In the spring of 1979, the presidential campaign was in full swing. Incumbent President Jimmy Carter was running against former California Gov. Ronald Reagan. During almost the entire campaign, Carter polled ahead of Reagan — despite having a pathetic track record of one failure after another.

During Carter’s term, we abandoned the Shah of Iran, and the country was taken over by the radical cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. His henchmen took over the American embassy in Tehran, taking 66 Americans hostage, 52 of whom were held captive for 444 days.

An attempt to rescue the hostages in Iran, “Operation Eagle Claw,” was a spectacular failure. Eight American service members were killed when a helicopter and transport plane collided. With “success” like this, it defies logic why Reagan trailed Carter in the polls.

America was in a malaise. Inflation, interest rates, and energy prices went through the roof, and Carter pretty much said, Suck it up. This is our new normal.

Then something happened that I believe was supernatural. As part of the national “March for Jesus” campaign, a rally was held on the Mall in Washington, DC. Over 10,000 Christians came together to worship and pray for America. The date was April 30, 1979, and it was called “If My People.” The scripture setting the theme was II Chronicles 7:14:

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

At the end of the rally, the organizers encouraged those gathered to stretch out their hands and pray for the person God wanted in the White House. For months after, nothing changed; Carter continued to lead. In the final weeks leading up to the election, however, something happened: The polls flipped, and Ronald Reagan was inaugurated president. It was “Morning in America”!

Even more interesting, Reagan’s inauguration was the first ever to be held on the west side of the Capitol building, facing the Mall where 10,000 Christians stood the year before, reaching out their hands in the same direction. Many would say it was a coincidence. I prefer to call it a “God incident.” I don’t know if Reagan even knew about the rally over a year earlier.

Tehran released the hostages on the day of Reagan’s inauguration. The ayatollah knew that Ronald Reagan was no Jimmy Carter. Reagan believed in “Peace Through Strength,” and he, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II were the architects of the collapse of the Soviet Union — or the “Evil Empire,” as Reagan called it.

I believe all of this happened because Christians, seeing the direction the nation was headed, believed God wanted something better. The “March for Jesus” movement was a nationwide event. It rallied Christians to act and vote.

Today, we are in a much worse place than when Reagan was president. He had a different vision for America, not one of a managed decline into obscurity. He believed America’s best days were ahead.

Similarly, President Donald Trump, love him or hate him, sees America as the land of opportunity; the Left sees America as the problem. While Trump sees a brighter future, the Marxists, socialists, and Islamic radicals want to see the nation brought down and rebuilt in their distorted view of a “utopia.”

The political polls say the Democrats, whose campaign platform is “Hate Trump,” are going to sweep the midterm elections, and the Left boldly tells us it is going to tear the whole system down and start over. Joe Biden’s term will pale in comparison to what could happen next.

But does that mean it is too late to restore our nation? No! It can be “Morning in America” once again.

Pray like you’re hopeful!
Semper Fidelis