By John Brice
Correspondent
Inspired by the annual National Day of Prayer event held on the first Thursday of every May, a Day of Prayer for Chambers County was proclaimed at the July 24th City of LaFayette Council meeting to be observed during the early evening hours of Friday, August 4th of 2023.
Scheduled to begin at 6pm Central Standard Time at the Eastside of the Chambers County Courthouse in downtown LaFayette, in addition to the prayer ceremony there will be free school supplies given away to children in attendance at the end of the program.
According to the official flier announcing the event, it states “Everyone is invited to come out and help pray for our State, The Governor of Alabama, The Mayors and Councils of LaFayette, Lanett and Valley, Five Points, Waverly, Fredonia and Cusseta. The Chambers County Commissioners, The local officials, our military, our school system, the economy of Chambers County, etc. If we want things to continue to change for Chambers County, we must pray. God called the first prayer on September 6, 2001 and on September 11, 2001 the entire nation was changed because of the attack on America”
Expanding on that thought, it goes on to continue “This will be the 22nd year of the Day of Prayer for Chambers County. The Day of Prayer service is not about any domination, but is about coming together and praying for Chambers County and our Nation. We must continue to pray for God’s mercy and protection for Chambers County and our Nation. God is speaking, but we are listening.” Quoting from the Bible, it recalls “If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land.” II Chronicles 7:14
According to the Wikipedia entry on the subject, the National Day of Prayer “is an annual day of observance designated by the United States Congress and held on the first Thursday of May, when people are asked ‘to turn to God in prayer and meditation’. The president is required by law to sign a proclamation each year, encouraging all Americans to pray on this day.”
President George W. Bush in 2001 made his first presidential act the announcement of a National Day of Prayer when he proclaimed “NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 21, 2001, a National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving and call upon the citizens of our Nation to gather together in homes and places of worship to pray alone and together and offer thanksgiving to God for all the blessings of this great and good land. On this day, I call upon Americans to recall all that unites us. Let us become a nation rich not only in material wealth but in ideals — rich in justice and compassion and family love and moral courage. I ask Americans to bow our heads in humility before our Heavenly Father, a God who calls us not to judge our neighbors, but to love them, to ask His guidance upon our Nation and its leaders in every level of government.”