In Light of Last Night's Events...

In light of last night's events...

"Shocked" is the word I can best use to describe how I felt when last night's events in Dallas started to unfold. We live in Dallas and oddly enough, it was a relative from Alabama that tipped us off to the events unfolding just a few miles south of our home. My father-in-law was visiting from Alabama last night and his brother in Alabama sent him a message saying, "Don't go near downtown. There is a shooting going on down there. Officers shot." Not fully comprehending what was going on, we got on our phones to see news updates. My husband mentioned he actually had made us dinner reservations for a restaurant last night that would have placed us near the shooting. But at the last minute, a friend referred him to a place north of downtown. And this same friend's daughter ended up being at the restaurant we were going to originally go to downtown. She was on lockdown in the restaurant's kitchen until almost midnight.  

I pause to think what if it had been my family locked in that kitchen with an active shooter outside. How would that have affected us? Would we live differently today?

In all reality, it did affect us and we should live differently. Our country is changing and not for the good. It starts with leadership for sure, but it also starts within each one of us. We must seek Him fervently without ceasing.

Solomon's son, Rehoboam, messed up. After he had all his riches and secured the cities, he (and the people) "were unfaithful to the Lord" (2 Chronicles 12:2). As a result, because God is a just God who punishes sin (note: this is Old Testament justice...Jesus received yours and my punishment on the Cross), He sent Sishak, king of Egypt, to attack Jerusalem.

The prophet, Shemaiah, went to Rehoboam and delivered this powerful message from the Lord, "You have left me, so now I will leave you to face Sishak alone" (2 Chronicles 12:5). The next verse shows the response of the people, they "were sorry for what they had done" (2 Chronicles 12:6). The Lord saw they were sorry. The Lord said that because of their remorse, He would not allow Sishak to destroy them and that He would save them soon, but they would become Sishak's servants (2 Chronicles 12:7-8). Verse 12 tells us that the Lord held back His anger and did not fully destroy Rehoboam because "there was some good in Judah."

There is still some good in the United States.

May we mourn with God at the turn of events in America. We have left our King and have been unfaithful to Him. May we be sorry so that He will save us soon.

Psalm 80:17-19 says,

With your hand, strengthen the one you have chosen for yourself. Then we will not turn away from you. Give us life again, and we will call to you for help. Lord, God All-Powerful, take us back. Show us your kindness so we can be saved.

My son, Spenser, recorded an original song (soon to be available on his new worship album) called "Sound The Trumpets." As I prayed this morning for our country, the chorus to this song flowed from my pen into my prayer journal...may He restore us, revive us, shake us with His holy thunder, tear down the strongholds and sound the Trumpets.