A Prayer at Passover

Today is Good Friday, a time when Christian’s believe that Jesus shed his blood, to cover sin, and free people from its guilt and condemnation. Today Good Friday falls in Passover week, just as it did two thousand years ago. Passover is a time when the Israelites were spared from the angel of death by the lamb’s blood covering their doorposts. Without the blood covering, the firstborn of every household in Egypt died. Christian’s believe without the blood covering people are certain to die an everlasting death.

Today I see at least ten plagues besieging America. We are succumbing to them of our own volition. And many of us are succumbing to the angel of death, because of them.

Ten Plagues Visiting America

VIOLENCE: There has been a total disregard for human life in our society. The most dangerous place for a person to be today is on the womb. There were 3,639, 842 abortions in 2008. Compare this to the total combat causalities in Iraq: 3,426 since the war began in 2003. There is virtually no outcry for the unborn in comparison. Nor are we safe from predators outside of the home, or abusers within. There were 16,204 murders in 2008. Compare that to the 230 murders in the United States one hundred years ago, in 1908. Incidences of domestic violence numbered almost a million last year.

GREED: The Almighty dollar, or the worship of “Mammon” as it was called in Egypt’s day, has superceded the worship of God. God has been removed from our pulpits in favor of PC messages. God is not given preeminence in our family life. God has been removed from our schools. Sadly, it is more important to gain earthly riches than eternal ones.

LIES: History is being revised- our Judaic-Christian heritage is being removed as politically correct police patrol our airways. No longer can you trust the news, it either deliberately commits lies, or fails to report things accurately by omission. We were just told yesterday, by the White house, that our President did not bow to the Saudi Arabian King. Did we not see him bow with our own eyes? (please see previous blog at http://cherishamerica.blogspot.com.)

LUST: Pornography is rampant. It is not safe to watch television with your children in the prime- time viewing hours. Some have even argued that pornography should be allowed in public libraries (Just ask our assistant Attorney General)

GLUTTONY: Just think of how Americans consume a holiday meal. We overeat, and do not share our extra portion with the world. We feast while the world is experiencing famine. The World Health Organization estimates that one-third of the world is well-fed, one-third is under-fed, and one-third is starving.

SLOTH: Many Americans are just plain lazy. Our new zeal for socialism believes it is the government’s job to provide for our citizen's needs-not the citizens themselves. There is a growing sentiment that the poor are entitled to the wealth of the rich.

ENVY: Very few people are satisfied with what they have. There is no limit to what is enough for the “Joneses”. At what point is enough, enough? Judging from the mansions of the rich and famous, there doesn’t seem to be a limit.

PRIDE: We are way too focused on the outward appearance- we know more about Britney Spears than we do about our Attorney General. We spend more time shopping for shoes then reading.

SICKNESSES: Sicknesses like the pestilences of old are prevalent, I challenge you to find a family that has not been touched by its deadly hand. This plague is everywhere: we see it evidenced by AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, and addictions to alcoholism and drugs.

DISINTEGRATION OF THE FAMILY: From Ann Coulter’s Book, Guilty, we learned that:
Of all single mothers in America, only 6.5 percent of them are widows, 37.8 percent are divorced, and 41.3 percent gave birth out of wedlock…Controlling for
socio-economic status, race, and place of residence, the strongest predictor of whether
a person will end up in prison is that he was raised by a single parent.”

So on this day when blood was shed to atone for our sins, let us pray together:

Father forgive us for our sins of commission and omission. We have perpetuated many of the plagues upon our country, or stood silently by as others committed them. Forgive us and wash us in your covering blood. Amen

America’s golden idols, just like Egypt’s golden idols have no power to protect us from the ten plagues besieging America. Think of the billions spent on protecting us from the violence. Think of the billions spent on healthcare from the diseases that could be prevented.
One day Egypt was the wealthiest nation on earth. The next day, she watched hopelessly as her riches were carted away. Egypt’s pathway led to death and destruction of a once powerful society. God will not bless a nation in a perpetual state of sin. We need to repent- turn away- and turn towards God who provides a culture of life not a culture of death.