“I hope to have the privilege of joining in prayer for peace at the time you name, and hope that all our Christian people will; but peace should not be the chief object of prayer in our country. It should aim more specially at imploring God’s forgiveness of our sins, and praying that He will make our people a holy people. If we are but His, all things shall work together for the good of our country, and no good thing will He withhold from it.”
Thomas J. Jackson, in a letter to his wife, 1862
I am constantly amazed–this is a letter to his wife, not intended by him for publication to the “world”. This letter reflects the heart (not intended for the politics of his, or reflectively our, era) of a great and Godly man. Yet undoubtedly they were the same–his heart (and thusly family life) was the same as his politic. We too, in our time, must return to the basics of our faith (forgiveness of sins and confidence in His providence) before we can ever return to living out the Kingdom of Christ in our time. And thusly, if we do so, it will change the world!