The Day the Lord Has Made

Many Questions

I know that what I am presenting will offend the political and even moral sensibilities of some of my friends. Yet the path that leads to life is narrow, and I am presenting to you the response that Christ has offered me: I rejoice with my brethren of color and choose to be an intercessor for, not just a critic of, the new president.

Many will ask, What about Obama’s staunch pro-choice voting record?

Yes, this grieves me as well. Yet I was a Christian for several years before the Holy Spirit revealed to me the horror of abortion. It happened in a moment. Perhaps someone was praying for me, but God touched my heart and I saw it for what it was. Likewise, I believe God can get through to our new president. Let’s take faith that Jesus Christ could lift President Obama’s consciousness to a “pay grade” [at which] abortion becomes reprehensible to him.

Let me also say that America did not suddenly turn liberal; I believe the majority of Americans in our nation are still right of center. Even in California, voters banned gay marriage. Democrats won because they fielded many candidates [who] are not liberal but [are] moderates and centrists. They drew upon the discouraged independent and moderate Republican voters, people who felt betrayed or at least let down by the Republican leadership.

What about Israel? Will the new president turn against the Jews?

The first cabinet position chosen by president-elect Obama was given to Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel is a hard-charging, very clever Chicago politician. While partisan, he also is more a centrist than a left-wing extremist. What you may not have known about him is that he is Jewish. His father immigrated to America from Jerusalem and was a former member of the Irgun, a militant Zionist group active in the British Mandate of Palestine between 1931 and 1948.

There is no guarantee that Emanuel will defend Israel, but for those of us who see the possibilities created by divine influence, it is not hard to pray for continued support of Israel by America. I might be wrong, but I do not believe Rahm Emanuel, whose family is very active in their Chicago synagogue, would abandon the Jews or Jerusalem. I think we can pray with confidence that his counsel as chief of staff would be to stand with Israel during these difficult times.

Both Wings

You have heard me say many times that I believe the great eagle spoken of in Revelation 12 is possibly a prophetic reference to the United States. The fact is, the eagle, which Scripture describes as a place of refuge and protection, needs both wings to fly: the right wing and the left wing. What if this election offers us the possibility to heal the divisions between races?

I’m not saying I agree politically or morally with everything that Barack Obama believes, but you’ll remember that one of his initial plans was to bring God and religion into the Democratic Party. He fought the influences of those in his party who had rejected Christianity, and he sought to make the Democratic Party a place where faith could exist and even flourish.

For those who fear we have elected the Antichrist, let me remind you that the evidence that identifies the Antichrist is that he dies from a wound in the head and then is miraculously raised to life (see Rev. 13). Until such a sign exists, we should pray for our leaders with confidence.

I do not believe this is a time to despair; it is time to pray with vision and with hope. If all you see is a “cloud the size of a man’s hand,” then pray with the faith of Elijah that a mighty outpouring of grace may fall and heal our nation. Let us give God the chance to bring into our world a blessed, prayed-for reality.

One last thing about Rahm Emanuel: His family chose the surname Emanuel when they were fighting for Israel’s freedom in Palestine (see “Rahm Emanuel” in Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). The name Emanuel means, “God with us.”

I am not naive [enough] to assume revival will come easy, but it will never come if we lose faith. Beloved, trust God. All things are possible, even seeing these very days transformed into the day the Lord has made.

Editor’s Note: Francis Frangipane, founder and overseeing pastor of River of Life in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (riveroflife.org), has an encouraging word for the body of Christ related to the recent presidential election. He believes that if Christians will pray and trust God, we will see God move on the president and on other leaders, as well as on our nation, in a positive way. Frangipane is the author of numerous best-selling books, including Holiness, Truth, and the Presence of God and The Three Battlegrounds and is the host of “In Christ’s Image Training,” a weekly television program broadcast on GOD TV. His online school, In Christ’s Image Training, has students in more than 70 nations. For more information and for additional prophetic teachings by Frangipane, go to frangipane.org.