Pray with me today.

God, a new leader, President Barack Obama, is being inaugurated today, a man for whom I did not vote  but whom I must respect and pray for and support against outside evils. You have known this since the beginning of time and you have appointed this man to guide us through troubled waters with the wisdom of advisors and government surrounding him.

John 10:11(ESV)  "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep."

You are the ultimate authority and to you we lift our hands to praise you for all good things. We take comfort in knowing that you are sovereign, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent and that YOU have a plan. We take comfort in knowing that in you, GOD, in the sacrifice of your son Jesus for us, in your Holy Spirit in our hearts, in your glory, WE TRUST.

Jeremiah 17: 7-8 (ESV) "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

In you Lord, we do not need to be afraid, because you are with us, through us, in us when we place our faith in your ultimate goodness.

We lift up our nation, our new leaders, our countrymen to you, Father. Give us each wisdom to know where you would have us make an individual difference, strengthening the whole, walking in love, grace, mercy and yet righteous anger over ills that must be corrected throughout our country and the world. Help us to know the sometimes fine balance of being in this world and not of it.

1 Thessalonians 5:12 (ESV) "We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves."

In Christ alone we walk, live, breathe. Amen.

For more prayers for the new president and our nation, see Max Lucado's site.