Day 1 Novena for our nation:

First, let me acknowledge that the tradition of praying a novena is a Catholic tradition. I am not attempting to engage in cultural appropriation, but showing a respect for a part of the body of Christ that knows the necessity of setting aside prayer times for specific needs.

This novena (9 days of prayer for a specific need) is for our nation to return to the ethics and values of our founding and guiding documents, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

In today’s prayer, I am praying that our nation repent and return to the founding idea that all people are created equal. We followers of Christ know this. We revere the Scriptures and a founding and guiding Scripture is Genesis 1:27:

So God created mankind in his own image,
    in the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

We were all created in His image. Thus, there is no such thing as “less than” in His sight.

I am using II Chronicles 7:14 as the structure of this novena’s prayer. As you know, God knew that nations would often forget who and how His people should be. Therefore, in this verse, he gave them instructions on how to recalibrate are return to him, thus giving their nation a chance to be who and how He made them to be. The instructions are in II Chronicles 7:14:

“If MY people who are called by my name will HUMBLE THEMSELVES and PRAY, and seek my face and TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS, then will I hear from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land.” (KJV)

Here is today’s novena. Today we are praying for the return of our nation to the founding value of equality.

Our Father,

Through your Son, Jesus Christ, you have given us the honor and grace to call ourselves by your name. You gave those of us in the United States a nation founded upon the ideas that all people are created equal in Your image and that You endowed all people with natural rights. However, we have personally and nationally fallen from some of the foundational values.

Therefore, we are praying and seeking Your face, the face of the only wise God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our nation desperately needs Your help and intervention.

For my part in the falling away from our values, God, I am truly sorry, and I humbly repent of seeing some others as people that I can look down upon.

I am humbly praying that You will hear from heaven, move in the hearts and souls of Your people, and forgive our sins. Please, in Jesus Name, heal our land.

Amen.

I’ll be back tomorrow, Lord willing, with Day 2 of the novena for our nation.