Last month while speaking at The National Prayer Summit in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Sandy and I toured the fabled Garden Of The Gods. As we drove through this beautiful creation of God, we came upon the magnificent rock formation pictured below. Now, don't scroll down too far and peek. Instead, let me ask you a question as you look at this first photo. What does this rock formation look like to you? Do you see what we immediately saw?

For those who might need a little help, I asked out Internet Tech Minister, Paul Stephens, to create a "transformation sequence" that reveals the testimony of this geological creation of God. Please scroll down to view his revealing animation.

In the above animation, you will of course immediately recognize the famous Praying Hands from the fifteenth century woodcut by Albrecht Durer. Without doubt, this woodcut is one of the most recognizable artistic creations in all of history. This beloved work of art has endured and been reproduced for centuries by people all around the world.

However, the rock formation in America's Garden of the Gods, has been standing since the one, true and living God of all creation first sculpted it. This was standing and undiscovered long before Durer's woodcut was ever created. Is the similarity just coincidence, or did Providence have something else in mind?

I like to think that the Lord himself might very well have placed this monument in America for just such a time as this. Could it be that this Praying Hands Rock Formation, as I call it, has a message to deliver to America in this hour of need? Does it not stand as a reminder that we should again seek and call upon the God of our Fathers?

Rocks In The Bible

Throughout the Bible, we find the words "rock" and "stone" used as metaphors for the God of the Bible. In Psalm 89:26, God himself foretold the very words of King David's prayer saying, "He shall cry unto me, 'Thou art my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation'". Psalm 28:1 records David's prayer, "Unto Thee will I cry, O LORD my rock." And in Psalm 61:2, David cried out, "Lead me to the rock which is higher than I".

In many cases, stones where set up and used as landmarks to commemorate great spiritual events. Here are just a few examples:

In Genesis 28:18, Jacob erected a small pillar at Bethel and anointed it, as he made a holy vow to God. He did this immediately after God gave him the vision of the heavenly ladder.

In Genesis 31:44-51, Jacob and Laben set up a pillar of stones to commemorate a covenant of peace.

In Exodus 31:18, God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses on two tablets of stone.

In Joshua 24:27 Joshua set up a stone of witness as he said, "Behold, this stone shall be a witness unto us; for it hath heard all the words of the LORD which he spake unto us. It shall be therefore a witness unto you, lest ye deny your God."

While Joshua's words appear to be metaphoric in their context, the notion that stones could both hear and witness does not seem so far-fetched, when considered in the light of modern technology. In Silicon Valley, silicon sand is turned into micro-chips. In fact, if your reading this e-mail right now, you're using the technology of silicon dust... the stuff that rocks are made of!

Jesus once declared, "I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out." (Luke 19:40) Again, in view of today's technology, these words don't sound as bizarre as they did in the day in which they were spoken. Who knows, God may extract from the very rocks and sands of the earth every word that we have ever uttered.

The Lord Jesus Is The Rock Of Our Nation!

In Daniel 2:44, Daniel prophesied of the coming end-time kingdom of Christ saying, "And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed." This kingdom was described as "a stone cut out of the mountain without hands", which would, break in pieces the kingdoms of this world. (Verse 45)

In Matthew 21:42, Jesus revealed that he himself was indeed "The Stone" referred to in the Old Testament prophies, declaring, "Did ye never read in the scriptures, 'The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner. This is the LORD's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes.'" Jesus went on to say, "And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it shall grind him to powder." (Verse 44)

The Apostle Paul summed up all the scriptures that preceded his writings by stating plainly, "That Rock was Christ!" (I Corinthians 10:4)

Our Presidents Declared & Defended
America's Spiritual Foundations

America was blessed and has become great because our nation was built on the bedrock faith of God and the Bible. Our elected presidents have clearly attributed America's greatness to this fact.

President John Quincy Adams summed up the revolution and birth of America by stating: "The highest glory of the American Revolution was this; that it connected in one indissoluble bond, the principles of self-government with the principles of Christianity."

President Andrew Jackson once said of the Bible, "That book, Sir, is the rock upon which this Republic rests!"

President Woodrow Wilson declared, "America was born a Christian nation!"

President Eisenhower's tomb is inscribed with these, his very words: "The real fire within the builders of America was faith - faith in a Provident God whose hand supported and guided them."

Even President Franklin Roosevelt plainly stated this truth in a Christmastide, fireside chat in which he quoted the Christmas angels, saying, "'Peace on earth, good will toward men.' - Democracy must cling to that message. For it is my deep conviction that democracy cannot live without THAT TRUE RELIGION, which gives a nation a sense of justice and moral purpose."

(To view these and many other presidential God & Country quotes,
click here to view our "Hail To The Chief" link)

America Must Return To The Rock Of Our Fathers

The real point however is that America must return to the bedrock faith of our Fathers if we are to be restored as a nation. Our current president recently declared that "America is no longer a Christian nation." I for one utterly reject his declaration! Nevertheless, a sitting President of the United States made this statement and it is up to everyday Americans to refuse to accept this declaration as we also continue to pray for the president. We can do this both by our prayers and by our faith-action.

For this reason, we are asking Americans everywhere to join us in a special Thanksgiving edition of our noted Prayer Force One, White House Prayer Meeting. It is not too late for America if we will repent and return to the God of our Fathers. As We Enter This Thanksgiving Season,
I Ask You To Do Three Things

1. Join us in The White House for prayer by clicking on our Prayer & Stripes Logo below. As you can see, this logo contains the famous praying hands that our rock formation reminded us of at the beginning of this letter. We must never forget that prayer is our first and foremost weapon in the struggle against evil. As the scripture says, "The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God, to the pulling down of strongholds." (I Corinthians 10:4)

2. When you get to The White House room, (courtesy of the George W. Bush Presidential Library) I ask you to pray this, or a similar prayer:

LORD,
I confess that we as a nation have sinned against you.
Please forgive us of our personal and national sins.
We acknowledge that YOU alone are the ROCK of our nation.
I confess & declare that The United States of America
is indeed, A CHRISTIAN NATION!
In JESUS name I pray,
Amen.

3. Please forward this Special Thanksgiving E-Letter to all your family and friends. It is my prayer that they would not only enjoy the transforming Praying Hands Rock Formation, but that they will in turn forward this on to many others as well. If everyone will join us for prayer and then forward this on to at least three people, we could have hundreds of thousands of people praying in The White House during the Thanksgiving holiday. Will you now join us in The White House for prayer? To do so simply click on the Prayer & Stripes logo above.

God bless you for obeying II Chronicles 7:14, and... Have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving!