On Thursday, May 7, 2009, the Foursquare family across the U.S. will join millions of Americans in the annual observance of the National Day of Prayer. An annual national day of prayer was established in 1952, as a joint resolution of Congress that was signed into law by President Harry S. Truman, and in 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed an amendment to that resolution, permanently setting the day of prayer as the first Thursday in May.
Many Foursquare churches already have prayer gatherings scheduled that day, with others participating in city-wide initiatives. Pastor Tyson Lambertson from The Rock Church in Scottsbluff, Neb., reports that his church is taking part in the local Valley Evangelical Pastors Association by bringing local Christians together at a mayor’s prayer breakfast that day to pray for local, state and national government. Several people from his Foursquare church will be participating in the breakfast, then visiting the courthouse lawn to pray at noon.
Foursquare President Pastor Jack Hayford strongly encourages Foursquare churches and leadership to participate in this nationwide event, saying: “It is clear that there is no time in recent history that people of faith in God rise to pray for our nation. Further, there is no one but God who is adequate to assist and guide our leaders and our people with wisdom and power. There is an overwhelming need for 1 Timothy 2:1-5 to be broadly received by the church at large.
“The struggles and misfortunes of multitudes by reason of our economic upheaval, the hatred and threats of global terrorism, the agony of endemic hunger and epidemic disease are widespread, along with the ever-present danger of international war and a nuclear holocaust. The whole world needs God’s mercies.
“Let us pray for our leadership at every level: local, state and national; political, military, business, education, medical, educational, in law enforcement and at every other point in our towns and cities. Each leader amid today’s complex climate desperately needs courage, wisdom and discernment to lead in ways that bring righteous, beneficial, God-given grace among us.”
The National Day of Prayer Task Force is a privately-funded organization founded for the purpose of mobilizing the Christian community to pray for the U.S. and its leadership. A National Day of Prayer promo video can be downloaded for $1.99 from the Task Force website, along with numerous other resources for the church.
The National Observance will take place on Thursday in Washington D.C. from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., and will be broadcast live via webcast through God TV and Tangle.
