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The National Day of Prayer will be held on May 4. This annual event, held the first Thursday in May, invites people of all faiths to pray for our nation.

Typically, over 60,000 community events are planned for people to come together to pray. A time of prayer is scheduled for noon on the Court Square in Andalusia. Individuals are also encouraged to pray throughout that day.

This year’s theme is “Pray Fervently in Righteousness,” based on James 5:16b (NKJV) which reads, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” Why should we pray for America? Prayer is the key to renewal in our nation.

“God is sovereign and nothing comes as a surprise to Him. Whether we face fluctuating economics, threats from abroad, unrest at home, or other troubling circumstances, our Heavenly Father is not caught unaware. Through prayer, we are able to tap into His wisdom, strength, protection, and peace. He stands ready to respond to our needs when we humbly ask for divine intervention in the affairs of men,” according to the National Day of Prayer Task Force website.

People are asked to pray for our nation’s government – federal, state, and local – our military, media, businesses, education, church and families. You will find scriptures to read to guide your prayer at www.nationaldayofprayer.org. NDP Task Force President, Kathy Branzell, has said, “Unprecedented times call for unprecedented prayer!”

On Thursday evening, May 4, at 7 p.m. CST, a National Prayer Gathering held at the Museum of the Bible in Washington D.C. will be broadcast on the NDP website, the NDP Facebook page, and available via Christian radio and television. Ten Christian leaders will participate including Tony Evans, Frances Chan, Jack Graham, and U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black and others.

The National Day of Prayer was created in 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress, and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman. Every President since 1952 has signed a National Day of Prayer proclamation, and there have been almost 150 national calls to prayer, humiliation, fasting and thanksgiving by the President of the United States (1789-2020).

For instance, in 1863, President Abraham Lincoln declared a national day of prayer and fasting. President Franklin Roosevelt led the nation in prayer on D-Day, June 6, 1944, “Almighty God: Our sons, pride of our nation, this day have set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our Republic, our religion and our civilization, and to set free a suffering humanity…”

S.D. Gordon, an American devotional writer, once said, “The greatest thing anyone can do for God and for man is to pray.” “More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of,” Alfred Lord Tennyson has written.

Take a few minutes on Thursday, May 4 (and every day of the year) to pray that America will return to Biblical principles and moral values upon which our country was founded.

— Jan White has compiled a collection of her columns in her book, “Everyday Faith for Daily Life.”