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From the beginning of his presidency, Donald Trump has encouraged prayers for himself and for the country. The TV evangelist who brought Trump to faith in Jesus Christ, Paula White, played a key role during his inauguration and then again during the president’s reelection rally in Orlando last June.
She was God’s tool in bringing Trump to faith, she explained:
He was watching Christian television and [after calling me on the phone] he repeated back to me, literally verbatim, three of my sermons on the value of vision, and we started talking about God and the things of God.
I’ve had the wonderful privilege of not only being a friend but being a spiritual adviser and praying over him, his family [and] his staff. It’s been amazing to just watch him walk out his faith.
When quizzed about his conversion by NBC News, White added: “I know that Donald is saved. He’s absolutely received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.”
Last May, Vice President Mike Pence, himself an unabashed claimer of the name of Jesus, told Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) that “There’s prayer going on on a regular basis in this White House. And it’s one of the most meaningful things to me.” He added: “I’ve lost count of the number of times that the president has nudged me or nudged another member of the Cabinet and said, ‘Let’s start this meeting with prayer.’”
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In the last couple of weeks, evidence that the president hasn’t backed away from his commitment has popped up in some unlikely places. After finishing a speech to the Young Black Leadership Summit two weeks ago, a young woman interrupted him, shouting “Let me pray for you!”
The president stopped the music and invited the woman, Mahalet (shown), an Ethiopian immigrant adopted by a Christian family in Indiana, to come up onto the stage. The president turned the microphone over to her:
I’m not really good with prayers or anything like that but I just want to say thank you, Mr. President. I know we have a political warfare [going on] right now, but I strongly believe that it is a spiritual one as well.
And I want to make sure that, I mean, I know that Americans are gonna wake up and we’re gonna get back to looking to God instead of social media and we’re gonna look back to Jesus because Jesus saves and this country was founded upon the Constitution, was built on godly principles and we’re gonna fight for that. And I just want to encourage you guys to pray every day for this nation.
Then she began her prayer, saying “I love God and I want to pray real quick”:
Dear God, I’m not really good at this. But I just want to say thank You so much for giving us this opportunity to be in the White House. Thank You for giving us a great leader like Trump, Mr. Donald Trump, and I would like to thank You for waking up our nation.
God, I believe that you gave him to us and I believe that he’s gonna accomplish so much more. I know You have more for us. Jesus, I ask You to protect us and walk with us. In Jesus’ name.
The president gave her a hug and then tweeted, “So amazing!”
On Saturday, October 12, Pastor Andrew Brunson, who was imprisoned in Turkey for more than two years, prayed for the president at the Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C.:
Father God, I ask now for an impartation of Your Holy Spirit, may the fullness of the Spirit of Jesus rest upon President Trump that he be anointed with wisdom and understanding, with Your counsel and might, with knowledge and fear of the Lord….
Bring into the light all deception and intrigue, expose and reverse the plans of those who would harm President Trump and this nation. In the name of Jesus, I break off all voices and influences that do not come from You, father God….
God, You have raised President Trump to govern at a time when there is a resurgence of oppression. Only You Lord Jesus Christ can anoint him to have victories over strongholds and to establish justice for the needy. Give him strength and courage to persevere in the constant battle that surrounds him and refresh him.
Trump responded: “I want to thank you for that beautiful prayer, it means a lot. Our rights come from God Almighty and they can never be taken away. Together we will protect those God-given rights.”
Three days later, exactly one year after being released from his Turkish prison cell, Pastor Brunson delivered the opening prayer for the Senate:
Our Heavenly Father: May Your holy name be honored. May Your name be held in high regard in this Senate. We give thanks to You for You are good. And Your steadfast love endures forever. You have watched over this nation in various times of peace, prosperity, turmoil, and war. May we continue to look to You and be a people who seek Your face.
On Monday, the president nudged Dr. Ben Carson, head of HUD, to offer a prayer at the opening of a Cabinet meeting at the White House. Prayed Carson:
Our kind Father in Heaven, we’re so thankful for the many blessings that You have bestowed upon us in this country and we’re thankful for the people of courage who have been here before us, who have fought hard for the rights of our country.
And we thank You for President Donald Trump, who also exhibits great courage in face of constant criticism. And we ask that You would give him strength to endure and the wisdom to lead, and to recognize You as the sovereign of the universe with the solution to everything. And the people around the president — the vice president, the Cabinet, the advisors — give us all an understanding heart and a compassionate heart. Those are the things that will keep America great.
And help us all to recognize as a nation that separation of church and state means that the church does not dominate the state, and it means the state does not dominate the church. It doesn’t mean that they cannot work together to promote godly principles of loving your fellow man, of caring about your neighbor, of developing your God-given talents to the utmost so that you become valuable to the people around you, and having values and principles that govern your life.
And if we do those things, then we will always be successful. And we thank You for hearing our prayer, in Your holy name. Amen.
Despite the deliberate silence from the mainstream media, the spirit and power of prayer continues to permeate the Trump administration.
Photo: AP Images
An Ivy League graduate and former investment advisor, Bob is a regular contributor to The New American, writing primarily on economics and politics. He can be reached at [email protected].
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