National Day of Prayer

National Day of Prayer

Thursday, May 1

This is an important day and I want to take a moment and blog about what this day and the events surrounding it are all about. The National Day of Prayer was first instituted in 1952 during the term of Harry Truman. Millions of people are expected to be gathered together in over 35,000 different prayer gatherings across the country. Dr. Ravi Zacharias is this year's Honorary Chairman of the National Day of Prayer Task Force. The National Day of Prayer is an attempt to unite the church in this country together in prayer. On this day, we recall that our nation was founded with a dependence upon God and we want to call this country together to pray. You can find out more about the Nationald Day of Prayer at their website: http://www.ndptf.org/home/index.cfm

It is a day that invites the notion that we are One Church in this community and in this country, as Jesus prayed for us in John 17: "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me." (John 17:20-21)

It is a day that draws the collective eyes of this country toward Heaven in repentance, humility, dependence, dedication, and petition like we see called for in 2 Chronicles, chapter 7: "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14)

It is a day that allows us to exercise our freedom to gather together and seek the Lord. I look at it as first and foremost a day of prayer, with the focus being prayer for our country and for our community. And calling the country and the Church together for prayer is a big deal. This is a big day and I would encourage everyone to be involved. Here in this community we observe the National Day of Prayer in a variety of ways. Check out the information below, and consider how you might like to be involved.

Bible Reading:
Monday noon through Thursday noon
The National Day of Prayer festivities actually begin on Monday, April 28 at noon with the start of the Bible Reading from the steps of City Hall. This is a community wide effort with different churches signing up to take time slots, round the clock, as the Bible is read from cover to cover, from Monday through Thursday. We, as a church, have a slot from 3-6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 30. It is a great slot and each year I hear testimonies of how much people enjoyed being able to be part of that Bible Reading. If you have never done this, then I would strongly encourage you to try it. There are still a couple of slots open and you can sign up if you call the church office.

Noon Time Prayer:
Thursday, May 1 at noon
The Bible Reading culminates with the book of Revelation being read leading up to noon on the National Day of Prayer, Thursday, May 1. At noon, as the last words are read, we transition into a prayer service on those same steps. We will have a time of worship and prayer as a community.

Concert of Prayer:
Thursday, May 1 at 700p.m.
Then we finish up the National Day of Prayer with a community-wide concert of prayer. This is a powerful opportunity for the Church in Columbus to come together in unity and focus on praying for God's work in our country and in our community. We will be focusing in on five areas: government, schools, media, families, and churches. The concert of prayer this year will be held at our church at 7:00 p.m on Thursday, May 1. I want to strongly encourage everyone to come out for this prayer time. Obviously it is important because it is a time for us to gather together in prayer. But it also has the extra emphasis of being a time when we gather together with other believers as One Church to pray to our Heavenly Father, in the Name of Jesus.

The National Day of Prayer only comes around once every year. Don't miss this opportunity to be involved. If you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call at 379-9190.