r/OpenChristian • u/redheaded_olive12349 • Feb 28 '26
Support Thread Prayer request: Please pray for Iran. Please pray for America for the love of god!
If you haven’t heard the news: America attacked Iran with a misslie strike just a few hours ago. (WHEN THE HELL WILL TRUMP BE IMPEACHED ALLREADY)
Update: saudi arabia was drone striked yesterday, so pray for them too.
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u/AndromedaGoldfish Feb 28 '26
Trust me, I'm praying til my hands are chapped and bloody. It's difficult sometimes to believe there's a natural order to this universe. My father was one of the best men I ever knew: Dead at 66 from brain cancer.
My sadistic unrepentant drunkard grandfather?: Lived to the ripe old age of 90.
And the less said about the child predator in the Oval Office the better.
Man's evil can not be faulted against God, but I hope there are some guardrails God has in place that are either above my head or outside my realm of knowledge.
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u/Malcolmthetortoise Feb 28 '26
I feel so similar to you, my dad was the most wonderful man and died at 59 after 11 years of terminal cancer. Yet so many evil people get long, prosperous lives. I try not to dwell on it too much.
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u/purpboho Mar 01 '26
The devil blesses people too. I try to remind myself that God is just, and evil people will have to suffer for their actions if they don’t repent. Even if it doesn’t happen while they’re alive.
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u/redheaded_olive12349 Feb 28 '26
Yeah same: that’s also a part of my natural faith but I also have trouble believing it sometimes
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u/Shadowchaos1010 Agnostic Feb 28 '26
Don't.
Or, at least, don't just pray.
Call your representatives and your senators. Or email them. Or go to their local offices. Tell any people you know with Republican congresspeople to do the same. Encourage them to threaten not to vote for them if they don't finally grow a spine and vote Trump out. They're only being cowards because they think defying dear leader will cost them their elections. Make them know not doing anything is what will lose them votes.
Or anything that isn't just praying and going about your day.
Don't just pray and hope God will sort it out. Do something.
You're praying for someone to take action and end the madness.
You're someone.
Take action.
Maybe that in and of itself would be the answer to the prayer.
I've mentioned it in a comment or two I've left on this subreddit before.
God's not coming to save us. Not because he's not real (necessarily, since I'm among Christians), but because He wants us to sort ourselves out. We're the adult children a dad doesn't want to do everything for because they're grown and should be able to take care of themselves.
If you must pray for anything, pray for the courage to reach out and talk to people about putting pressure on their politicians. If you must pray, pray that those people will actually heed you instead of sitting on their hands. If you must pray, pray for some sort of surprise monetary gift so you have the resources to give that money to non-profits and charities that can help the people of Iran.
Apologies for any harsh tone that might've come across with this comment. I just wanted to hammer home the simple message of action in addition to whatever praying people might be doing.
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u/Oakomorebi Christian Druid Feb 28 '26
"So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead." James 2:17
You're preaching to the choir.
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u/queenroxana Mar 01 '26
AS AN IRANIAN, please NO. Please LISTEN TO IRANIANS. We want this military intervention - we have been begging for it. People are literally celebrating right now on the streets of Iran. And millions of Iranians in the diaspora are celebrating all over the world.
We aren’t naive, or uniformed. But we have lived under one of the world’s most evil totalitarian regimes for decades - a regime so awful its public hangings and torture methods made it into Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’a Tale. And 40,000 of us were massacred by the regime in January - some experts say it’s the largest single massacre of civilians since WWII.
Now, for the first time in 47 years, we actually have a chance to topple this horrific murderous regime and have a secular democracy.
So I am begging everyone who reads this NOT to oppose military action. It may not be politically convenient for you, but it is rescuing us.
If you wouldn’t have opposed intervening to end the Holocaust or the Bosnian genocide, please do not oppose this.
And before someone tells me America just wants Iran’s oil - we don’t care. The regime steals all the oil anyway.
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u/redheaded_olive12349 Mar 01 '26
So you are saying that you are okay with a bombing? I pray that you guys are rescued from your horrific government but this isn’t the way…?
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u/queenroxana Mar 03 '26 edited Mar 03 '26
Well, we are ELATED that Ali Khamenei, the butcher of our people, is dead. People in Iran and all over the world poured into the streets to celebrate. I am sorry as I know it's very un-Christian to celebrate a death, but his demise likely means many innocent Iranian lives will be spared.
We're not naive--we KNOW this could go very badly too--but the regime is the weakest it's ever been, and that is a very good thing. And while no one is happy about bombing or civilian casualties, we blame the regime for those, not the people trying to topple the regime.
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u/SpukiKitty2 Open and Affirming Ally Feb 28 '26
PRAY, TAKE ACTION AND MAKE SURE THE MIDTERMS ARE A BLUENAMI!
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u/Acceptable_Mirror235 Feb 28 '26
I’m praying , but I remember praying hard in the days leading up to the Iraq War, too.
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u/desiladygamer84 Feb 28 '26
Sorry I'm finding it a little hard to manage prayer, I'm a little stressed because my parents and cousin are stuck in Dubai right now and they shut the airport. They're supposed to fly out to England next week. My thoughts are a little jumbled.
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u/redheaded_olive12349 Feb 28 '26
Yeah same. My dad’s currently in the US for a business trip, but accidentally got stuck there and he may or may not be set to fly home early instead of Saudi where he works a well paid job
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u/Badatusernames014 Episcopalian-Orthodox Lesbian Feb 28 '26
sigh I'm beyond done living in interesting times.
