“These likewise are the ones sown on rocky ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble.”

  - Mark 4.16, 17

The greatness of my zeal for your salvation is known to Him alone Who gave it, and my longing for the advance of your instruction; but since, in accordance with the Lord’s teaching, tribulation and persecution have arisen for the word’s sake, no other advice is now fitting for you, save that you beware lest you be that stony ground, which through the poorness of its soil cannot nourish the seed which it receives.

  - Columbanus, Letter to His Disciples, Irish, 7th century[1]

You may have noticed that the political season is upon us once again?

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is now the 15^th Republican to announce his candidacy. Meanwhile, 5 Democrats are vying for the job, and 1 Independent.

With all the campaign rhetoric, promises, and vituperation this portends, one could almost be persuaded global warming is caused by human activity.

So far we haven’t heard much from the Christian community in America about the upcoming campaign. Many believers are still licking their wounds, I suppose, from what they perceive to be a couple of Supreme Court thrashings. It will be interesting to see just how active American believers become – as citizens and ambassadors of the Kingdom of God – in this next round of political oiling and greasing.

The past few years have seen more books railing against the faith of Christ and the idea of God than in all my years as a Christian. Their titles have appeared on best-seller lists and their writers are treated like heroes among the cognoscenti of the academy and the media.

The secular world has put the Church on notice, that it’s had enough of our poking around the public square and messing with the morals of the land.

For four decades conservative Christians in this country believed that the way to moral retrenchment and cultural change was through government. We’ve invested scads of Kingdom rhetoric, resources, and resolve in trying to capture the political flag. Many times we managed to get the right people in office and on the courts; still, the erosion of values and the decline of our culture continue.

We just don’t get it.

Change comes through revival, which comes at God’s pleasure, in response to His people’s repenting of their sins and pleading with Him.

We quote the verses like we believe them: “If My people, who are called by My name...” But then we act as if they aren’t really true; we ignore their calls to repent, refuse to persevere in seeking the Lord for revival, and continue to believe that the next election will turn the corner and everything will begin to change.

We need to take Columbanus’ counsel to heart and “beware lest you be that stony ground, which through the poorness of its soil cannot nourish the seed which it receives.” Our own hard and unfruitful souls are the cause of America’s woes, not the political choices of the electorate.

It’s beginning to feel like Christians in America have lost faith in politics as the means of social and cultural renewal. I can only hope this is true.

Will the Word of God ever pierce the stony hearts of the contemporary Church, so that we actually begin to hear what God is calling us to, and to do what God commands? I am persuaded there is no other advice more fitting for us than to examine ourselves and the quality of the soil of our souls (2 Cor. 13.5).

We must not retreat in the face of the boasting and taunting of our foes; we are citizens of our own countries, and as many as are our political duties and privileges, we must pursue them responsibly.

But we must not suppose that politics is the means to redemption. Only Christ is that, and He is looking for us, His people, to join Him in interceding with the Father for the revival, renewal, and awakening we need.

Do you not feel the urgency of the moment? And will you continue to refuse the Lord’s call to prayer?

Psalm 102.1-4 (Leominster: “Not What My Hands Have Done”)
Lord, hear my prayer and cry; hide not Your face from me!
In my distress and tears I sigh – Lord, hear my earnest plea!
My days like smoke blow past; my bones are scorched with sin.
My heart, like wilted, withered grass, bends low to earth again.

Lord, show us our unbelief, and turn us with all our hearts again to You! Adapted from Patrick, Confession

“You must pray.”
These are the last words of the late Dr. J. Edwin Orr’s powerful message on the role of prayer in revival and evangelization. If you haven’t seen this video from 1977, watch it now by clicking here. Get some friends together and watch it. Send the link to your pastor and then follow-up to make sure he watched it. Then determine that you will heed Dr. Orr’s advice and begin to pray for revival. Then go to the website and download Men of the Church: A Solemn Call, and make a copy for every Christian man you know. Be sure to follow-up to make sure they’ve read it. God is serious about us seeking Him for revival. Will we ever get as serious as He is? In his message Dr. Orr mention’s Jonathan Edwards’ great 1742 classic on praying for revival, An Humble Attempt. Write to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and I’ll send you a free PDF of this book. Read it, and if you can resist Edwards’ call to pray, then your heart truly is stony ground.

We must pray, friends. You must pray.

Will you?

Psalms to Pray for Today and Thursday
Today
Morning: Psalm 119.33-40; Psalm 101
Evening: Psalm 27

Tuesday
Morning: Psalm 119.41-48; Psalm 102
Evening: Psalm 28

T. M. Moore, Principal
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All Psalms for singing from The Ailbe Psalter. Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.