Times-Tribune Staff Report

The 58th Annual National Day of Prayer will take place Thursday, May 7, and millions will unite in prayer as thousands of events take place from coast to coast. The theme for this year is “Prayer... America’s Hope” and is based on the verse from Psalm 33:22 which states: “May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you.”

Beth Moore will join Shirley Dobson to lead the nation in prayer as the 2009 Honorary Chairman of the National Day of Prayer Task Force.

In the Tri-County, two National Day of Prayer services are planned, and both are in London.

A lunch event will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. Thursday at the Laurel County Courthouse square, with First Baptist East Bernstadt Pastor David Hawkins, New Salem Baptist Church Pastor Greg Deaton, Carmichael Community Church Pastor Jeff Lewis and Former Senator Gene Huff speaking.

Hart Baptist Church will also have an event from 7-8:30 p.m. Thursday. For more information, contact the church at 606-864-9366 or visit www.hartbaptistchurch.org.

The 2009 Honorary NDP Chairman, Beth Moore, was born on an Army base in Green Bay, Wisc., the fourth child of a retired Army major and a homemaker. She was raised in Arkadelphia, Ark., where her father managed a local movie theater and, while helping with the family business, she first developed her love of story telling.

Moore graduated from Southwest Texas State University with a degree in political science and later received an honorary doctorate in humanities from Howard Payne University. After marrying in 1978 and having two daughters, Moore was involved in her church by speaking at luncheons and retreats, working at Mother’s Day Out, and teaching Christian aerobics. After studying Bible doctrine at her church, Moore founded Living Proof Ministries in 1994, based in Houston, Texas, with a focus on reaching women.

Some of her books include “Breaking Free,” “Believing God,” and “When Godly People Do Ungodly Things.” Her work has inspired women across the world, and through missionaries and book sales, Beth Moore Bible study groups have started all over the globe. Since 1994, her Living Proof live conferences have reached 39 states and more than 421,000 women.

In 2004, she began a radio program, “Living Proof with Beth Moore,” and she continues to hold about 10 conferences annually across the country.

NDP Chairperson Shirley Dobson is nationally recognized for her leadership skills and her many contributions to women’s affairs, Christian organizations, and the institution of the family. Former President Ronald Reagan invited Mrs. Dobson to the White House for a Christian Women’s Leadership Conference in 1988. Also in that year, she was awarded the Second Annual Maggie Sloane Crawford Award by Olivet Nazarene University in Kankakee, Ill. In May 1989 she received an Honorary Doctor of Humanities from Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Ky.; in September 1992 she was honored with the Christian Woman of the Year Award; in May 1995 she received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Biola University in La Mirada, Calif.; in May 1997 she received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Huntington College in Huntington, Ind.; and in October 2002 she received an Honorary Doctor of Humanities from Dallas Baptist University in Dallas, Texas. She was designated Churchwoman of the Year in 1996 by Religious Heritage of America; also that year, she received the Ambassador Award from Florida Family Council. In 1999 she received the Full-time Homemaker of the Year Award from Eagle Forum, and in 2000 the Distinguished Achievement Award from Point Loma Nazarene University. She was given the First Baptist Church of Dallas’ “W.A. Criswell Lifetime Christian Citizenship Award” in 2006.

The History of National Day of Prayer

Because of the faith of many of our founding fathers, public prayer and national days of prayer have a long-standing and significant history in American tradition. The Supreme Court affirmed the right of state legislatures to open their sessions with prayer in Marsh vs. Chambers (1983).

The National Day of Prayer is a vital part of our heritage. Since the first call to prayer in 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a nation, the call to prayer has continued through our history, including President Lincoln’s proclamation of a day of “humiliation, fasting, and prayer” in 1863. In 1952, a joint resolution by Congress, signed by President Truman, declared an annual, National Day of Prayer. In 1988, the law was amended and signed by President Reagan, permanently setting the day as the first Thursday of every May. Each year, the president signs a proclamation, encouraging all Americans to pray on this day. Last year, all 50 state governors plus the governors of several U.S. territories signed similar proclamations.

Significance

The National Day of Prayer has great significance for us as a nation. It enables us to recall and to teach the way in which our founding fathers sought the wisdom of God when faced with critical decisions. It stands as a call to us to humbly come before God, seeking His guidance for our leaders and His grace upon us as a people. The unanimous passage of the bill establishing the National Day of Prayer as an annual event, signifies that prayer is as important to our nation today as it was in the beginning.

Like Thanksgiving or Christmas, this day has become a national observance placed on all Hallmark calendars and observed annually across the nation and in Washington, D.C. Last year, local, state and federal observances were held from sunrise in Maine to sunset in Hawaii, uniting Americans from all socio-economic, political and ethnic backgrounds in prayer for our nation. It is estimated that more than two million people attended more than 40,000 observances organized by approximately 40,000 volunteers. At state capitols, county court houses, on the steps of city halls, and in schools, businesses, churches and homes, people stopped their activities and gathered for prayer.

This day is Ours

The National Day of Prayer belongs to all Americans. It is a day that transcends differences, bringing together citizens from all backgrounds. Mrs. Shirley Dobson, NDP chairman, reminds us: “We have lost many of our freedoms in America because we have been asleep. I feel if we do not become involved and support the annual National Day of Prayer, we could end up forfeiting this freedom, too.”

History Summary

1775 - The first Continental Congress called for a National Day of Prayer

1863 - Abraham Lincoln called for such a day.

1952 - Congress established NDP as an annual event by a joint resolution, signed into law by President Truman.

1988 - The law was amended and signed by President Reagan, designating the NDP as the first Thursday in May

— From www.ndptf.org