Forty: Not Just a Number

And Elijah arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and nights to Horeb, the mount of God. 

1 Kings 19:8

Numbers have meaning, even to the math-challenged. The world couldn’t run without them. Big numbers are great if it’s a bank balance. Not so much with age. Those who approach their 40^th birthday do so amidst groans of, “I’m getting so old.” As the birthday numbers continue to rise year after year, forty seems young.

In the Bible, numbers carry significant meaning. “One” is independent, only divisible by itself—as in the Godhead, three in one. “Two” denotes companionship and witness—two become one flesh, two angels at the tomb. “Seven” is the number of completion—on the 7^th day God rested from Creation, seven covenants of God with man. It’s fascinating to look behind the numbers, which often have more significance than their quantitative value.

Pray Americas is now in its fifth week. One more to go. But why didn’t we plan for a single, intense week? Or how about an intense month? Both seem neater, easier to manage. But forty it is, and for good reason. This number is especially pervasive in Scripture and connected to consecration and the fulfillment of God’s promises

There are numerous events in the Bible that happen over forty days or forty years—157 in all. Some are legalistic. Forty days after birth, a male child was dedicated to God. Some are historical. Moses lived in Egypt for forty years and then in the desert for forty years before God’s call to lead his people out of slavery. And then there are the Jesus forty. He fasted in the wilderness and was tempted for forty days. And after his resurrection he taught his disciples for forty days before ascending to heaven.

Each Biblical instance when things happen in the realm of forty, it is a time of testing, trial, and preparation. And so it is with Pray Americas. Much has already been poured into the effort. How has that been working?

Although the United States is a majority Christian nation, simply identifying as “Christian” is not the same as practicing as such. The testing of the past many years has culminated at this point in history in a multitude of shared national trials. Unless you’ve been living in a cave without Wi-Fi for the past six months, you get it. Pandemic. Brutality. Riots. Anarchy. Poverty. Disenfranchisement. Fear. Racism. Disunity. To name a few.

It’s so easy to say, “Nothing is impossible with God.” And that’s true. It’s also true that there is an important if in 2 Chronicles 7:14. Summarized, God says that IF my people pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear, forgive, and heal their land. We are called to pray. Yes, God can do anything. Yes, sometimes He acts in mercy even when we don’t come to Him first. But the default is this: pray continually.

The forty days of Pray Americas is preparation, a biblically-based season set aside to reach out in faith on behalf of our nation. Think big, start small. Jesus taught and prayed with his small group of disciples for forty days before he ascended. Then they went out and through the power of the Holy Spirit changed the world.

Walking and praying begins in neighborhoods, communities, cities, counties, and states. With prayer warriors in every state at every level, intercession is rising to God. One prayer at a time. One person at a time. To one God for all time. We are already seeing God change the United States in positive, holy ways. Doing so over forty days is firmly rooted in Scripture.

If you haven’t yet joined in, find out more about the remaining days of prayer on the website. It’s never too late. Sign up to prayer walk. Connect with others who are longing for us to be one nation under God. Indivisible. With liberty and justice for all. Lofty goals. An even loftier empowerment by the One who creates, saves, and guides.

Be humble. Pray. Seek the Lord. Stand in the gap to turn our nation away from its wicked ways. And God will hear from heaven. He will forgive. And He will heal our land.

We have forty days. It’s not just a number. Let’s make each one count!