I attended an event last Wednesday to hear my local state legislators talk about possible legislation coming up for 2015. The state I live in–Illinois–is in quite a financial mess and I was interested to hear some possible solutions that are being worked on for next year. Now, I admit that I went into the event pretty skeptical that these individuals even cared much about education–which is what the main topic was for this forum.

I left with a different attitude altogether. I think for the first time I realized that even state elected officials are trying to balance the needs, demands, and wants of a very diverse group of people. People in their districts–myself included–complain frequently about what happens in our state capitol.

But, I am ashamed to say, I pray very little for these decision makers.

Now, I know I should. I know that Jeremiah 29:7 says, “Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” I also know what Romans 13:1-7 talks about concerning submitting to your governing authorities. (A complicated issue, I know…just read Bonhoeffer). But, the first and most basic–and powerful–thing I can do is to pray for the elected leaders where I live.

Unfortunately, for most of us politics and politicians tend to leave us thinking the worst (BUT, for a positive counter-example check out the current edition of World Magazine for an article on retiring congressman Frank Wolf). They are easy targets for us because we don’t really fully understand how difficult their jobs are. Even if your local representative is supportive of your ideas, he/she still has to work with members of their body that are not supportive and sometimes have to make compromises to get anything passed.

So, these people need our prayers. I am ashamed to say that I have been very critical of those governing, but have offered little prayers for them. We should be praying for them, for their families, for them to have wisdom and courage. We should pray for them to be people of integrity. We should pray for citizens who would be excellent representatives to run for office!

That is our challenge for this week. As we prepare to enter into a new year–especially a year that will see many new faces emerge in both state and national elected bodies–we need to commit to pray for them. Pick a time and then stick to it! God does not call us to live in isolation, but to engage our communities as salt and light. If we aren’t praying for our politicians, then who is?

More to come…
Jeremy