As Independence Day nears, Abide, the Christian meditation and prayer app, conducted a worldwide survey to gauge how people pray for America’s leaders. The survey revealed the most frequent prayers for the president, vice president and the United States are for wisdom, obedience and humility, while terrorism was the leading national prayer topic.
“These results show that, all of us may have different opinions but we all want the best for our leaders and nation; we want them to be successful,” said Neil Ahlsten, CEO and cofounder of Abide. “Our country is founded on the idea that we can have different views but still support and encourage one another—regardless of culture, creed, gender or political persuasion.”
According to the survey taken by more than 800 individuals who practice prayer and Christian meditation, here are the top four prayers:
- 90 percent of Abide users pray for the President and Vice president to have wisdom in making decisions that influence our country,
- Nearly 60 percent pray for them to be obedient to God
- 56 percent pray for them to have humility.
- Other people surveyed expressed the desire for God to lead them in decisions.
“I pray for God to give both of them the wisdom and understanding to lead this country without bias,” said one Abide user. “I pray they make their decisions based on the facts that America is God’s own country and that we are all created equal by God, the author and the finisher.”
While Abide users may share similar prayer requests for our elected officials, their opinions of the president are more divided.
When asked what national issues they pray for most often, 53 percent of Abide users said they pray about terrorism, nearly 50 percent pray about the corruption of government officials and 43 percent pray for religious freedom. Prayers over the economy, health care costs and quality, immigration, abortion and regulations on firearms and ammunition followed. Other responses from the survey indicated a desire for unity, revival and transparency, with some users expressing a prayer for peace.
Lastly, the app survey found nearly 40 percent of Abide users pray for the president and vice president weekly, and another 40 percent said they are personally hindered from praying for them. Some surveyors said they do not pray for them because they live in another country. Others expressed disagreement over policies and needing to pray over issues in their own lives as why they do not pray for our leaders.
“Independence Day is about coming together as a nation to celebrate our history and freedom,” said Ahlsten. “When we turn on the news and scroll through our social media feeds, we are constantly reminded of how fortunate we are to live in America. I think these answers show how much we all love this country and emphasize the importance of remembering God is in control.” {eoa}
