Sentinel Watch January 17, 2011 ISSUE

A vote for good government everywhere

John Minard

The recent disputed elections in the nation of Ivory Coast have helped me see the importance of prayer for government—not just where I live, but everywhere. In this case, the incumbent, who was defeated, is still refusing to relinquish his post, even though the election of his opponent was seen as free and fair. South Africa’s president and others have attempted to mediate the situation, but at this writing, the situation has taken a threatening turn.

It’s easy to feel exempt from the issues societies different from our own face, and think that nothing like that could happen where we live. No human system can totally provide for the needs and protection of citizens. But when informed by prayer, we can gain peace about governmental issues, and our decisions become less about people, politics, or party, and more about such things as wisdom, honesty, and stability in government.

One support for my own prayers has been the “Daily Prayer”—given to everyone, not just Christian Scientists—by Mary Baker Eddy. This prayer helps us affirm, each day, God’s government in our lives: “ ‘Thy kingdom come;’ let the reign of divine Truth, Life, and Love be established in me, and rule out of me all sin; and may Thy Word enrich the affections of all mankind, and govern them!” (Church Manual, p. 41 ).

I know of no better way to establish effective human government than to accept that God’s government is already “established in me”—in each one of us—and that this reign of Truth, Life, and Love is forever in place as the permanent, universal government over all of God’s creation. 

This prayer speaks to the connection between acknowledging God’s government and purity in our own lives, and realizing greater harmony and purer motives in the human government of all people and nations. Our straightforward prayers to be rightly governed by God have a broad, purifying effect on every type and level of government.

The familiar story of Daniel in the lions’ den (see Dan. 6:1–28 ) offers a powerful example of this purifying effect. King Darius had great respect for Daniel because “an excellent spirit was in him.” Yet some of the king’s presidents and princes, jealous of Daniel’s popularity, duped the king into signing a law that would sentence to death anyone who prayed to any god or man other than the king.

Our straightforward prayers to be rightly governed by God have a broad, purifying effect on every type and level of government.

When Daniel continued to pray three times a day out of his devotion to God, King Darius regretfully sentenced him to the lions’ den, hoping that Daniel’s God would deliver him from the jaws of the lions. And that’s exactly what happened! Furthermore, Daniel’s trust in God’s government resulted in greater justice and a higher basis of government for all of Persia. Upon seeing how Daniel’s devotion to God pacified the lions, King Darius countermanded the unjust law—enacted through deception, ignorance, and ego—and established a higher, more just human law.

Even today, as we come to recognize and trust God’s government in our own lives—exemplified through qualities such as harmony, purity, honesty, and integrity—we’re acknowledging that these qualities truly govern all mankind. And the positive, practical effect on human government can be as astounding as in Daniel’s day.

This divine model of government is the individual and collective influence of the Christ in human experience. Mrs. Eddy wrote in Science and Health, “Reflecting God’s government, man is self-governed” (p. 125 ). And we won’t find a better example of self-government than in the life of Christ Jesus.

Jesus certainly lived within the laws of his time, but was guided by his allegiance to God, giving “unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s” (Luke 20:25 , American Standard Version). Jesus’ flawless obedience to God gave him dominion over every aspect of the human condition. In his Lord’s Prayer, echoed in the “Daily Prayer,” is that simple affirmation: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10 ). It’s a daily declaration that, here and now, we live in the kingdom of heaven, wholly controlled by God. And isn’t this the ultimate model of government?

Every decision we make in government, whether it’s as an elected official, at a PTA meeting, or in the voting booth, can be a prayerfully “informed decision,” if it stems from acknowledging the reign of divine Truth, Life, and Love for all mankind. When we appeal to the highest authority—God’s flawless government of our lives—His kingdom becomes more apparent “in earth, as it is in heaven.”

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