Anne Graham Lotz: God May Now Be Hiding From America
Billy Graham's daughter, evangelist and author Anne Graham Lotz, believes God might now be hiding Himself from the United States.
The 69-year-old Lotz, the founder of AnGeL Ministries who regularly warns that God's judgement could soon fall on America for its "national sins," wrote an op-ed piece for HelloChristian.com last Wednesday in which she proclaimed that now is the time America needs to "get serious" about repentance and prayer.
Lotz begins by citing Psalm 32:6, which states "let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found." She asserts that the "Psalmist implies that there comes a time when God may not be found — a time when God may hide Himself."
Get Our Latest News for FREE
"It is a time that I believe may have begun in America," Lotz wrote.
"Our nation is in a mess. Why? Could it be because America is losing God's blessing? And His favor? Could our sin be provoking His judgment? Judgment that is not necessarily in the form of a nuclear dirty bomb, or in another ISIS attack, or in an economic collapse. But in a Romans 1 judgment that is described as 'the wrath of God being revealed against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness' ... and God is backing out of our national life and turning us over to ourselves."
Lotz continued by noting that in the Old Testament, God's judgment on the nation of Judah was not a swift process, as it spanned the course of 22 years.
"God moved very slowly, giving plenty of opportunity for Judah to repent of her sin, to turn to Him, and therefore to escape the inevitable judgment. But with all of God's warnings, Judah became even more defiant. More disobedient. Even more wicked," Lotz explained. "She insisted on her right to immorality and idolatry. In the end, God became her enemy. He sent in the Babylonian army to destroy Jerusalem, the temple, and all the people. 2 Chronicles 36:15–19 vividly describes how all those who were not taken captive were slaughtered in the streets."
"God always warns a nation that judgment is coming," she added. "He does not want any to perish. But if a nation does not heed His warnings, then He will unleash His anger and there is nothing — no one — who can prevent it. If God would judge His own beloved nation of Judah, why would we think America could escape?"
Lotz contended that if the premise is true that America is coming under God's judgement and he is "removing His blessing, protection and favor," the "solution will not be found in politics or in the economy or in the military or in technology."
"The only solution will be found on our knees as we humble ourselves, pray, seek God's face, and repent of our sin. And then plead for Him to return to us, as we return to Him," she argues. "Now is the time to get serious about repentance and prayer. When Ezra led a great revival in Judah, the people stood in the pouring rain for three days repenting of their sin, (Ezra 10:9). I wonder ... had God made it hard on His people to test the seriousness of their repentance?"
Lotz warns that a "half-hearted turning to God" is not good enough if the U.S. wants to restore His blessing. She cites Joel 2:12–14 to explain that the Lord demands people return to Him and rend their hearts, not their garments.
She further states that some prayers and calls to repentance that she has heard within the church "seem to be a rending of garments" and a mere "outward show to impress."
"Often the pleading seems to be contrived and hollow, instead of broken-hearted and contrite," she wrote. "Only God knows those who are rending their hearts as they seek Him. But I am led to ask myself ... how truly serious am I about seeking God on behalf of our nation? When was the last time I fasted and wept and mourned and confessed the sin of our nation as though it were my own? I believe the future of America hangs on the answer to that question."
Lotz is the author of the 2016 book, The Daniel Prayer: Prayer That Moves Heaven and Changes Nations. She spoke with The Christian Post about the book in a May 2016 interview in which she said she believes "we are living at the end of the age."
"I believe we are living at the end of human history, I believe that my generation is the last," she told CP when asked if there was any apocalyptic consequences to God's pending judgement on America.
Later in the interview, Lotz said people should "pray that between the end of human history and before cataclysmic judgement falls that God would open the door for the Gospel to go around the whole world to tell people that they could be saved."
Prior to America's total solar eclipse that occurred in August, Lotz warned that the eclipse could be a sign that God's judgement is coming. As she has frequently warned about God's pending judgement, she wrote in an August blog post that the eclipse made her feel "compelled to issue the warning once again."
"The celebratory nature regarding the eclipse brings to my mind the Babylonian King Belshazzar who threw a drunken feast the night the Medes and Persians crept under the city gate," she explained. "While Belshazzar and his friends partied, they were oblivious to the impending danger. Belshazzar wound up dead the next day, and the Babylonian empire was destroyed."
