It was a gray winter day when my wife, and family and I decided to drive into the country to look for a Christmas tree. At that time, we had three children and the fourth on the way. We were more than an hour from home when lightning split the clouds, releasing a torrent of freezing rain.

Within minutes the two lane country road upon which we drove turned into a skating rink. With no warning our car lost traction and spun completely around three or four times before going into a ditch. 

I prayed silently while trying to control the car. 

God answered those prayers immediately.  My wife and kids were unhurt, and I had only bruised my forearms on the steering wheel. Before the car had cooled off, a farmer pulled us out of the ditch with a chain. 

The rest of the trip home was uneventful. Some would say that it just wasn’t our time… I believe God answered our prayers. 

Psalm 46:2-3

Therefore we will not fear,

Even though the earth be removed,

And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

Though its waters roar and be troubled,

Though the mountains shake with its swelling.

And, though the rain freeze on the road…

Fear Not, for God answers prayers. 

I don’t usually speak to politics, for I know politics is devisive. America is more divided today than at anytime since the Civil War. I have felt for years that our nation is, by its own choice, no longer a Christian nation. Because we have turned our back on Him, God no longer blesses us as He once did. Our only hope, if there is hope, is for a nationwide revival. 

Many Christians like to quote 2 Chronicles 7:14 as a source for national inspiration. I have heard many sermons preached on this passage. It sounds simple… Humble oneself… Call on His name… Seek His face…

I mean, who can’t pray? Who can’t call out in desperation to Almighty God?

But, what does it mean to seek the face of God? Do we have it within ourselves to humbly admit that our entire worth comes from our relationship with God? Do we have what it takes to submit ourselves to Him. To seek the face of God means to learn AND emulate His ways. To put it simply, seeking the Face of God means to become intimate with Him, heart-to-heart, mind-to-mind, and OBEY Him. 

1 SAMUEL 12:13-14 is similar in tone to the passage in 2 Chronicles, yet I have never heard a sermon preached on it. 

of the Lord, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following the Lord your God.

Here is the part that thrills me… Did you catch it?

If We The People serve and obey God without rebelling against His Word, then even those who reign over us will follow God. 

Did you catch that? The fate of our nation depends upon our obedience to God. As Christians, we have always prayed for our national leaders, but God tells us here that it is not just our prayers but also our actions that set the course of this land. 

Isn’t that awesome?

Isn’t that… Somewhat frightening?

Fear Not the leaders of our land, for you control or nation’s destiny. 

I thought of her as an old movie star. She wasn’t, but my grandmother carried herself like one. For a couple years when I was a child, my mother and siblings and I lived with my grandfather and grandmother. Long after she had nowhere to go but to the living room to watch the black and white TV, she dolled herself up daily, like she was preparing for a night on the town. 

She was meticulous with her hair even after it had turned white. Every last strand was held in its proper place with gallons of Aqua Net hairspray. Her makeup was pancaked on, and her lipstick was bright. He jewelry was costume, but it was priceless in her mind. She was thirty years out of fashion, but she didn’t care. When she looked in the mirror, it was her thirty-year-old self who looked back. 

To us children, Grandma seemed a little nuts, a fact of which Grandpa was certain. One particular summer day proved to me that nuts or not, she loved me. 

I had found that one of our outdoor cats had had kittens under a pile of rubbish just beyond the back fence. By the time I found them, their eyes were already open, so I determined to carry them into the yard where I could play with them. 

Grandma, of course, knew that they were too little to separate from their mother, but, being a bratty kid, I argued with her. Her only way of handling me when I had made up my mind about something was to promise me that she was going to tell my mom when she got home. 

“I don’t care,” I said, knowing that my mom wouldn’t be home for hours. 

She continued to scold me until I put the kittens away, But I was so angry I told her I was running away. 

I took off walking towards the barn, turning around every few steps to see if she would stop me. She waited until I was nearly out of earshot, crossing into the fields at the cattle gate. 

“Stevie Joe,” she called. I ran back to the yard. 

“What’s the matter, Grandma?” 

“Where are you going?” 

“I’m running away.”

“Ok, but stay close, so I can hear you.”

“Okay. I guess.” I was at once frustrated and happy. I was frustrated because I had wanted to prove a point. And, I wanted to go to my favorite hiding place, a mountain spring on the back side of the farm. I was happy because I knew Grandma loved me enough that she wanted me close. 

For as many are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. We have been given the Spirit of adoption, by which we call out “Abba,” or Father (see Roman 8:14-16).

Stay close enough to your Heavenly Father that He can hear you when you call. 

Fear Not, we are the Children of God.