Excerpt from A Time for Prayer, the 2010 book for the National Day of Prayer:
Taking Back Our Communities by Lance Wubbels
One of the greatest “layperson revivals” in American history occurred in 1857. At that time there were 30,000 men idle on the streets of New York. Drunkenness was rampant, and the nation was divided by slavery. On September 23, 1857, Jeremiah Lanphier, a praying businessman, began a noontime prayer meeting on Fulton Street in the Financial District of Manhattan. Out of a city of one million people, six people showed up. However, the crowds grew, and within three months there were prayer meetings all over the city. More than 50,000 people in New York City alone paused each Wednesday at noon to pray. The prayer revival soon spread across the nation, and in about 18 months, a million people were converted to Jesus Christ.
Ongoing since 2002, prayer warriors rallied against a prolific drug problem in Manchester, Kentucky. Located in Clay County, the second poorest county in Kentucky and the sixth poorest in the nation, Manchester had approximately the same number in the county jail and federal prison as residents – 2,200. As reported on the 700 Club, almost immediately they began to see change. Drug arrests went way up! Drug dealers and users started coming to church and getting saved and the story of Manchester was carried in papers through the country. Little did they know their march against drugs would ignite a fire of hope that continues to spread across the country. Dozens of towns, from Georgia to Texas, after seeing the stories on the 700 Club, held their own marches and are taking back their communities for Christ.
Prayer for the Nation by Max Lucado
Dear God,
Not to us, O Lord, but to You goes all the glory.
We depend on You. You give birth and breath and determine our days. You make every nation and set every boundary. We exist by Your power.
We exist for Your glory. Showcase Your power through this land. Display Your justice in our courts, wisdom in our governments, guidance in our schools, and love in our homes.
Have mercy upon our sins. We have disrespected Your Word, disregarded Your gifts, and discarded Your children. We are sorry. Forgive us, dear Father.
Grant strength to all our leaders. May they serve You first and honor You most. Remind us of the brevity of this life and the beauty of the next. Prepare our souls for the day we meet You in eternity.
Happy Teacher Appreciation Day! Today is set aside in the United States as a day to honor and thank our teachers. Today, as you remember influential teachers in your life or the lives of your children, take a moment to pray for our nation’s teachers.
...let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16
It has been estimated that there are well over 500,000 Christian teachers in public schools. Many of them have felt intimidated by court rulings against religious expression and at times have been silenced by our culture’s ambivalence toward moral absolutes. However, limitations don’t change the fact that the Spirit of God resides within them and is working through them – through caring interactions with students and living out their faith day by day; through effective teaching that enables students to develop their unique, God-given gifts; through teaching commonly accepted values, such as honesty, respect, and caring for others; and through teaching about religion within the curriculum. Pray that Christian teachers will have a tremendous impact on the lives of their students and positively influence the cultures, values, and spiritual environments of their schools.
Lord, I ask You to inspire all Christians in education to be Your shining light in schools by being role models and mentors for the younger generations. I pray for teachers to have the wisdom, knowledge, and skills to teach students and make their classrooms places where students learn not only knowledge, but also morality and integrity. I pray that teachers and school administrative leaders would fear You and understand that they have a great responsibility as they train our nation’s future leaders. Holy Spirit, fill the lives of the teachers with Your presence, and by their shining examples, I ask You to draw young people to follow Jesus. Amen.
What kind of school did you attend? Did you have teachers who impacted you for the better? Share a story about your favorite teacher in a comment.
This weekend, we are proud to officially release our newest book, A Time for Prayer, written and compiled by Lance Wubbels. Since the book is hot off the press, even I haven’t had a chance to look through too much of it, but I look forward to sharing some favorite quotes with you over the coming weeks. For now, enjoy our short movie version of the book, and remember to bring all your cares and worries to the feet of Jesus. Let’s not forget to soak in His presence this year!
