"Pray My Strength in the Lord" - The Conclusion

“Pray My Strength in the Lord” – The Conclusion

Interestingly, the Church in the United States bemoans the protracted moral decline and ethical decay of our society.  Many religious leaders articulate often a litany of examples of moral licentiousness that pervades our country.  On many levels, there is concern about the state of marriage.  The pro-life movement remains steadfast in its assault upon abortion on demand.  Countless persons fear that religion will not be allowed in public discourse.  The Church fights for the public display of the Ten Commandments and the preservation of their role in private, familial, communal and societal morality.  The elimination of school prayer and prohibitions against extracurricular Bible studies infuriate many clergy and lay leaders.  Summarily, the Church laments the decadence and steep moral decline of American society at the dawn of the twenty-first century.

However, I posit the previously mentioned six-word prayer, “Pray my strength in the Lord,” possesses incredible insight for resolving some of these challenges.  Admittedly, one should avoid posing simplistic answers to complex questions.  I hope to avoid such a pitfall.  Yet, I truly believe that one of the Church’s responses to today’s moral difficulties is living with Christian integrity.  I submit that the Church would win more converts and adherents to its way of life by living by the Ten Commandments instead of merely advocating for their public display.  Imagine the influence the Church would have on American society if it were the case that the average Christian adhered to the Ten Commandments with integrity.  Consider the possibilities of effecting and controlling public discourse if the Church presents a definite and clear alternative to the social and moral mores of the world?  Thus, each believer could benefit from that simple yet significant prayer, “Pray my strength in the Lord.”

Again, integrity is the one of the greatest challenges that a believer faces.  To be sure, today’s struggle in this area is not very different comparatively from what the apostle Paul and others faced in Rome during the first century.  They, too, had to make firm choices about whether they would adhere to the dictates of their faith or digress to the practice of permissive immorality.  There was the saying, “When in Rome, do as the Romans.”  Christians had to decide whether they would follow the teachings of Christ or the social and moral liberty of Rome.  As a result, Paul consistently wrote to the new churches of the Empire with “Rules for Holy Living” (Colossians 3).  Today, believers choose to live according to the Spirit of God and the spiritual nature rather than the carnal nature.  Will the believer prioritize the Lordship of Jesus Christ in his actions as well as his words?  The matter of integrity remains our daily test.

Lastly, the Lord Jesus Christ, in the “Sermon on the Mount,” instructs his audience to “Be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect.”  Whereas the believer must follow the Lord’s commands, he can rest in the surety that the Lord accepts an earnest desire to progress daily.  Quite frankly, spiritual perfection in this life is probably unattainable.  Yet, there is no excuse for the believer’s failure to pursue spiritual progress.  His best attempt will be found in a supportive community of faith that will heed his earnest request, “Pray my strength in the Lord.”