Last Wednesday, Phil Callaway sat in my office and we talked. He had just come from an annual prayer breakfast held in Ottawa every year, at which he was asked to participate. Phil told me that no sitting prime minister had attended such an event since Brian Mulroney back in 1991. This year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attended. Furthermore, he had been assigned to read from Psalm 130, but chose instead to read from Romans 12:3-8. As you might know, that passage begins with these words: “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think.” Obviously, our prime minister is familiar with his Bible.
What took me by surprise was not only that this prime minister attended when others chose not to, but that this event happened the day after the fracas in the House of Commons, in which the prime minister was charged with physically pushing members aside. During that meeting, there was an opportunity for the prime minister to apologize to the conservative member whom he had manhandled, and an immediate expression of forgiveness was given.
All of that has led me to reflect upon the Christian response to our prime minister. Romans 13:1 reads, “For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” I again reflected on the truth that this prime minister, like the ones who have governed our nation before him, were ultimately placed into that position by the sovereign hand of God who oversees all things.
I am not suggesting that we should not have our own political opinions about matters, nor that the present government’s attempts to give us a euthanasia bill is a good thing. We might disagree with this government’s plans to legalize marijuana, their handling of the transgender movement and public bathrooms, and even the amount of debt that is currently being incurred. But there exists in our culture an attempt to dehumanize political figures until we see them only as dishonest politicians. Christians, I think, must resist this trend.
So let’s commit ourselves to pray for Justin Trudeau. If we have opportunity, let’s tell him that we believe he occupies 24 Sussex Drive by the will of God. And if it was God’s design to make him our prime minister, we commit ourselves to honouring him. Let’s pray for his wife, Sophie. Let’s remember that political life puts stressors on family life, so let’s remember to ask God to mercifully bless their union with greater and greater love for each other. Let’s pray for their three children, Xavier, Ella and Hadrien. Let’s thank God that, in our prime minister’s own words, all his life he had wanted more than anything to become a father. Let’s pray that this family will all come to know the God who loves them and created them for His glory.
But let’s also pray for his ability as a leader. Canada is blessed as a nation when our prime minister is capable. Let’s ask God to give him wisdom well above his earthly years.
And, yes, one more thing. Let’s also pray, that the leadership he gives continues to allow us as believers to practice our faith without fear, and provide for an environment in which we might share the gospel without worry of reprisal. Our prime minister’s appearance at a prayer breakfast encourages me that he might be interested in Christians across this land.
If after all that, we wish to criticize his policies, we should be free to do so. But let’s lead not with criticism, but with prayer and our commitment to love this man and his family.
