DAY 13 | States: MI & MN
DAILY TOPIC: Liberty and Freedom
Prayer for Israel
Prayer for National Government Officials
State Focus: Michigan and Minnesota
PRAYER FOR FREEDOM
Lord, from our founding we have upheld the belief that our rights are inalienable and come from You, and our first God-given right is the freedom of religion. We pray for the freedom to acknowledge You through our public institutions. We pray for the freedom of religious conscience without coercion by penalty of force of law. Observing what happens in countries where there is no religious liberty, we ask You to keep the doors open for true religious freedom and expression in our country. We ask You to keep the airwaves open for the full proclamation of the Gospel. We are keenly aware of growing threats that systematically could dilute the Gospel message, and we ask You to give us full entry into the marketplace of ideas without fear of government intrusion or censorship. We pray for Your protection over the right to own and manage private property without government interference. We pray for the individual right to use appropriate means to protect our homes and families from harm.
Live as people who are free, not using Your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God(1 Peter 2:16).
PRAYER FOR ISRAEL
Lord, thank you that the President recognized Jerusalem as the Biblical capital of Israel and moved our Embassy. We pray for peace and prosperity in Israel, and ask for an end to the violence and suffering. We pray for justice, and Your sovereign righteousness over Israel. We pray for mercy and Your Kingdom to rule over the land. Please protect the soldiers and civilians from bloodshed. Give wisdom to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and the Knesset (The legislature of Israel). May Israel remain strong, not dividing the land You gave as an inheritance to Your chosen people. May the United States continue to fully support Israel, the nation that gave us salvation through Jesus Christ.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, may they prosper that love thee (Psalm 122:6).
PRAYER FOR NATIONAL GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS
Lord God, we ask for Your blessing and wisdom on the lives of these leaders in our nation.
EXECUTIVE
President Joe Biden
Vice-President Kamala Harris
THE PRESIDENT’S CABINET
Secretary of State
Secretary of the Treasury
Secretary of Defense
Secretary of the Interior
ATTORNEY GENERAL
Merrick Garland
SUPREME COURT
Chief Justice John Roberts
JUSTICES
Amy Coney Barrett
Samuel Alito
Brett Kavanaugh
Clarence Thomas
Neil Gorsuch
Elena Kagan
Stephen Breyer
Sonia Sotomayor
Lord, we ask for their courage to do what is right in your sight and to overturn the following decisions ...
1947: EVERSON V. BOARD OF EDUCATION
"Wall of Separation" Between church and state
(RULING: Ruled as Constitutional allocating taxpayer funds (to bus children) to religious schools because it did not breach the "wall of separation”: between church and state. Decision held that the establishment clause of the First Amendment applied to state, local and federal government. Bottom Line: Distributing public funds to parents to cover the cost of busing their children to religious schools did not breach the wall. And, finally, it was this ruling that established the vernacular ‘wall of separation’ which set the precedent for the next two Supreme Court decisions removing prayer and bible reading from our schools.)
Where did the term Wall of Separation come from?
Establishment Clause Definition
1962: ENGEL V. VITALE
Removed prayer from public education
(RULING: Unconstitutional for state officials to compose an official school prayer and encourage its recitation in public schools. PLAINTIFF: Steven Engel, New York parent / DEFENDANT: William Vitale, the school board president)
1963: ABINGTON SCHOOL DISTRICT V. SCHEMPP
Removed the Bible from public education
(RULING: Declared school-sponsored Bible reading in public schools in the United States to be unconstitutional. PLAINTIFF: Edward Lewis Schempp and family / DEFENDANT: Abington School District)
1973: ROE V WADE:
Allowed Unrestricted Access to Abortion
(RULING: Unduly restrictive state regulation of abortion is unconstitutional. PLAINTIFF: Norma McCorvey, aka Jane Roe / DEFENDANT: Henry Wade, district attorney of Dallas County, TX, where Roe resided)
2003: LAWRENCE V. TEXAS:
Struck down the sodomy law, thus legalizing same-sex sexual activity in every U.S. state and territory
(RULING: The “Homosexual Conduct” law [prohibiting sodomy] was unconstitutional and violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause that protects a substantive right to personal liberty in intimate decisions)
2015: OBERGEFELL V. HODGES:
Legalized same-sex marriage nationwide
(RULING: The Constitution guarantees a nationwide right to same-sex marriage. State bans on same-sex marriage and on recognizing same-sex marriages duly performed in other jurisdictions are unconstitutional under the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. PLAINTIFF: Jim Obergefell, a same-sex widower / DEFENDANT: Richard Hodges, Ohio’s health director)
TODAY’S STATE FOCUS
We direct our prayers to the states of Michigan and Minnesota and their leaders.
WE DECLARE THE 1908 PREAMBLE OF THE CONSTITUTION OF MICHIGAN:
“We, the people of the State of Michigan, grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of freedom … establish this Constitution.” (26th State admitted to the Union on January 26th, 1837)
MICHIGAN GOVERNOR
Gretchen Whitmer [D]
MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL
Dana Nessel [D]
MICHIGAN SENATORS
Gary Peters [D]
Debbie Stabenow [D]
MICHIGAN REPRESENTATIVES
DEMOCRATS
Dan Kildee
Elissa Slotkin
Andy Levin
Haley Stevens
Debbie Dingell
Rashida Tlaib
Brenda Lawrence
REPUBLICANS
Jack Bergman
Bill Huizenga
Peter Meijer
John Moolenaar
Fred Upton
Tim Walberg
Lisa McClain
WE DECLARE THE 1857 PREAMBLE OF THE CONSTITUTION OF MINNESOTA:
“We, the people of the State of Minnesota, grateful to God for our civil and religious liberty, and desiring to perpetuate its blessings …” (32nd State admitted to the Union on May 11th, 1858)
MINNESOTA GOVERNOR
Tim Walz [D]
MINNESOTA ATTORNEY GENERAL
Keith Ellison [D]
MINNESOTA SENATORS
Tina Smith [D]
Amy Klobuchar [D]
MINNESOTA REPRESENTATIVES
DEMOCRATS
Angie Craig
Dean Phillips
Betty McCollum
Ilhan Omar
REPUBLICANS
Jim Hagedorn
Tim Emmer
Michelle Fischbach
Pete Stauber
We want to ask that You turn their hearts towards You, Lord. We ask that You soften their hearts, Lord, to recognize and receive truth. Lord, we ask that You grant them the understanding and knowledge that come from the fear of You. We ask that You grant them wisdom and discernment, Lord, and that You make them bold to do what is right in Your sight. Lord, we ask that You direct their hearts to do Your will. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
