​In Matthew 6, Jesus taught His disciples how to pray and gave us the Lord’s Prayer.  One element of the prayer that I don’t think we pray enough is the second verse:  “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:11). 
 
How often do we pray that God’s kingdom would come to earth?  In my observation, it seems that we often pray the opposite.  We ask God to bless our kingdoms, to preserve our nation, or prosper our country.  While the Bible does tell us to pray for our leaders and nation, our number one prayer should be that God’s kingdom would be established on earth.  We are citizens of an eternal kingdom; therefore, our first priority and greatest desire should be for God to build His kingdom.

​I hope you all had a wonderful time celebrating the 4th of July! Though our nation seems to be spiraling into chaos and more restrictions, we still enjoy great freedom, and it is important for us to remember and celebrate them.  One of the many freedoms we enjoy here in the States is the ability to worship God without hindrance.  Many of our brothers and sisters around the world do not get to enjoy this luxury.  Therefore, we must capitalize on and fully utilize this privilege and not take it for granted.  

​We’re living in crazy times.  Just when we thought things couldn’t get much worse, they did.  However, in the midst of the crazy, in the middle of the uncertainty and chaos, we have a refuge we can run to.  Proverbs 18:10 assures us that, “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.”  Therefore, as we face a season where fear and anger abounds, let us run to our place of safety, the name of the Lord.