The Power of the National Day of Prayer

Every year on the first Thursday in May, the United States celebrates a National Day of Prayer.

The tradition of a day of prayer goes far back in our nation’s history. In 1775, the First Continental Congress decided there should be a National Day of Prayer. Abraham Lincoln also voiced his approval for a day in America for citizens to unite in prayer.

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In 1952, President Truman signed a bill confirming the annual celebration of this holiday. President Reagan chose the first Thursday in May each year to be the National Day of Prayer.

The purpose of this day “is to mobilize prayer in America and to encourage personal repentance and righteousness in the culture,” says the website of the National Day of Prayer Task Force.

This year’s National Day of Prayer theme is “Wake Up, America” — and it calls on all Americans to turn to God in reverence. The scripture verse chosen for this year is Isaiah 58:1a: “Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet.”

Shirley Dobson, the chairman of the National Day of Prayer, works tirelessly to keep this day a part of American culture.

“We have lost many of our freedoms in America because we have been asleep,” Dobson said. “I feel if we do not become involved and support the annual National Day of Prayer, we could end up forfeiting this freedom, too.”

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Today, President Obama established May 5, 2016, as the National Day of Prayer. “Our country was founded on the idea of religious freedom,” his statement says. “And we have long upheld the belief that how we pray and whether we pray are matters reserved for an individual’s own conscience. On National Day of Prayer, we rededicate ourselves to extending this freedom to all people … ”

His statement also says: “I invite the citizens of our nation to give thanks, in accordance with their own faiths and consciences, for our many freedoms and blessings, and I join all people of faith in asking for God’s continued guidance, mercy, and protection as we seek a more just world.”

Obama is the 34th president to declare a proclamation to prayer. While May 5, 2016, is the 65th official day of prayer, this is the 67th proclamation of its kind since 1952 (Gerald Ford, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama signed this proclamation more than once a year on certain occasions).

In this heated election year, we have many issues worrying our nation. But on this day, Republicans and Democrats unite as one to simply pray together, whatever their creed, for the future of our country.

On Capitol Hill today, government officials are meeting in the Cannon House Office Building for the National Day of Prayer observance. Whatever your faith — pray for our nation, our safety, and our future.