find the daily “Bible in a Year” posts on YouTube. When you sign up for the daily emails, you’ll receive a link to both the Soul Survival posts here and the YouTube videos. So, why wait? 

Today’s Readings:

Genesis 15 & 16
Psalm 5.1-7
Proverbs 2.6-9
Matthew 6.19-34

The Spiritual State of Our Country

Psalm 5.1-7:

Praying for Our Country

Yesterday, I mentioned praying Scripture back to God. As I read Psalms 5 in light of what has been going on in our country, I was struck by the need to pray this passage for our nation.

Here is Psalm 5 in its entirety:

⁴ For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
    evil may not dwell with you.
⁵ The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
    you hate all evildoers.
⁶ You destroy those who speak lies;
    the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.

⁷ But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
    will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
    in the fear of you.
⁸ Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
    because of my enemies;
    make your way straight before me.

⁹ For there is no truth in their mouth;
    their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
    they flatter with their tongue.
¹⁰ Make them bear their guilt, O God;
    let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
    for they have rebelled against you.

Basic Moral Truths

The United States has never been a perfect nation, no nation is. But we were once a nation that, as a whole, upheld what we would call Judeo-Christian principles. Whether people want to believe it or not, our nation was founded on those principles. That doesn’t mean every one of our founders was truly a Christian, but they believed in the basic moral truths of the Bible.

And God blessed us as a nation. It was a nation where the gospel flourished and people had the freedom to worship as they saw fit.

Of course, sin has always been with us, including racism and other kinds of immoral behavior. That is the human condition apart from the saving work of Jesus Christ. But when the gospel is embraced, hearts are changed.

I realize full well that people have done and continue to do evil things in the name of religion. That includes Christianity. But just because a person calls himself or herself a Christian does not make him or her a genuine follower of Christ. It was, is, and always will be true that a true follower of Christ will be changed as they grow in Him.

That doesn’t mean we don’t need to examine our hearts and lives and root out racism and other sinful attitudes and behaviors constantly. That is part of the process sometimes called progressive sanctification.

We Have an Enemy

The Psalmist had enemies. As a nation and as God’s people, we have an enemy, as well.

And it’s impossible to believe that the flourishing of the gospel made our enemy happy. And he has worked tirelessly and patiently to undermine all that is good and righteous in our nation and other Christian nations around the world. He has slowly eroded away our moral foundation. No-fault divorce. Abortion. Acceptance of cohabitation and so-called same-sex marriage. And the list goes on.

Where we once led the world in sending out missionaries for the gospel, we now export more than our share of evil. We have pressured other nations and our own people to accept things that God hates, including abortion and every kind of sexually immoral behavior. Corporations look the other way when foreign nations oppress their own people. Business leaders and politicians sell their souls for popularity and financial gain. And we have the audacity to think God will continue to bless it all.

Rottenness in Our Soul

The problems in our nation are bigger than any deadly virus. They’re bigger than who wins elections. The problem is rottenness in our very soul. Jesus said:

The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness (Matt. 6.22-23 ESV)!

And, as a nation, we seem intent on rushing toward more and more darkness.

Good News

The good news is that none of this is a surprise to God. He is still in control.

And as Psalm 5 tells us we can rejoice as we take refuge in Him. He promises to bless the righteous and cover us with His favor (Ps. 5.11-12).

But as believers, we must seek His heart and His help.

God Wants His People to Be Part of the Solution

God wants us to be part of the solution, but not in anger or some other sinful response. When asked about the greatest commandment, Jesus said:

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Matt 22.37-39 ESV).

And in Matthew 5.16, He said:

… let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

We are to do our best to live righteous lives so others will see Christ in us. And, while we can’t pretend to agree with evil, we must demonstrate grace and mercy whenever possible (Rom. 12.17-21).

And we must pray.

Will You Pray with Me?

So, consider praying Psalm 5. Pray that God will deal with His enemies and watch over the righteous. But let Psalm 5 be just a starting point. Pray also like Paul instructed Timothy:

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, ² for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. ³ This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (ESV).

Today’s Other Readings:

Genesis 15 & 16:

Just a Suggestion God

Now to our Old Testament reading …

When God called Abram (Abraham) to leave his homeland, He told him that He would make a great nation from his descendants. But here in chapter 15, Abram is starting to wonder. He and Sarai are getting old, too old for children, so Abram makes a suggestion:

² But Abram said, ‘Lord God, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?’ ³ Then Abram said, ‘Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!’

