“We have been preserved…. in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown; but we have forgotten God.” It’s a perfect description of 21 st Century America, isn’t it? How about 19 th Century America—during the Civil War?

The quotation comes from President Lincoln’s 1863 Proclamation for a National Day of Prayer. Lincoln was describing the United States 145 years ago! He could have been talking about society right now.

Nevertheless, 145 years after Lincoln’s proclamation, we are still recognizing a National Day of Prayer, thanks to a joint resolution of Congress, signed by President Truman in 1952 and officially made the first Thursday in May by President Ronald Reagan. The theme for this year’s May 1 event is, “Prayer: America’s Strength & Shield.” The accompanying verse is Psalm 28:7, “The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped.” [New American Standard Bible (NASB)]

As that Scripture verse indicates, we gain access to the Lord through prayer. He is our strength and shield. He hears the fervent prayers of righteous men and women and preserves us as a nation. We are called to proclaim the Truth and to confront evil in our society, to reprove the works of darkness—but prayer is still our most valuable tool in the spiritual and cultural war to preserve our freedom.

The National Day of Prayer Task Force is promoting a 7x7 challenge on its official website, www.ndptf.org. The 7x7 challenge encourages Americans to pray for seven specific areas, one for each day of the week: Government, Military, Media, Business, Education, Church and Family. Together these seven areas constitute the core of our society, of our nation.

I would argue that family, as the very foundation of society and government—inside the institution of traditional marriage—should be at the beginning of the list. Family is the most vulnerable institution right now; the most undermined by our society, culture, and yes, even our government. We must pray that God would protect our families, restore broken marriages and families and give Christians the courage to continue to stand up for God’s design for marriage and family.

We must pray for the Christian Church in America, that God would strengthen and protect His Bride from the forces attempting to undermine and destroy Her—from within and without. Our freedom to worship God as He calls us to and to live as Christians is under attack. Friends, this is so important—we cannot afford to take our religious freedoms for granted, or we will likely lose them entirely.

We are commanded in First Timothy 2:1&2, to pray “First of all…for kings and all who are in authority….” We need to pray for those in government, at the local, state and national levels—for those who make important decisions that affect all of us. Pray for wisdom, discretion, safety and integrity for those who are in authority over us. And don’t forget to uphold the November elections in prayer.

Lest we forget, we are a nation at war. Our courageous military men and women live in daily peril in order to protect us and our way of life. We must pray that God would grant a hedge of protection around them, success in their missions, physical health and encouragement for their spirits as they carry out their daily tasks in an extremely dangerous and demanding environment.

It is imperative that we pray for our education system. Educators are entrusted with our most precious asset and resource, the next generation. We ought pray for our educators and for the protection and development of our children during their most impressionable years. Pray that the Lord would raise up a generation of educators that will represent the Truth to children and guide them through the learning process with integrity.

And it is appropriate that we also pray for the business and the media worlds—that those working in them would return to principles of integrity and decency, that the dark side of these worlds would be exposed and eradicated. That those in business and media worlds who are God-fearing Christians would stay committed to business practices and media and entertainment standards that promote Truth and strong family values.

Even with all its imperfections, America is still a great nation. May we take advantage of a National Day of Prayer opportunity and lay our requests and thanks before our great God Who has richly blessed this country. May our prayers avail much and forestall Lincoln’s haunting prophetic words, “but we have forgotten God.”

For Wisconsin Family Council, I’m Julaine Appling, reminding you the Prophet Hosea said, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.”

http://www.ceai.org/fmembers/presidential_proclamations/ndop_1863_proc.htm, accessed 04/18/08.