Prayer for the Nation

There is a greater need now for prayer in our nation than during World War II.

Let’s assume you wanted an appointment with the president of the United States. It might take up to a year to make such an appointment–if you could get one at all. And setting up a meeting with a senator or congressman might take weeks.

But coming into the presence of Amighty God takes only a split second. We get there through prayer. And connecting with Him can make a greater difference than meeting with the highest human authority in the land.

We have reached a time in our nation’s history in which there is a greater need for prayer than during World War II. But now, instead of fighting Hitler and his army, we are fighting a battle against those who want to tear down our values and limit our religious freedom.

This battle can’t be fought with planes and guns. It must be fought in the spiritual realm–through prayer.

For those of us who were not a part of World War II, it’s hard to appreciate the seriousness of the situation. But consider these facts:

Hitler controlled nearly all of Europe, and Britain was in danger of falling

Hitler murdered 6 million Jews

Japan’s military swept Southeast Asia and pummeled our Navy at Pearl Harbor, an act that drew America into a war we were not prepared to fight.

Thankfully, God raised up some intercessors to engage in spiritual warfare during this season. One of them, Glenn Clark, wrote in his book A Man’s Reach that he believed Hitler was able to outmaneuver the Allies because he was operating in the “‘no man’s land’ of the psychic.”

Clark declared: “As long as the world fights back at him on the dog-eat-dog, jungle level … Hitler will continue to keep the advantage. … But the moment we get enough people, an entire army … to mount to a higher level, the level of the spiritual … the power of Hitler will be short-circuited and every move that he makes will bring the war more rapidly to an end.”

In the fall of 1942, Clark persuaded his friends Glenn Harding and Starr Daily to quit their jobs and cancel all appointments for one year to join him in spreading the message across the nation that “love and prayer are more powerful than tanks and bombs.”

You won’t read about what they called “the Third Front” in secular history books. But Clark claims that both Churchill and Roosevelt reported that the Allies were losing all their battles before Nov. 1, 1942, and winning them after that date.

Visit our Web site at http://www.charismamag.com/prayer/ read more in a chapter we’ve reprinted from Clark’s book.

Lately it seems the forces of evil are winning battle after battle in our nation. Who would have thought a few years ago that gay marriage would be supported by so many influential voices in the media and government? And that is only one of the problems we face. We are in a war, and we need an army of intercessors who will pray.

Thankfully numerous prayer initiatives are springing up. We are grateful for them and pledge to cooperate with everyone who has a vision to pray for righteousness in our nation. But we also want to involve our more than half a million Charisma readers in the prayer effort.

So we have created a special Web site and an e-newsletter that contains information on items to be prayed for as well as prophetic insights. Please go to http://www.prayerinitiative.com to sign up for the e-newsletter. Then encourage all your friends and leaders at church to do the same.

We plan to include teachings on prayer to help you become an effective intercessor. And we will provide information about other prayer initiatives. Through technology we can build a network far beyond what Clark and his friends could have envisioned 60 years ago.

Clark said his group never prayed for victory in the war. But he said the victories on the battlefield prove that “if enough people mount … to a place where they can look upon their foes with forgiveness and love and ask the Lord and His righteousness to prevail, then the Lord will turn the tide in favor of that side which deserves to win.”