Fri Oct 25, 2013

BISHOP SONNY E. WILLIAMS, PRESIDING BISHOP,
PENTECOSTAL ASSEMBLIES OF THE WEST INDIES,
St Vincent and the Grenadines District

INDEPENDENCE MESSAGE

“And seek the peace of the city whither I caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it; for in the peace therefore shall ye have peace.” (Jer. 29:7)

As Christians, we are responsible to seek God for the peace of our country. Peace as used by the Prophet Jeremiah means completeness, wholeness, perfect wellbeing, welfare, prosperity and health. This therefore is a call to seek God for the progress of our nation.{{more}}

Paul instructs us “to pray for all men; for kings and for all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1 Tim. 2:1-2).

Prayer for our nation is therefore not an option. It is a command. Often we only pray when the nation is in crisis. Maybe that is the reason why we are often in crisis. We cannot take the peace of our nation for granted and fail to pray.

God promises (2 Chron. 7:14) when we pray to “hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” James also encourages us that the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective (Jas. 5:16)

Our solemn responsibility is to intervene in prayer for our nation. Together, let us fervently pray for the following:

• For a deep moral and spiritual renewal to help us meet the many problems we face

• For exemplary leaders and for wisdom for them to make right decisions and the political will to act

• That we will be able to move in our streets freely and without fear of molestation

• For the creation of wealth and jobs for our people

• For the financial ability to be able to maintain our infrastructure such as roads, drains etc.

• For the completion of the Argyle International Airport

• For law and order without the abuse of human rights

• For a godly nation where its citizens are treated with respect

• For the respect and care of the elderly

• For a cleaner environment and for affordable and reliable essential services

These are only some of the areas we should pray about and we must do so without ceasing (1 Thes. 5: 17). We must all do our bit to ensure that peace and prosperity of our country. Please give cognizance to the reality that in the peace of the nation is our own peace as individuals and citizens. If things must go well for the country, they must go well with us.

We pray that churches in our nation will rise up and take the responsibility for the prayer for our nation. Over the past years, the summon to united prayer has only been heeded by the few. Our National Day for Prayer Rally and National Independence Service have had poor attendances.

The Pentecostal Assemblies of the West Indies St Vincent and the Grenadines District again proudly salutes the nation on its achievement of 34 years of Independence. We renew our pledge to prayer and to the support of our beloved nation. May peace continue to reign from shore to shore.