If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. -- 2 Chronicles 7:14

Suddenly 2 Chronicles 7:14 is all the rage among the Christian right wing. I first caught this watching Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council promoting his Fall2Call campaign which is calling on Americans to fall on their knees in "humility and repentant prayer" with the expectation that God will then forgive our collective sins and heal our land. Some 470,000 people signed up to collectively have this mass prayer which was held yesterday on the Fourth of July. Here's their agenda:

A Nation on Verge of Moral Collapse -- All careful observers can see "the handwriting on the wall." The course charted by President Obama and a liberal Congress follows decades of declining moral and social standards and conduct. Clearly, we are witnessing what could prove to be irreversible, irreparable harm to our nation. The sanctity of life, of marriage and of our cherished religious liberties are under attack as never before.

The Fear of God -- The reasons for our federal government's failure to solve our problems are many. But we needn't look far to find the root. Our Forefathers founded our nation upon the moral pillars of the Ten Commandments -- they had a "fear of God." They considered biblical morality as essential to the survival of our Republic. In the Declaration, they asserted that our rights as human beings come from our Creator -- not the government. This has been the sure foundation of all of our liberties to this day. Frequent public days of prayer and fasting demonstrated the Founders' sense of dependence upon God. Now, the White House snubs the National Day of Prayer and a Federal Judge has ruled the Day unconstitutional. Yet we have hope in God! Foreseeing the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple, Jesus assured His disciples, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, buy my words shall not pass away" (Mt 24:35).

Economic Tyranny -- Approaching July 4th, 2010, our nation faces potential economic collapse. This week the leaders of the world's most powerful national economies listened to and rejected our President's plan to cure global financial woes with massive new borrowing, taxes and deficit spending -- the very plan he and the liberal Congress have implemented here in the U.S. Earlier this year, the President and liberals in Congress engineered a government takeover of the American health care industry, 17 percent of the American economy. Seventy percent of Americans opposed the plan. Now, large parts of the American auto, insurance and investment banking industries are also under government control.

Immoral Social Agenda -- June was declared by our President to be "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Equality Month." At a White House party for homosexual activists, the President recounted his pro-homosexual record and promised a host of new benefits, rights and special protections for the LGBT community. But this privileged new class, whose members are identified by their bizarre sexual practices, presents many threats to society: threats to public health, public morals, the wellbeing of children, threats to religious liberty and, indeed, to themselves. Our Creator condemns their practices as "abominable" and morally reprehensible (see Lev 18:30). Historically, many American states have had laws against homosexual behavior, yet now it is celebrated in the White House. Scripture warns that those who practice and those who approve these things are objects of God's wrath (Rom 1:32). Scripture warns that these practices will cause the very land to "vomit out its inhabitants" (Lev 18:25). Thus, public approval is a threat to us all. The President's commitment to implement the LGBT agenda (e.g., the so-called "Hate Crimes" law, the proposals to repeal both the military's policy of prohibiting homosexuals from serving and the "Defense of Marriage Act," the pro-homosexual "Employment Non-Discrimination Act," and other measures) has far-reaching implications for America. God reminds us in the New Testament that "by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly" (2 Pet 2:6); and "In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire " (Jude 7).

Corporate Sin and Guilt -- Ours is a government "of the people." We share the guilt of our collective national sins. But we have also sinned in our private lives. Popular culture is riddled with flagrant disregard for God, and we participate in them too often and too widely. Our personal sins impact not only ourselves, but the welfare of our families, churches, communities and nation. Those with authority in any sphere bear an extra weight of responsibility for our country's welfare and condition. Whether we are pastors, churches, parents, educators, businessmen, entertainers, or the media, our influence makes an impact, either by our righteous involvement, overt sin or passive neglect. America's recent treatment of Israel, widespread abortion, the subjection of our children to immoral "sex education," pornography, promiscuity (40 percent of births now occur outside marriage), divorce, same-sex "marriage," violent entertainment, and more, all add to our guilt (see catalogue of sins).

The Unique Role of God's People -- God holds His people, those who claim Jesus as Savior and Lord, uniquely responsible for our nation's condition. We are sent to be salt and light (Mt 5:13). He calls us to holiness (Heb 12:14); to proclaim the message of repentance and faith (Mt 4:17; 28:18-20), and gives us power through prayer. He expects us to humble ourselves, to pray for our nation, to seek His face and to turn from our own wicked ways (2 Chr 7:14). That is why Tony and FRC have launched the Call2Fall.

As Kyle Mantyla of Right Wing Watch notes it is "really remarkable how the Family Research Council is slowly transitioning from a political group with a religious agenda to a religious group with a political agenda." Of course, the FRC is as delusional as ever. Who knew that my "bizarre sexual practices" will lead to the nation's extinction? And I am even more surprised to learn that I am part of a "privileged new class." 

And then watching this video from Krista Branch, a Texas based Christian Evangelical singer, that is becoming the Tea Party anthem, I noticed the citation to 2 Chronicles 7:14 at 2:04 mark when a rather defiant little girl holds up a placard. What strikes me about the song are the religious references and the use of images from the Tea Party protests. The lyrics, as vacuous as they come, are below.

Pay no attention to the people in the street crying out for accountability.
Make a joke about what we believe.
And say you don't matter cause you disagree.
Pretend you're kings, sit on your throne, look down your nose at the peasants below.
I've got some news, we're taking names, we're waiting out for the Judgment Day
I Am America one voice united we stand.
I Am America one hope to heal our land.
There is work to be done.
I will not rest until we've won
I Am America.
You preach tolerance but lecture me. Is there no end to your hypocrisy?
Your god is power, have you got no shame?
Your only interested in political gain.
You hide your eyes and refuse to listen. You play your games and abuse the system.
You stuff your pockets while Rome is burning.
I’ve got a feeling that the tide is turning.
I Am America one voice united we stand.
I Am America one hope to heal our land.
I will not give up on this fight
I will not fade into the night
I Am America.