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By Wanda Alger, IFA Field Correspondent Intercessors for America

In our continuing series on God-fearing leaders in government, we look at three more believers who have been called to serve our nation in the new White House administration.

Rick Perry, Secretary of Energy, grew up on a cotton farm in Paint Creek, TX. It was a small town with a Methodist church on one end and a Baptist church on the other—and his family was active in both churches. In his 2008 book, On My Honor, Perry says life revolved around school, church, and the Boy Scouts. After graduating from Texas A&M with a B.A. in Animal Science, he became an Air Force Commander and served five years before coming home to Texas to farm with his father. Perry felt personally adrift and became desperate for God. “My faith journey is not the story of someone who turned to God because I wanted to,” he stated in a recent speech,“ . . . it was because I had nowhere else to turn. What I learned as I wrestled with God is that I didn’t have to have all the answers . . . and that I needed to trust Him.” After this life-changing encounter with God, he married his childhood sweetheart Mary Thigpen. He then began to pursue a call into politics. Throughout his political career, Perry has stood for Christian values and been outspoken about his faith. In 2010, as Governor of Texas, he called for a day of prayer and fasting regarding national crisis. Perry’s sense of mission and call to action can be summed up in a comment to students at Liberty University: “Don’t leave it to a bunch of Washington politicians to tell you how to live your life. This is your future we are debating today. Don’t be silent.”

Dan Coats is the new Director of National Intelligence. Coats has the reputation as an honored statesman, and colleagues describe him as “Mr. Rogers” because of his humble character. Timothy Goeglein, a former aide to then Senator Dan Coats, wrote in an article, “He was, and is, one of the most virtuous men in American poli-tics, loved and respected roundly and widely by men and women on both sides of the political aisle, a Wheaton graduate, and serious Christian. It is that faith which is at the heart of the man himself—utterly foundational to understanding everything he finds most important in life.” Raised as a Presbyterian, Coats met his wife Marsha in college. He went into the army, studied law, and eventually entered politics. He represented Indiana in the U.S. House of Representatives, and then was appointed to fill the Senate seat vacated by Dan Quayle. Coates was later elected to fill that seat for a term. After taking time away from the Senate to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Germany, he was re-elected as a Senator in 2010 for one more term. In whatever political role he has filled, Coats continually champions pro-life and pro-marriage values. As a Republican, Coats’s sharp intellect and disarming humor won over many Democrats, especially those with a common fiscally conservative perspective. Vice President Mike Pence, a lifelong friend of Coats, says, “To know Dan and Marsha is to know people of deep faith . . . with a servant’s heart. Their desire to live out servant-leadership each and every day has been evident in everything they’ve done.” Coats models integrity and challenges others: “Character cannot be summoned at the moment of crisis if it has been squandered by years of compromise and rationalization. The only testing ground for the heroic is the mundane. The only preparation for that one profound decision which can change a life, or even a nation, is those hundreds of half-conscious, self-defining, seemingly insignificant decisions made in private. Habit is the daily battleground of character.”

Scott Pruitt loves to talk politics, baseball, and Jesus. He’s experienced victory as an Oklahoma State Senator and Attorney General, but has also known defeat in his campaigns for Oklahoma Lieutenant Governor and Congress. At one time, he dreamed of being a major league baseball player, but instead, he now serves as the new Director of the Environmental Protection Agency. Pruitt was born and raised in Kentucky. He entered college on a baseball scholarship and earned a degree in political science from the small, evangelical Georgetown College. He received his law degree from the University of Tulsa. He serves as a deacon at First Baptist Church in Broken Arrow, OK, which he and his family have been attending for nearly 30 years. In a recent interview with CBN, Pruitt’s pastor, Rev. Nick Garland, spoke highly of Pruitt’s solid Christian faith, saying he has always shown a keen “biblical insight into something he’s facing.” He noted that Pruitt’s understanding of Scripture is rooted in his relationship with God. Bob Wagoner, a fellow deacon and former campaign director for Pruitt, says, “He’s really a man of prayer. . . . Every step he took . . . he felt like God was directing him.” A trustee for the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Pruitt challenges believers to know and live by the Word. “A Christian worldview means that God has answers to our problems. And part of our responsibility is to convey to those in society that the answers that He has, as represented in Scripture, are important and should be followed, because they lead to freedom and liberty.”

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Zora H Haines
June 26, 2017

Thank you for your service and God Bless and Keep each of you with His Favor, Protection and All Blessings, in Jesus Name. Amen.

Faye Fife
June 17, 2017

Praying for these men to be strong in the power of the Lord. Jesus is in them to will and to do of His good pleasure. He will go before them and prepare their way. Thanks be to our faithful God.

Jerry Sauls
June 16, 2017

Thank you for your time and energy in publishing the biographies of these wonderfull Christians who are so very deeply involved in our government. It encouraging and gives us detail to pray about. Blessings upon all of you at IFA.

Dolores
June 15, 2017

Thank you for these biographies. I praise the Lord for each of them and pray God’s continued blessing on them and their various positions.

Mary McCauley
June 15, 2017

Thank you for these biographies. I am from Oklahoma and have been very impressed with Scott Pruitt who was our state AG. God bless these leaders.

Nancy Connolley
June 15, 2017

Thank you for these biographies of believers who are serving in Washington DC. I will pray for them – for God’s wisdom, strength, and courage to stand for what is right.

Marlene Suits
June 15, 2017

I have read this article … a very good article … so thankful for men and women who are people of FAITH and willing servants to be involved in our Government to help “Make America Great Again” working alongside with our President Donald Trump.

Colleen Janssen
June 15, 2017

I appreciate the things you have shared about various God-fearing leaders in our country since I came on board with Intercessors for America around the time of the 2016 election. My heart is blessed to get a glimpse of their deep faith and principled living, and it warms my heart to know that godly individuals are in the midst of all the chaos going on in and around our national government. Praying for them is such a blessing because of the kindred spirit we share.

I also appreciate the live first Friday prayer times that you make possible. What a wonderful way to unite with other believers in praying for our nation’s concerns It seems to me that the impact of our prayers is exponentially increased when brethren are able to agree with the voiced prayers of one another.

May God bless all of you and provide all you need to continue this wonderful intercessory prayer ministry.

Raymond
June 14, 2017

I want to thank all of you for everything and I want you to know I pray for you everyday.

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