The former head of the Southern Baptist Convention’s International Mission Board on Sunday prayed alongside Donald Trump when the president made an unannounced visit to a Virginia megachurch.
David Platt, pastor of McLean Bible Church in Vienna, Virginia, prayed on the president’s behalf for “grace,” “mercy” and “wisdom.”
“God, we pray that he would know how much you love him,” Platt prayed with an open Bible in one hand and the other hand on Trump’s back, “so much that you sent Jesus to die for his sins, our sins. So we pray that he would look to you, that he would trust in you, that he would lean on you, that he would govern and make decisions in ways that are good for justice, and good for righteousness, and good for equity, every good path.”
The three-and-a-half minute prayer, posted online by Bloomberg, asked God to give the president “all the grace he needs to govern” and for a blessing on Trump and his family.
“We pray that you would give them strength. We pray that you give them clarity, wisdom,” Platt said. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Fools despise wisdom and instruction. Please, oh God, give him wisdom, and help him to lead our country, alongside other leaders.”
Trump’s visit came on the day that evangelist Franklin Graham and 250 other Christian leaders around the country had called for a special day of prayer for President Trump.
“President Trump’s enemies continue to try everything to destroy him, his family, and the presidency,” Graham said on Facebook May 26. “In the history of our country, no president has been attacked as he has. I believe the only hope for him, and this nation, is God.”
Platt’s name is not among clergy who endorsed the effort, and he did not mention it during his prayer.
The White House said the president dropped by the church to visit the pastor and pray for victims and community of Virginia Beach, Virginia, following a mass shooting on Friday that killed 12 people and seriously wounded four others.
Platt led the SBC International Mission Board four years before resigning last September to serve full time as pastor of McLean Bible Church, a multi-site congregation in suburban Washington, D.C.
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