National Day of Prayer Celebration Coming to Jefferson

By Allison Canter

For many people, prayer is part of their daily lives. It serves as a link for their faith to offer thanks and to find comfort in difficult times. Prayer will be given top billing on Thursday, May 7 as the nation celebrates the National Day of Prayer. Locally, the steps of the Ashe County Courthouse will be the location for Ashe County to celebrate the day.

On May 7, those interested may come to the new courthouse in Jefferson at 11 a.m. for the event. Organizers said they are encouraging everyone, the public and all veterans and service personnel, to attend this event. The theme this year is "Prayer…America's Hope!" It is based on Psalm 33:22 from the Bible, which reads, "May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you."

Concerning the inspiration for this year's theme, Shirley Dobson, NDP Chairman, said, "At this time of economic downturn, terrorist threats and relentless assaults upon foundational biblical principles, it's heartening to reflect that we serve a God who has repeatedly shown himself 'mighty to save' (Zephaniah 3:17) in the lives of those who trust in him. Inspired by this uplifting truth, the NDP Task Force has selected Prayer…America's Hope! as the theme for the 2009 observances."

Locally, those attending will "gather, as a powerful expression of humility and faith. Our goal is to encourage people to make prayer for our nation a daily part of their lives. We are working together as the body of Christ, to call a nation to prayer," said Rev. David Blackburn, Director of Missions, Ashe Baptist Association. This year will be the 58th annual celebration of the day which began April 17, 1952. On that day, President Truman signed into law the observance of a NDP and designated it as a floating holiday. According to the NDP Task Force, "In 1981, the National Prayer Committee was established with the purpose of helping to bring about an official NDP that would occur on the same day each year. This group was instrumental in the launch of the NDP Task Force."

Founded in May of 1983, the NDP Task Force is the Judeo-Christian expression of the NDP, according to the NDP website, www.nationaldayofprayer.org. The Task Force, in cooperation with the National Prayer Committee, played a central role in the eventual joint declaration by President Reagan and Congress, designating the first Thursday of every May as the annual NDP.

Addressing the role prayer has had on the nation's history, the NDP website said, "The men who conceived our nation drew strength, wisdom and inspiration from prayer and referred on numerous occasions to the necessity of relying on the Almighty God. Since our nation's inception, nearly every President has called the nation to prayer during critical times. In 1863, for instance, President Lincoln declared a NDP and fasting as the decisive Battle of Gettysburg raged."

The NDP Task Force addressed this question of why should people participate in the NDP.

"We are blessed to live in a country that allows us the freedom of religious expression in the public arena," said a statement on the website. "Given that this fundamental liberty was guaranteed by the drafters of our Constitution, it's particularly disturbing to see the relentless attempts of some to revoke this right. Indeed, it is becoming increasingly rare for any public mention of God to go uncontested by those who would make such actions unlawful. The NDP provides an opportunity for the community of faith to take advantage of our right to publicly gather, pray and worship God."

Local events for the day are planned by volunteers throughout the area. In the nation, prayer observances have been held in federal prisons, national monuments, Indian reservations, military bases, stadiums, nursing homes, schools, town halls, in the Senate and Congressional chambers of many state capitols and overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq. Some also choose to gather in their homes, churches or other private places.

For more information about the local event, contact Diane Dixon at (336) 846-5631. For more information about the event nationally, click to www.nationaldayofprayer.org.