National Day of Prayer

As some of you may or may not know, since 1952 Congress set forth a National Day of Prayer, asking all Americans "to turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups, and as individuals". This day unites Americans in a common goal, prayer and petition before the Lord Almighty. Recently, there has been a lot to pray about, so I believe the observance of this day is as important as ever.

This observance has come under a lot of scrutiny over the years. Most recently the Freedom from Religion Foundation (FFRF) sued a number of officials, including President Bush, saying the observance "allows the government to have unrestrained authority to demean members of any religious group without legal consequence. The federal government could declare the 'National Day of Anti-Semitism' or even declare Christianity the official religion of the United States, but no one would have standing to sue because no one would have to 'pass by' those declarations." In 2009, the Obama Administration asked the U.S. District Court to dismiss the case, because FFRF had no legal standing to sue and that the tradition of the National Day of Prayer even preceded the signing of the bill in 1952 by Harry S. Truman. FFRF then proceeded to add President Obama and Press Secretary Gibbs to their law suit.

On April 15, 2010, U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb ruled the statute for a National Day of Prayer was unconstitutional stating "prayer is so personal and can have such a powerful effect on a community that the government may not use its authority to try to influence an individual's decision whether and when to pray". An appeal to this ruling was filed by the U.S. Department of Justice on April 22, 2010.

Brothers and Sisters, this day must be observed by every American who sees a need for revival in our great country! We need Christian leaders at the local, state, and federal level to start standing up for what they believe in, and put bi-partisan politics to bed. This isn't about Republican and Democrat, conservative or liberal. This is about the state of our country and the souls of the people in it!

This year's National Day of Prayer is Thursday May 6th. What I am recommending is getting the class together at some point during that day to lift our hearts and prayers to the Lord in a group observance. I know this day is a weekday, and a lot of people are busy, so we need to pick a time that works for everyone. I would suggest some time in the evening we all meet at the Sunday School house, and we spend some time in prayer and worship. I will bring this up in Sunday School this week to see what you all think.

It is time to make prayer a priority in a very lost nation! This begins with a spark, which will become a raging fire with constant tending and vigilance! Let us be "Joyful in Hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer". - Romans 12:12

Praises and Prayer Requests - 25 April

Praises

Praise God for all the pregnant families in our class:
Kenny and Summer
Matt and Tammi
John and Amanda
Patrick and Courtney
Kevin and Susan

Rebecca starts her job at Huntsville Hospital in May

Mills had a good week and is up to 2.7 lbs. Continue to pray for his growth and of course Rebekah and Roddy

Susan is expecting! Please pray for them as the baby is under weight. They are going for an ultra sound this Thursday. Keep them all in you prayers.

Stephanie and her group will be counseling the Middle School who were affected by the recent school shooting in Madison. Please pray for them to have God's wisdom as they reach out to the students and their families.


Prayer Requests

Pastor Mark and his vocal cords. Pray for God's healing and that he would grow closer to Lord as a result of this trial.

Rebecca's friend, Rich Mckinney, has stage 3 cancer. He is in his early 30's and has two little girls.

Pray for all the families in Miss. who lost loved ones and suffered material losses from the storms yesterday. Ask God how you can help.

Lee knows of a man who was killed in the explosion at sea this week. He was the father of 1 child with his wife expecting also. Pray for all the families of this tragedy.

Kenny- Please continue to pray for his student and her husband who attempted suicide recently.

Pray for the entire Malone family in the death of their 8 year old son and the car accident that happened on the way to the hospital. May God demonstrate His love and grace to this family.

Laura C.- suffering from an unexplained pain this week in her side. No, it was not John !

John and Laura traveling to Disney this week with two toddlers. Yes, they may be crazy.

David D. going to Iraq to work at the Embassy.

Jay and Holly- Emma Grace having surgery tomorrow morning.

Praises and Prayer Requests - 19 April

Praises

- Eric’s document was approved in 2 minutes.
- Amiee’s health is fine. Thank you for your prayers.
- Serving the City went well, praise God.
- Dustin’s business has doubled, but needs to hire two new employees. Pray that he finds 2 wonderful people. Pray that he passes his audit tomorrow.
- Emma Grace is doing better. Hearing is fine. Pray that she stays healthy enough to not need anymore antibiotics.
- Brett passed his certification test. Pray that God shows him what to do with it.


Prayers
- Pray for Jonathan to have wisdom to know what to do about a potential new job.
- Pray for Lee and Courtney to have traveling mercies and that the Methvin kids obey mom on the first time without whining.
- Pray for Jim Boynton to have salvation and to be healed of his bone cancer. Pray for Sue Boynton to have peace that transcends all understanding.
- Pray for Jonathan Littlel to glorify God with his new cancer. He had cancer a few years ago and was healed, but it is back. He has had 2 new brain tumors removed and has to do radiation and chemo.
- Pray that Matt Moony’s company can hire fantastic new employees quickly so he does not have to wear so many hats and work such long hours. Their Aaron has a high fever.