Hello, thanks for joining me today for Give Him 15.

The title of our post is, I Must Have America.

In October of 2000, just before the national elections, I had a life-changing encounter with the Lord.

I was pastoring in Colorado at the time, and during a Wednesday night service,

I walked to the podium to begin a message. Suddenly, a strange feeling overtook me. I felt a wave

of heaviness and disorientation. I paused, trying to discern what was happening, and within seconds was weeping

uncontrollably. I was so overcome that I couldn't speak. I simply lay my head on the podium and

began sobbing. No one present knew what was happening, but Cece and my staff were aware by now

that this was the Lord at work in me, and it wasn't stopping. She and my associates quickly decided

that the best thing to do was send everyone home, put some worship music on a loop, repeating, and

lock me in the building alone with the Lord. God began imparting his heart for America

to me, and it was overwhelming. I did not feel anger, though I'm sure as a nation we have angered him,

but instead felt his great love.

I began to feel his grief as well, the grief of a father for a prodigal.

For three and a half hours, I wept over America, so hard at times

that as strange as it sounds, I was afraid I might die. It felt as though my heart was literally

breaking.

I didn't know it was possible to cry from so deep within.

Author and lecturer Leo Baskaglia once talked about a contest.

He was asked to judge.

The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child.

The winner was a four-year-old child whose next-door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard,

...