But God didn’t need Abram’s suggestion. He had a plan.

⁴ And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.” ⁵ Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”

⁶ And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.

Abram believed God. He took Him at His Word. He trusted Him. So, it must have been smooth sailing from there on. Or was it?

Trying to Help God Out?

So what happened next in Abram’s life? What happened after this faith-filled response?

One chapter later … God still hadn’t given them a child, so Sarai came up with her own solution and Abram went along with it. She gave him her handmaiden Hagar as his wife so they could get the child they so desperately wanted. They got a child, but their relationships with Hagar and one another turned sour. How like us they were! How many times do we complicate our lives by trying to help God out?! Sometimes again and again.

Are You Trying to Help God?

Where in your life might you be trying to help God? Is there some prayer He just hasn’t answered?

Maybe it’s your marriage or the possibility of ever getting married. Maybe it’s your child, your spouse, your weight, or your finances. Or maybe it’s the mess our country is in.

I can’t promise that God will work the way that seems right to us or on our timetable, but I can promise that He is at work. He is faithful.

If your faith is floundering, get into His Word. Dig down deep. Cling to Him and His promises. Use a concordance to look up keywords. BibleGateway is easy to use. It’s online and it’s free. Read the Psalms. Pray them back to God as I talked about in today’s main section. Memorize passages of Scripture and meditate on them throughout the day.

But more than anything, learn to trust God. Trust in His sovereign control of your life. Trust that He knows better than you what you need and when.

Proverbs 2.6-9:

His Wisdom for the Upright

And from Proverbs. Verses 6-7:

For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly.

Let’s be sure to ask for it. We need it individually and as a nation.

Matthew 6.19-34:

Eternal Treasure

Now to our New Testament reading. This section of Scripture begins by encouraging us to store up eternal treasure, rather than treasuring the things of this world (Matt. 6.19-21).

What we treasure tells us a lot about our hearts. Sometimes, even good things can become far too important to us.

Wanting our children to be obedient is a good thing, but if we’re willing to sin (yelling, manipulating) to get it, we may desire it for the wrong reasons or want it too much.

Wanting our husbands to lead the family and grow spiritually is a good thing, but if we’re willing to nag, criticize, or become sinfully angry, we treasure it more than pleasing God (2 Cor. 5.9-10).

It wasn’t wrong for Abram and Sarai to want the child they were promised. Just as it isn’t wrong for any of us to desire a child. But when they took matters into their own hands and responded sinfully, they revealed their lack of trust in God to do what He had said he would do.

It’s not wrong to want our nation to get back to its roots but it’s wrong to take matters into our own hands in sinful ways.

Instead, we need to make pleasing God and bringing Him glory our greatest treasure. When we do, everything else will become lesser treasures and we can hold them in an open hand trusting God to give us what we need.

Don’t Worry, Seek His Kingdom

Finally, Matthew 6.25-33 contains one of two great passages about worry. The other is Philippians 4.6-8. If you struggle with the sin of worry, spend time meditating on these two passages. Instead of worrying, verse 33 says:

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

What things? The things He’s been talking about in the previous verses: food, shelter, clothing—provision—the things we need. And what does it mean to seek the kingdom of God? It’s seeking His right way of doing things; it’s what it’s like to have God as our King, as our Lord!

Coming Up:

As we continue through Genesis, we will read more about our spiritual ancestors, people so much like us. We will, also, talk about those things we need to put on the altar, knowing when it’s time to go, how we hide who we really are, and consider those scary words, “I never knew you!”

I hope you’ll join me and, if you haven’t already signed up, take the challenge to read through the Bible with me this year. Even though we may do it imperfectly or miss a day here and there, I find when we set it as a goal, we read far more of God’s Word than we ever would otherwise.

You can sign up here.

You can also follow me on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest. Just click on the social media icons. But nothing replaces having the daily devotion pop up in your inbox each day. It, generally, goes out at 6 a.m. MST.

Blessings as you grow in Christ,

Donna ♥

Note about this post:

I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer. 

I recently read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”

I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.

Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)

I sometimes LINKUP with these blogs.