Undignified Prayers!

by: Carole Hicks (Jan 27, 2025)

Have you ever heard the term “imprecatory prayers?”

These are a category of prayers found in the Bible, in particular the book of Psalms, where the writer(s) asks God to bring judgement, calamity, curses, even death upon their enemies or perceived enemies of God.

When Barack Obama was President, on numerous occasions, fellow church members, “CHRISTIANS” would send me emails with the following verse and say, “I just wanted you to know that I’m praying for your president.”

From Psalm 109, 8-10;

May his days be few;
    may another take his place of leadership.
May his children be fatherless
    and his wife a widow.
May his children be wandering beggars;
    may they be driven^[a] from their ruined homes

It broke my heart. I wrote back to a few … yes, chastising them for this. One replied, “It’s funny.”

No, it’s not funny. These prayers “invoke God’s wrath and punishment” (Crosswalk) and they are beneath the dignity of anyone who claims to be a follower of His Son, Jesus. They are not viewed as examples for us to follow. These are “prayers of peopleness” — expressions of sinful desire for vengeance, mean-spirited, self-righteous, cruel, and downright defective.

Not funny at all. I’d even say dangerous (on the part of the petitioner) to pray.

I woke up this morning about 4 AM, “urged to pray.”  In a previous post, I mentioned the necessity to “be willing to be willing” to pray for “enemies.”  This was “in my face” this morning.

I asked the Lord, (tho’ I knew the answer), “how do I authentically pray for someone I really do not like or trust?”   And of course, He reminded me of a few things (truths), and first off, he reminded me of that imprecatory prayer above, and to “NOT DO THAT!”

So, the “primary subject” of this call to prayer is of course the new President. I flat out said to the Lord, “You know my feelings. You know how my heart and my passions rage against him, his character, his behaviors, his intents on display. How do I pray with all that going on?”

Then the Holy Spirit reminded me of a few passages in Psalm 139 (NASB)

Read the whole thing. Many verses will be familiar, but don’t “cherry pick” — you can get in trouble that way. Read it in context and take note, David includes an imprecatory prayer or plea to God starting in verse 22. He asks for his enemies’ demise, and he is open about his hatred toward them. He even tries to substantiate his hatred because they are enemies of God (and now his enemies).

But … then in verses 23-24, he prays this:

²³ Search me, God, and know my heart; Put me to the test and know my anxious thoughts;
²⁴ And see if there is any ^[a]hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.

I once heard in a sermon that the first step in prayer is repentance … having a clean heart when you take your petitions to God. Certainly, one can’t pray an imprecatory prayer with a clean heart. Therefore, start with repentance … pray for my own heart to be clean and softened toward God. I wonder if David had started that prayer with verses 23-24, would he have asked for his enemies to be destroyed?

Then, this verse from 2 Peter 3:9 came to mind, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance.”

Yes, He wants ALL to come to repentance; even someone who “seems” to reject Him at every turn. So how do I/we pray in a dignified way that honors God’s Will and desires?

Well, pray for transformation. Pray for conviction. Pray for his heart/mind to be softened, tendered toward God and God’s ways for humankind. Pray his eyes and ears to be open, receptive. I’d venture to say this person of which I speak has never really known (or accepted) TRUE unconditional love. While I’m not able to muster that for him, I know God can because He does it for me. Pray that this person will be overwhelmed by God’s authentic, life-changing, unconditional love for him and ALL HUMANKIND. Pray for transformation!

My heart is heavy. God knows this. He knows that I’m bringing it to Him, even with all the disdain and ill feelings I harbor towards this person. He also knows I am not asking for his demise. Indeed, I think the world would be a far better place if he did repent, accepts God’s Love, Hope, Mercy, and Grace through Jesus. Who knows what “might” happen if he is saved. Good things happened after I got saved. (at least for me)

So, I pray that God uses “whomever” … to speak to him. He sent Mariann Edgar Budde, and she was outright rejected. It appears he only longs to have his ears tickled by those who speak messages that make him comfortable. Most of us know, we are not called to “comfort.”  Rarely, in our peopleness, do we find “edifying” messages “comfortable.”   Pray for his heart to be tendered, softened … even broken by words and messages that “edify.”

It’s been in my own brokenness that I have felt closest to God. That’s where I’ve heard Him most clearly.

God knows exactly what it’s going to take to reach him. God knows his rock-bottom and if that will even matter towards brokenness. I want to be willing to pray for his brokenness in a way that brings him to God, and GLORY TO GOD (and only God).

I believe the Holy Spirit has also prompted me to pray for others around him. While he may not have been exposed to or even receptive to God’s Message, perhaps JD Vance, Marco Rubio or John Thune will be. Pray for them to experience God’s presence and power … conviction of the Holy Spirit … FOR GOD’S GLORY ALONE.

And for those in our circles who seem enamored by whatever it is that draws them to this person, let’s first ask God to help us speak with gentleness. Yes, I feel so annoyed. Sometimes, I’m more annoyed by the following than I am by the “idol.”  But God sees their hearts just as He sees mine. I know I need to be kinder and more patient. I know it’s a waste of time allowing myself to become overwhelmed and stressed to the point of lashing out, using foul language, and harboring “throat punch” inclinations.

In his last term, I set my heart on trying to “overcome evil with good.”  My heart has felt so discouraged these past few months, mostly because I had hope that “goodness” (or how I perceived goodness) would prevail. It’s been difficult to dig out of what I can only describe as despair. (yes, peopleness)

But, with God’s help, I’m getting my bearings.

As President Carter said of his own calling, “I have one life and one chance to make it count for something… My faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I am, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have to try to make a difference.” ~ Jimmy Carter

So, first, PRAY, without malice. Without seeking any vengeance. Repent and seek God’s Will. See what God is doing and join Him in that. Pray for each other. Pray for our enemies. To whatever GOOD, wherever, whenever, however with a “pure heart” and GIVE GORY TO GOD for HE IS GOOD!