God tells us to pray for all people. That's right! And not only to pray for them, but give thanks for them. If you don't believe me, read chapter two of 1 Timothy! It says right there in the third and fourth verses that "This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth."
Are you ready to swallow this pill? You even have to pray for the President of the United States! He is our version of a king and one who is in authority (from verse two). Christians should pray for whatever person is sitting in the office of the President, whether we like them or voted for them. Praying that bad things would happen to them does not count by the way.
Can you imagine if we all began to pray, on a regular basis, for all of our leaders from the national level on down to our local mayors and city officials? I believe powerful things would happen in this nation to bring about peace and unity as we honor God's design for us to pray.
1 Timothy 2:2 (NLT) - "Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity."