Franklin
Graham, son of Billy Graham, called for a day of prayer for US President Donald
Trump on June 2nd 2019. Mr. Trump has been under a heavy barrage from a variety
of opponents: Congressional Democrats who are eager, if not desperate, to
impeach him; the Deep State of entrenched bureaucrats and high-up government
officials who feel their turf is threatened, the mainstream media whose
negative coverage is 91%, and even members of his own political party, called
by the acronym RINO (Republic In Name Only). Let’s not forget the ‘never-Trumpers,’
too. While all Presidents face opposition, impartial observers following events
in the US should admit that Trump’s opposition has gone to a whole new level of
ferocity. Hence, the day of prayer.
'He's our president,'
Graham added in a Twitter video clip, 'and if he succeeds we all benefit.
But if his enemies are allowed to destroy him and pull down the presidency it
will hurt our entire nation.' Graham said, 'Many thousands of
churches' would take part in the targeted prayer sessions.
On
that very Day of Prayer, Mr. Trump made an unscheduled, impromptu stop at the
mega McLean Bible Church in Vienna, Virginia, near Washington DC. Once hearing
of the President’s imminent arrival, the senior pastor, Dr. David Platt, only
had a matter of minutes to gather his thoughts and make a decision what to do
next. The decision: to offer a beautiful prayer for Mr. Trump.The President
made no public comments; he merely thanked the pastor and departed after being
in the church for only 11 minutes.
Then
the backlash began.
For
President Trump, backlash, verbal attacks, insults, are all in a day’s work.
Yet for Dr. Platt he was criticised within and without his congregation. The
pastor seemed concerned that he caused ‘hurt’ to some in his congregation who,
for a ‘variety of valid reasons,’ were unhappy with the decision to pray for
Trump. So Dr. Platt penned a pastoral letter to the congregation - confessing
his love for every church member, acknowledging the hurt, reassuring them that
his prayer was in faithfulness to Scripture and in no way an endorsement of
President Trump, his policies, and/or the Republican Party.
At
the same time, Pastor Platt was criticised by outsiders that thought he was
appeasing those who were disgruntled in the congregation. No matter what the
pastor did, there would be criticism.
Then
there were those who had no comment to make about prayer. Instead, they were
mesmerised by the President’s new hair style, which allegedly broke the
internet!
While
there were many high-profile ministries who endorsed the ‘Day of Prayer for the
President Trump,’ McLean was not one of them. Pastor Platt said regarding the
day of prayer: 'Many of you may have seen that there were calls to,
particularly on this Sunday, pray for our president. We don't want to do that
just on this Sunday. We want to do that continually, day in and day out…. And then he proceeded to pray for the
President, in-person.
It
is not clear why the President did not choose a more ‘Trump-friendly’ church,
where the backlash possibly would be less, although there were no guarantees.
In
an age of seeking ‘safe-space,’ couldn’t the church be a haven, oasis, a ‘cave
of Adullam,’ a ‘refuge from the storms?’ Apparently, not when it comes to
Donald Trump.
What
are we to make of this situation? There are several takeaways.
DIVISION:
There
is no question that many consider Donald Trump to be divisive leader. Yet, he
is by no means is alone; several modern US Presidents were called the same
thing. Leftists and progressives are united in their opposition to him for his
policies and personhood. Yet, even among conservative whose cause Trump
champions there is disunity, though for different reasons - more about his personhood
than his policies. Even Christian families are divided - one pastor admitted, ‘I
can’t even talk to my (adult) children about Trump.’ And he’s from Canada!
People
can be divisive because they are evil troublemakers who revel in strife. They
have a ‘divide and conquer’ mentality. Some are divisive because they ‘dare to
be different.’ Yet there are people who are ‘divisive’ because they take a
strong, courageous principled stance on a major issue in time of crisis— and
the other side reacts strongly. Some of history’s greatest leaders were called ‘divisive’
during their time in power.
This
author leaves it with the reader to decide which category fits Donald Trump.
When
it comes to ‘division,’ remember the words of the Saviour Himself:
Suppose ye that I am
come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: 52For
from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two,
and two against three — Luke 12:51-52.
Divisive
people who are strong and principled are in good company.
In
our next edition, we will look at the commands of Scripture and what is a
God-honouring attitude towards leadership.
TO
BE CONTINUED.
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