How to Pray for a Country You Can’t Control
releasing the weight of a nation back to God
“There is nothing that intercessory prayer cannot do. Believer, you have a mighty engine in your hand—use it well, use it constantly, use it now with faith, and you shall surely prevail.” — Charles Spurgeon, Prayer in the Believer’s Life
Do you believe it?
Do we need it?
I quit watching the news years ago, not because I don’t care, but because I care too much and have too little power to do anything about it, the perfect recipe for anxiety. The news feed felt like a conveyor belt of despair being packed into boxes of outrage and shipped off to all the recesses of my body and mind. I wanted to fix what I couldn’t reach. I prepared for threats that lived a thousand miles away. I felt like I needed to carry the country on my shoulders as if it were my own personal assignment. But it was more than I was able, or was ever designed, to bear.
Somewhere along the way, I realized I had quietly taken on a job description that was never mine. This might come as a shock to many who are suffering from news anxiety, but sovereignty is not an entry-level position. And omniscience, as much as we all want it, is not a spiritual gift. And the weight I was shouldering did not belong to me; it belonged to God.
I think I just got lost somewhere between concern and control. Concern leads me to God. Control replaces Him. In that equation, staying hyper-aware feels like being faithful. And mental vigilance is a form of responsibility that feels very responsible. But all it did was keep my nervous system on high alert while accomplishing nothing eternal.
Intercessory prayer is the only way I know to return all that was never mine in the first place to where it belongs.
I like to think of our country as a group of people who, if covered in prayer by a faithful few, would become more kind, more happy, more loving, more prayerful, and more peaceful than we are today.
But, I must confess, that I am often directionless when it comes to praying for our country. What exactly am I asking for? A different tone in Washington? A wiser generation rising up? A cultural mood swing? A miraculous bipartisan hug? The scale of it all feels abstract, and abstraction is where intercession goes to die as we say the tiny prayer, “God bless America,” and then scroll on.
That’s why Prayers from Sea to Shining Sea became more to me than a patriotic book. It became an intercessory partner.
This book is such a gift. It has 250 prayers that cover America from sea to shining sea. All 50 states and 6 territories, national symbols, national parks, natural wonders, and first responders all have their own prayers. And these aren’t vague “Lord, fix everything,” kinds of prayer; they are specific words that name the places, the histories, and the burdens.
When I read through these prayers, I realized that I have been far more willing to analyze my country than to intercede for her. I guess analysis feels intelligent, while intercession feels ineffective, if I’m being honest. At least that’s what my prayerlessness says about it.
Intercessory prayer is participation in the unseen architecture of history. Abraham bargaining for Sodom. Moses standing in the gap for Israel. Daniel confessing the sins of his people as if they were his own. The early church praying while empires flexed their muscles.
Prayer doesn’t bypass responsibility; it puts it in its proper place. And it reminds me that I am not the savior of this nation. I am a citizen under a greater King. My job is not to carry the country on my nervous system. My job is to bring it before the throne.
Sidlow Baxter once said, “Men may spurn our appeals, reject our message, oppose our arguments, despise our persons—but they are helpless against our prayers.”
Do we believe intercession can change the world? A country is, at its core, a collection of souls. And souls change when heaven is asked to intervene.
So that’s my thinking on praying for our country. The question still remains: how do we effectively intercede? Enter Prayers from Sea to Shining Sea, let me just show you the prayer for my home state, Oregon.
These prayers are not only directional but enjoyable to read. Like a really beautiful geography lesson, they not only help you intercede for the people but give you a real sense of joy, pride, and belonging to something larger than our news cycle. This book is my newest addition to my morning prayers. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.
