October Devotions: Praying for Your Nation
Photo by Amanda Sixsmith
MONDAY
The God Who Can Be Trusted
Be still in the presence of the Lord,
and wait patiently for him to act.
Don’t worry about evil people who prosper
or fret about their wicked schemes.
Stop being angry!
Turn from your rage!
Do not lose your temper—
it only leads to harm.
For the wicked will be destroyed,
but those who trust in the Lord will possess the land. (Ps. 37:7–9 NIV)
A lot of people are scared or angry right now because of what’s happening in the world, but the Bible tells us what to do whenever the darkness appears to be thriving.
We get to turn our focus to the Lord, trust Him, and wait for Him to act on our behalf. Those who trust in the Lord will possess the land.
Ideas for prayer:
Father God, thank You for my nation and for the amazing things You’re doing here.
Instead of being afraid, I choose to be still in Your presence.
Instead of worrying about evil people and their wicked schemes, I choose to wait patiently for You to act.
All my trust is in You. All of it.
I know You’re good.
TUESDAY
The God Who Saves Nations
For God alone my soul waits in silence;
From Him comes my salvation. (Ps. 62:1 AMP)
I wait patiently for God to save me.
Only he gives me hope. (Ps. 62:5 ICB)
A powerful step in praying for your nation is recognizing that only God can save it. When we realize that God, and only God, can change people and situations, we become much more willing to wait for Him, because we recognize that we won’t see real change without Him.
Ideas for prayer:
Lord, I wait for You on behalf of my nation.
I wait for You to come and save us.
I declare that You alone are our Helper and our Savior.
All my hope is in You.
WEDNESDAY
He’s Your Builder and Defender
Unless the Lord builds the house,
the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the guards stand watch in vain. (Ps. 127:1 NIV)
All of us have God-given responsibilities and the privilege of doing what He assigns to us. But at the end of the day, the Lord is the One who “builds the house.” He is the One who watches over the nation, and our human efforts at protection don’t accomplish anything—unless He’s doing them with us.
As we pray for the nation, we get to hold on to the beautiful truth that we are depending on God, not ourselves. And this God loves to watch over cities, and He loves to build houses.
Ideas for prayer:
Father God, my nation needs You.
I’m sorry for all the times we’ve tried to protect ourselves without You.
I invite You to watch over my nation. I acknowledge that You are the only One who can watch over it successfully.
I place the burden of my nation in Your hands and trust You to take care of it.
THURSDAY
Who Is God?
Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were born
Or You gave birth to the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. (Ps. 90:1–2 NASB)
For the Lord your God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them. (Deut. 4:31 ESV)
Powerful things happen when we declare who God is. “This is who You are. This is who You will always be. This is what’s real and true about You.” The truth about the Lord is the most powerful truth on the earth, so when we proclaim who He is, we are worshiping Him and going to war.
Ideas for prayer:
Lord, You are our God!
You are our home.
In my nation, You are the Merciful One.
You will not forget the good things You’ve promised us, as a people.
We long for You and desire to see Your will be done in this nation as it is in heaven.
FRIDAY
The Lord, the Faithful God
O Lord God of hosts,
Who is mighty like You, O Lord?
Your faithfulness also surrounds You. (Ps. 89:8 NKJV)
My word, which comes from my mouth, is like the rain and snow.
It will not come back to me without results.
It will accomplish whatever I want
and achieve whatever I send it to do. (Isa. 55:11 NOG)
The Lord is faithful, and He will do what He said. That’s the simple truth. He doesn’t speak lightly or without a reason. He doesn’t forget the good things He promised. If He has said something about your nation, you can pray that thing with boldness because He will do it.
Do you know what God is saying about your nation? Have you asked Him? Pray about these things and write down what He says, so you will remember it.
Ideas for prayer:
Father God, what are You saying about my nation?
Thank You that Your word does not return to You void.
Thank You that when You speak, You mean it.
I bring my nation before You today, and I ask that Your words and heart would come to pass here.
SATURDAY
Governmental Wisdom Comes from God
The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom.
The knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. (Prov. 9:10 NOG)
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.” (1 Cor. 3:19 NIV)
True wisdom cannot be found outside of God. The world’s “wisdom” might seem wise in the moment, but anything that does not line up with the Father’s heart won’t produce good fruit in the end.
The fear of the Lord is a holy, precious, and beautiful thing. It doesn’t mean being afraid of God the way we might be afraid of a person—it means treasuring Him, knowing He’s important, and wanting to do what He says. That place—the fear of the Lord—is the beginning of wisdom.
Ideas for prayer:
Father God, please open up the fear of the Lord in my nation.
We’re tired of being afraid—we want Your voice instead.
Please pour out Your wisdom on this nation.
Take us by the hand and lead us where You want to go.
SUNDAY
Thinking the Way He Thinks
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. (Ps. 19:14 JUB)
“I say this because I know what I have planned for you,” says the Lord. “I have good plans for you. I don’t plan to hurt you. I plan to give you hope and a good future.” (Jer. 29:11 ICB)
Learning to think the way God thinks is a powerful act of spiritual warfare. When your thoughts line up with His heart, you won’t lose your way because of fear and human anger. You want what God wants for your nation, and you’re willing to do whatever He asks of you—good things, full of hope and promise, that bring transformation.
Don’t allow despair or discouragement to fill your mouth and heart. Instead, fill yourself up with the words of the Lord, and let His hope for your nation become your hope.
Ideas for prayer:
Father God, please teach me to think the way You think about my nation.
I want the hope of my heart to line up with the hope of Yours.
I declare that You are our strength.
I declare that You are our redeemer.
You have a good plan for my nation, and alongside my brothers and sisters in Jesus, I wait for You to move. I watch for Your good plan to come about.
Does your heart need to remember who God is? Check out these other devotions:
For more information on sex, marriage, and finding the person who is right for you, get a copy of Becoming the One by Salomé Roat. Click here to learn more. You can also order the book in Spanish.