For years, I have heard Christians grumble at the moral conditions of America, and for understandable reasons. The American ethos has slowly degraded into confusion, deception, and rage. 

But we cannot ask God to heal our land while refusing to steward what God has entrusted to us. The Church has long outsourced responsibility and then complains about the results. 

In Haggai 1, the temple was destroyed. The remnant left was distraught. Their community, their way of life, is gone. You’d expect the people of Judah to move to action. But they did what so many of us do. They expected God to revive their land and prosper their lives, with no plans to rebuild what had been broken. They wanted the effects of blessing without the priority of obedience. 

Modern Christians find themselves at a familiar impasse. We want God to rebuild the broken places of our society, yet we don't prioritize it. We don’t pray because we’re too busy. We don’t vote because it’s too inconvenient. We don’t give our resources sacrificially because it’s not a priority. We don’t speak out because it’s “too political”. 

Imagine how different history would read if God’s people had been too apathetic to obey. The Red Sea would never have been opened. Jericho would never have fallen. The fire would never have fallen on Mount Carmel. Naaman would never have been cleansed. Goliath would not have fallen. The lame man would never have walked. The upper room would never have experienced Pentecost. The Gospel would never have reached the nations. 

God’s response to the people in Haggai was simple: consider your ways, go up the hill, bring wood, and start rebuilding. My fellow believers: it’s time to consider our ways and start rebuilding. Do not neglect the assignment. Don’t pray for revival and ignore your part to play in God’s plan. 

Imagine what your family, your church, and your community would look like if we stopped waiting on God to do what He already told us to do. There are three areas I want to challenge the church in: 

We should pray. 

If we are not on our hands and knees, repenting before God for our apathy and our own wickedness, then we can be certain that He will never heal our land (1 Chronicles 7:14). Prayer has a profound effect on our ego and our laziness. More than anything else, prayer aligns our hearts to God’s priorities. So, if you find yourself apathetic to justice and mercy and moral clarity in America, I dare you to pray. 

Action: Commit 3 minutes a day to praying for your community, our leaders, and this nation. 

We should vote. 

Being told to vote sounds like a marketing cliche, but there is actually deep, rich spiritual fruit attached to the ballot box. How better can we love our neighbor (Leviticus 19:18), seek justice (Isaiah 1:17), and make the rough places straight (Isaiah 40:4) than to vote for leaders and policies that advocate for that which is good, true, and just? That is not a political platitude; that is Kingdom work. 

Action: Register to vote. It takes 3 minutes, and you become an ambassador for God's purposes on the earth.

We should give. 

This is usually the place where I lose people. God tells the people in Haggai to “bring wood and build.” Rebuilding costs something. If we believe that God uses people to bring about great reform and revival, then our generosity is one of the ways we put our priorities in order to fuel what we say we care about. 

Action: Partner with the American Council Financially. Just $25 a month helps us in our mission to rebuild the moral ethos of America.