Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Thursday, Christians throughout the country will observe the 48th Annual National Day of Prayer.
This year's theme is "Light The Nation With Prayer," which is taken from Matthew 5:14-15: "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light at all in the house."
This year's national chairman for the event is Shirley Dobson, wife of Dr. James Dobson. Dobson said, "Only through the power of prayer will our nation return to God and be healed of its many ills."
Locally, the Day of Prayer observance will be at the Center Lake Pavilion, from 12:15 to 12:45 p.m. Chris Everest and Sue Bendorf make up the two-person committee. They have been involved with this event since 1992.
Two area pastors and three prominent community members will participate in the prayer observance, which usually sees 250 to 300 people in attendance.
Bendorf explained that the idea of a "national day of prayer" dates back to the Civil War era, when Abraham Lincoln felt that the nation was turning away from God. He introduced a "day of fasting, prayer and humiliation" because he believed that "repentance will lead to mercy and pardon" and "that those nations only are blessed whose God is Lord."
In 1952, the day was officially established by an act of Congress and signed by President Harry Truman. It was later amended in 1988 by the 100th Congress and President Ronald Reagan, making it the first Thursday of May.
