How to Intercede for Ukraine

Why does a nation go to prayer? What can be the motivation behind such a noble endeavor?

Does a nation go to prayer simply to cry out for a respite from the ills that beset her? Is it enough for her to go to prayer only for deliverance from a foreign threat? Do we invoke the name of the Lord only when in peril, hastily going to Him in whatever method appears to bring the most immediate response? If this is our perception of His love and if we believe that this is the purpose for His existence, we are sadly missing the point altogether.

Is our purpose for being here so self-indulging? Is our vision so temporal? Is our future so mundane? I think not. No, we go to the Lord in prayer as a nation not seeking a temporary audience with the Almighty simply to plead our case for personal survival. We go to Him with the knowledge—no, with the conviction—that we are all here for a God-ordained purpose. We go to Him because we know that He can use us as individuals in this nation for the well-being of the entire community of nations. We are a motivated people. Because we are blessed by God with so much as well as the freedom to express our faith, to live it and give freely to others, we are compelled to bless the people of all nations.

“You are here for a God-ordained purpose.”

We are aware. We are attentive. We understand. We live. We laugh when we live and we mourn when we die. Each of us holds in our bosom, no matter how secretly, the understanding, the confession, the hope that we are here for a purpose greater than mere random natural selection. Most understand that they are here by the finger of God. That we were purposefully made by the loving hands of our Father in Heaven. We have been placed where we are to be the most good, to do the most good, and to express the love of God that others may also do their most good.

The contribution that God has woven within us cannot be easily dismissed. For it is essential for the strength and well-being of all things living. One merely needs to look briefly at the condition of our planet to understand that most contributions of each individual has gone to the grave with them, thus robbing the world of its mighty benefit. A life cut short is rightfully mourned for a life not lived. But we would be far more attentive to life, to all life, if we understood the impact of losing the gift that each life is to the planet.

Far too many people, for far too many years have forgotten their birthright—both spiritual and physical. They have abdicated their calling and purpose for the temporal, experiencing momentary gratification over eternal value. Individual destiny has been replaced by individual personal and immediate gratification. The thrill of the moment has replaced the purpose, the calling, the destiny of a lifetime.

Wake-Up Call to the World

Unfortunately, it often takes tragedy to re-ignite the outward expression of the inner knowledge of who we really are beyond our humanity, beyond our flesh and blood. Misfortune is the breeding ground for revival of the heart and the troubles that follow us are our hope for daily fellowship with God. Humanity will always resort to our basic instincts, in general. The prudent turn to God in times of trouble and uncertainty. The greater the need for repentance, the greater the adversity.

Sometimes we respond to God and run to Him for shelter. But when a society does not acknowledge God and works to remove Him from the public discourse of everyday life, we will be left alone. We are limited to our own ability, our base instinct to survive, much like an animal has only base instincts. It is an amazing thought. An animal cannot turn to God for help and humankind often does not want to admit our need for a Higher Power in our lives.

Lesser species have no sense of destiny beyond their need to survive. They are unaware of anything more. In fact, our sense of destiny is the very thing that separates humanity from the rest of God’s creation. For us, staying alive is much more than survival; it is much more than instinctively doing what comes naturally.

Humanity exists as part of a larger plan, carrying the absolute understanding that there exists above us a power transcending time and space. This power dwells in and passes through a dimension that is truly grasped only by faith and experienced by the humility of prayer and personal confession. But far more than merely a cosmic power way out there somewhere, God is a living, personal, vibrant Spirit who personally loves humanity and covets relationship with them. So running to Him in panic only when He is needed will not do over the long term. Of course, He will always forgive us and take care of us when we ask Him. The Bible is full of examples of the Lord coming to the aid of His people when they were in great adversity. But there is more to this God than merely 911 calls. He made us because He loves us, because He wants our friendship, because He invested Himself in us for His purposes and plan for humankind. Our destiny is Divine in calling and complete in its fulfillment.

The need to fulfill our reason to breathe is the most driving passion in the universe.

Over the long term, being in fellowship with our God on a daily basis makes a whole lot more sense than running to Him, assuming you can find Him, when an emergency arises. This kind of “foul weather friendship” is not what we humans particularly enjoy from one another. Why do we think it is any different with God? He is devoted to a relationship with us based on mutual love and desire.

It is amazing how we think we can go on from one generation to the next, with less and less consideration for the One who made us for His pleasure. We cannot do this thing alone. We cannot survive as a nation (without considering our destiny) by calling to Him as a last resort to solve all our problems. He is much more exciting as One who unfolds His plan in us daily and strengthens us for the task. He is much more appealing as the One who loves and heals and blesses than as the One who must respond only in a crisis, only to have us forget Him again until the next problem arises.

The self-seeking, self-indulgence people of a nation concerned only with its immediate needs denies the greater purpose for our existence. Do we want to merely survive, or do we want to fulfill our reason for being born, in all its wonder and adventure? Life does not have to be boring, empty, devoid of purpose. We were not created to try to fill the emptiness within. Turning our hearts to our Lord in committed repentance and humility opens our heart for the life He intended for every human being to experience. This is what awaits you. This is the beginning of destiny...your destiny.

Let’s Decide Together

Let’s decide to pray in the times of crisis, as we all should do as a matter of course. But let us also make the decision to walk circumspectly, serving the God we expect to help us. For He is One with far more than just immediate help for us. He carries in His heart, destiny itself—for you, for your children, and for the nation. If we only understood what that means for each of us, our lives would be transformed forever.

There is no turning back to what was. The world is changing whether we like it or not. But we can be part of a growing force of Divine intervention that is the result of those who will pray.