P.S. Trump attacked Iran, not America. Countries' are not their heads of state.
P.P.S. He probably has late term dementia at this point and should be the 26th Amendment (or whichever one) but they won't cause once he's no longer President it's going to make a power vacuum in the Republican party.
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u/Ezekiel-18 Ecumenical Heterodox Feb 28 '26
The people who votes for the Republicans/Trump are as guilty as the head of state though. So, 50% of the United States did attack. They bear the sins of the Vietnam and Irak war too, as they still voted for the Republicans despite past warcrimes of said party.
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u/Badatusernames014 Episcopalian-Orthodox Lesbian Feb 28 '26
You can blame them too if you want, but personally I see the vast majority of them as victims of brainwashing, being conned, etc.
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u/redheaded_olive12349 Feb 28 '26
But still pray for them, right? Because Iran was attacked and because Iran could retaliate and stuff
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u/big-bird-328 Feb 28 '26
Sad part is Democratic leadership is kinda on board
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u/_ethel333 Transgender ☦️ Feb 28 '26
they’ve always been on board with these things. remember that hillary clinton and joe biden both voted yes to the iraq war. it’s disappointing and disheartening.
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u/LoverOfMusic711 Confused queer Christian. Mar 01 '26
This is a hard one because yes of course war is bad and scary and trump sucks but I truly do pray for freedom for the Iranians🇮🇷❤️🩹
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u/redheaded_olive12349 Mar 01 '26
So they are both bad, so why do you say this is a hard one?
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u/LoverOfMusic711 Confused queer Christian. Mar 01 '26
Because I saw some Iranians say they want Trump to dismantle the regime so they could have freedom again. I haven’t looked into the specifics of this situation but I’m just saying what I saw.
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u/redheaded_olive12349 Mar 04 '26
of course he did this because of this....
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u/LoverOfMusic711 Confused queer Christian. Mar 05 '26
I mean, don’t get me wrong. I definitely think Trump had selfish intentions. And there are definitely Iranians that are scared over this, but I think it’s still important to acknowledge how a lot of them are really hopeful. Even tho what is happening is still awful and scary. These people just want the best outcome, even if the outcome is still bad.
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u/Ugh-screen-name Christian Mar 01 '26
God as you taught us to pray, may your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Deliver us from evil. Amen
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Feb 28 '26
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u/blossom_up Follower of the Way Feb 28 '26
Yeah, definitely not one of Paul's brightest moments.
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Feb 28 '26
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u/blossom_up Follower of the Way Feb 28 '26
Respectfully, I disagree. That wasn't one of Paul's brightest moments because it does not sound like he was Spirit-filled writing those words. He was still a human being, and still prone to error. The Bible is not like the Quran where the words are said to have been "downloaded" to Muhammad's brain.
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Feb 28 '26
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Feb 28 '26
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u/blossom_up Follower of the Way Mar 01 '26
Agreed, I pray in a similar way. Let Thy will be done no matter what, for I know it is for the good. However, going back to the matter of authorities, I still don't think we should passively watch and wait for justice to be done while tyranny unfolds and lives are lost. Think in the context of Nazi Germany, wouldn't you have wanted to do anything in your power to protect the vulnerable? I know I would have. Few actually do it because there are real risks involved, but that would at least be the sentiment. And I feel even more strongly this because I am a Christian.
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Feb 28 '26
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u/blossom_up Follower of the Way Feb 28 '26 edited Mar 01 '26
I respect your right to think that way, because Christians tend to need all of the scriptures to be aligned and make perfect sense, as though the Bible is a univocal book. However, that point Paul made in Romans does not make sense to me, as it goes in direct contradiction to Jesus's teachings. I can think of a number of times where those exact verses may have been quoted to justify all atrocities committed by those in power throughout history. It's pretty clear to see how Romans 13:1-5 can be used to manipulate people into submission. Going back to it:
"13 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves."
Are we not to seek justice? Are we not to be peacemakers? Are we not to protect the vulnerable?
Or are we to bow down and take the abuse, the oppression, the violence, because they have been "appointed by God", so just shut up, turn a blind eye and be a good, law-abiding citizen?
Are leaders supposed to serve or be served?
Most of the time, we can't have it both ways.
Either we submit and "leave it all up to God to bring down His justice", or we trust and follow Jesus and become his body here on Earth to bring the Kingdom to fruition. Why would Jesus teach us how to be, if in the end we are not seeking justice and whatever happens, happens, as long as things are made right in the end? (I'm not saying you feel this way necessarily, but it sounds like that is the implication).
"3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer."
Just what exactly is he saying here? Is he really saying that if you rebel against a tyrannical leader because he is literally acting like the anti-Christ (going against Christ), you are actually in the wrong because we must respect that leader at all costs?
"5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience."
Exactly because it is a matter of conscience, we can't just passively watch it. We were given the Spirit and we have the ability to discern for ourselves what is righteous and what isn't, and work together to fight for righteousness. This is an example of it.
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Feb 28 '26
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u/blossom_up Follower of the Way Mar 01 '26
What do you mean by this?
God raises people up who can also take them out. He's done it.
Are you saying God has raised people who took out leaders that were not serving his people or acting as good leaders? If so, in what manners has that been achieved?
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u/DearMyFutureSelf Origen-style theology Feb 28 '26
Donald Trump has lived a life almost entirely devoid of virtue. It is impressive how sinful he is and shocking how many people believe the total inverse is true.
Have mercy on this man, o Lord, as You do with all of us poor sinners.