Prayer for our MIA and POW
Written by: Ahava
Exodus 15:3
The Lord is a man of war, the Lord is His name.
Genesis 14:12-16
And they took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who dwelt in Sodom and his goods and departed. And there came one that had escaped and told Abram the Hebrew, for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner. These were confederate with Abram. When Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen and pursued them into Dan. He divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night and smote them and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. He brought back all the goods and also brought back his brother Lot and his goods and the women and the people.
Luke 15:4
What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he lost one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness and go after that which is lost until he find it?
God’s highest priority is the importance of human life, even if that life is just one individual.
Luke 2:19
Mary (mother of Jesus) kept all these things within and pondered them in her heart.
Luke 2:34-35
Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, “this child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be spoken against so the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."
If we put these Old Testament and New Testament scriptures together side by side and if we take a closer look at them, if we open our hearts and spiritual ear and ask the Lord what are you trying to tell us? What could they be used to say?
They could be saying:
War was from the beginning and the Lord is within the midst of war. (Exodus 15:3)
God desires those taken captive to be rescued. (Genesis 14:12-16)
God is mindful of each individual; just one soldier missing is priority with God. (Luke 15:4)
God is aware of the pain suffered by family members and friends of the MIA & POW’s (Luke 2)
It was told to Mary that a sword would pierce her heart and her child Jesus was destined for the fall and rising of many. When Mary beheld her son pierced through and through on the cross, a sword of sorrow and pain pierced the heart and soul of Mary.
When Jesus was upon the cross, He was standing in the gap within a spiritual war between light and darkness. Mary stood at the foot of the cross and experienced the death of her son; the piercing of her soul, for the liberty and freedom of mankind. At that moment in time, Mary did not know that her son would be rescued out of the clutches of death and he would be returned to her.
There was a little girl who grew up to be a woman. She married a soldier. Together they conceived a beautiful son. Her son wanted to be just like daddy when he grew up and that’s exactly what he did. As soon as he was 18, the son joined the Army and followed in his dad’s footsteps.
His mother sat quietly as she watched him graduate the academy. She sat quietly as he was selected for special missions. She sat and pondered many things within her heart just as Mary, the mother of Jesus pondered many things within her heart about her son Jesus.
This woman lost her husband on the battlefield of war. It was a sunny morning when she went out to the mailbox and there wasn’t a letter from her husband as usual. Maybe he was busy, there will be a letter arriving tomorrow. Tomorrow came and went and the mailbox remained empty.
Then at the end of the 3rd week, an Army vehicle drove up to the house at the same time the mail should have arrived. They did not carry a letter, they carried a small box. This wife did not want them to speak to her. She could not bear to hear what they came to say.
At the very moment they spoke to her – a sword pierced her heart.
Her husband has died in battle.
Her son came home for the funeral and then returned to the Army base. Within weeks he was deployed. Within months, the letters stopped from her son. Again a military vehicle drove up to her house at the same time the mail should have been arriving.
They walked up to her but this time they were empty handed. They were not carrying any box. This was worse. At least with the box she knew her husband’s belongings were within and she knew what had taken place. But the empty handed soldier was something she could not brace herself for. She did not want him to speak to her because she knew what he would say.
At the very moment he spoke to her – a sword pierced her heart.
Her son is missing in action…
We don’t know… We’re doing everything we can… We will let you know as soon as possible…
When people ask her, all she can say is, “I don’t know… I don’t know…
I don’t know…
Prayer for the MIA’s and POW’s
Dear God , in the holy Name of Jesus, may we find more accurate ways of tracing and identifying those missing in action. We pray for those who have been taken captive in war.
Let them not be forgotten. May our nation find ways to rescue them safely and quickly. Guide our political negotiators in their resolute efforts to gain the freedom of these courageous people. We pray that they will not be used as pawns to the advantage of our enemies.
Fill them with the hope of freedom and the knowledge that their loved ones and comrades are awaiting their safe return. Strengthen and enable them to keep their faith intact. Let trust and belief in their comrades keep them steadfast in courage, knowing that all means are being taken to find and rescue them.
Encourage each and every one of them with a song in their heart; spoken within them by the Holy Spirit. By your spirit, well up within them with songs of our country and the songs of their God. This will keep their spirit strong and their dedication to our country will remain intact.
Keep them clear minded and give them the ability to keep their faith that their fellow Warfighters have not given up the search. Strengthen them to hold onto their training and dedication to the United States of America and their troops.
When their freedom is restored, let our Warfighters walk with pride and dignity because of the suffering they have endured, as our grateful nation owes them a debt of honor that cannot be repaid.
It is written in your word:
Do not be afraid of them. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. (Matthew10:26)
We pray that everything the enemy has concealed and the places and locations where our MIA’ and POW’s are being held, that you God will disclose and make known to their rescuing troops. We thank you for fulfilling this scripture on behalf of our American Warfighters.
Thank you that the Lord is far from the wicked (our enemies) and He hears the prayers of the righteous (America) (Proverbs 15:29)
Amen.