What is the National Day of Prayer?

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the President shall set aside and proclaim a suitable day each year, other than a Sunday, as a National Day of Prayer, on which the people of the United States may turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups, and as individuals.

Approved April 17, 1952.

President Truman officially designated a National Day of Prayer by signing the above resolution into law in 1952. In 1988, President Reagan permanently set the day as the first Thursday of every May. Since it was enacted, every sitting President has called a national day for the American people to pray each year.

Fun fact -- according to GotQuestions.org, “In 1952, Conrad Hilton (founder of Hilton Hotels) and Senator Frank Carlson of Kansas, encouraged by Billy Graham, initiated a bill calling for the President to designate one day a year as a National Day of Prayer.”

As stated in the resolution, it is a day for Americans to “turn to God in prayer and meditation” collectively and individually.

Here are four prayers we’d like to share this year:

A heart of humility

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. –2 Chronicles 7:14 ESV

Our world has endured a long and onerous season, which still has its grip on us. The past fourteen months have attacked us physically through the COVID-19 virus and tested our mental fortitude as we were forced to accept new normals in every facet of life. Americans specifically also lived through the anxieties a changing of the guard in the White House brings and were confronted by growing racial tensions that appeared to pull our nation apart.

In the preceding verse in 2 Chronicles 7, when a nation is struck with strife and suffering, before praying or turning from sin, God calls for his people to first humble themselves. Rick Warren explains plainly in The Purpose Driven Life that “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.“ In other words, we are to think more about our heavenly Father who is our creator, master and redeemer. And 1 Chronicles 29:16 tells us that a humble person recognizes that all he has is a gift from God. We are utterly helpless and unable to even breathe one more breath or think one more thought without God’s sovereign provision.

We pray for a heart that declares God is in control and we are not. A heart that mourns our sinful state and yearns for God’s holiness. A heart that considers others more important than ourselves. A heart that causes us to “die to ourselves”, including our fears, frustrations, preferences and longings. May we leave all of that at the feet of Jesus and with meekness and reverence, approach our Father.

A prayer of thanksgiving

You who have made me see many troubles and calamities
    will revive me again;
from the depths of the earth
    you will bring me up again.
–Psalm 71:20 ESV

Damage caused by the pandemic was indiscriminate. Our global economy shrank by an estimated $4 billion dollars that will take years to recover. And over three million souls perished around the world. Yet, in the midst of many troubles, King David’s words in Psalms attest to God’s faithfulness and bring encouragement to our weary souls.

While words of thanksgiving may be far from our lips, as we humbly approach God, we are reminded that His goodness is unchanging. His power and reign over every single event in the world did not falter in the past year. And the promise of eternity in his Glory for those who love and follow Jesus is steadfast.  As we look with hope on the future, we remember the words of Jesus at the end of Matthew: “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Praying for the marginalized

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. –James 1:27

God’s heart is for the marginalized and he repeatedly names the widow, the orphan, the sojourner and the poor throughout scripture. The devastation of the past 14 months have widowed many spouses, orphaned children, have alienated people around the world and impoverished countless families. James calls the church to action by being “doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” (James 1:22)

May we put on God’s heart for those most severely impacted by this season and become doers of the word. May we intercede for those who are hurting and for those who have not tasted the goodness of God. I pray that we would be compelled to give of our time, money, resources and of ourselves to those who need it most, for their good and for God’s glory.

Praying for North Koreans

Finally, it behooves us to encourage you to pray for the people that we love and care for so much: North Koreans. This website is filled with information that can guide you as you pray for the North Korean people. Here are a few ways we can pray:

1. Pray for the persecuted church in North Korea. 

2. Pray for material relief for North Koreans who might be experiencing another famine-like situation. 

3. Pray for North Korean refugees in China, many of whom have been sold into sexual slavery. 

4. Pray for North Korean refugees in South Korea, who, above liberties and material blessings, may ultimately find the lasting hope, peace and abundant life found in the gospel.

How is God leading you to pray for our nation and the world this National Day of Prayer?