Pray the Vote
A non-profit group is urging President Biden’s administration to use federal agencies, like the U.S. Postal Service, to create a massive voter registration campaign. According to the organization, 76 million people in the United States are currently not registered to vote, and utilizing interactions through agencies like the Postal Service, ObamaCare exchanges, and the Social Security Administration will lead more people, especially low-income and minorities, to register.
Five candidates running to challenge Michigan’s sitting governor are facing the possibility of being eliminated even before the primary election after a state board alleged that their campaigns failed to file enough valid nominating signatures. The board recommended the five candidates be removed from the August primary ballot.
Pray that election officials are nonpartisan and impartial as they determine the legitimacy of campaigns and candidates.
Additional National Prayer Needs
Pray for our Military
The Army has signed a deal with Raytheon Technologies to purchase $687 million worth of anti-aircraft Stinger missiles to replenish stocks sent to Ukraine. There was no timeline indicated for completion of the work, but it was estimated delivery could take as many as 30 months.
A military commission tasked with suggesting new names for military bases that currently honor Confederate veterans has proposed a list covering nine Army installations in the South. They had received 3,670 suggestions from the public. A final report from the commission is due to Congress by October 1. The law then directs the Secretary of Defense to make the name changes by January 1, 2024.
Pray for military suppliers and contractors as they work to reestablish America’s stockpile of weapons depleted by military aid being sent to Ukraine.
Pray for AMERICA’S FREEDOMS
The results of a two-year investigation by the Georgetown Law Center on Privacy and Technology were published last month and found that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) uses sophisticated and highly invasive dragnet surveillance systems to spy on the majority of Americans, even in states with strict laws to protect the privacy of their residents.
Pray that government agency officials would follow privacy laws regarding the surveillance of the American public.
Pray for AMERICA’S FOREIGN RELATIONS
Delegations from Sweden and Finland held talks in Ankara with senior Turkish officials in an effort to overcome Turkey’s objections to their recent applications to join the NATO alliance.
Government ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) major economic powers, including the U.S., put out a joint statement that they would agree to eventually phase out coal-fired power, a major contributor to climate change. The agreement on a phase-out is a step further from what countries agreed to during last year’s climate meeting in Glasgow when countries only agreed to “phase down” coal.
Pray for the members of the NATO alliance, including the U.S., as they collaborate on energy advancements and climate.
Pray for AMERICA’S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
Walmart and CVS Health Group said they would stop filling prescriptions for controlled substances issued by telehealth startups Cerebral Inc. and Dome Health. Officials said both of those companies are known for treating patients with ADHD, prescribing stimulants such as Adderall.
The Food and Drug Administration along with the CDC is investigating a potential link between a hepatitis A outbreak and fresh organic strawberries. The berries were branded as FreshKampo and HEB and made available between March 5 and April 25 at Kroger, Safeway, Sprouts Farmers Market, Trader Joe’s, Walmart, Weis Markets, and WinCo Foods.
Pray with thanksgiving for the discovery of the source of recent hepatitis cases in children.
Pray for AMERICA’S RELATIONSHIP WITH ISRAEL
Israel informed the U.S. that it was behind the assassination of a senior member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. According to Iranian media reports, Colonel Hassan Sayyad Khodaei was in his car outside his home when he was fatally shot. The Revolutionary Guard blamed the killing on “global arrogance,” a code typically referring to the U.S. and Israel. Israel said this was a warning to Iran to stop operations of clandestine groups that aim to commit assassinations and abductions of Israeli civilians and officials.
Israel and the United Arab Emirates signed a first-of-its-kind comprehensive free trade agreement between Israel and an Arab nation, boosting business ties less than two years after they established formal diplomatic relations with the Abraham Accords.
Pray for discernment for government and military officials in Israel as they work to prevent any attack by Iran.
Pray for AMERICA’S ECONOMY
According to data from the National Association of Realtors, contracts to purchase previously-owned homes dropped to a two-year low in April, the latest indication that rising mortgage rates and higher prices were dampening demand for housing.
The Congressional Budget Office said that inflation and economic growth are forecast to cool later this year and into 2023. They say this reflects an economy in a time of transition.
Pray that America’s economic officials would seek God’s guidance in addressing inflation and strategies to prevent recession.
Pray for Justice in America
Nine members of the U.S. Air Force filed a federal lawsuit seeking a class-wide temporary restraining order against Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, the Department of Defense, and the Secretary of the Air Force for discrimination against those seeking religious exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate. As many as 4,000 active duty service members refused the vaccine. According to the military, as many as 20,000 service members have asked for religious exemptions—thousands have been denied.
Pray for the federal judge who will hear the case of the service members regarding religious freedom.
Pray for Goodness in America
In the wake of a number of sailor suicides aboard the USS George Washington aircraft carrier, one Navy chaplain is urging other sailors to share the gospel with their shipmates. “There’s good Christian sailors who can share the gospel or maybe somebody, a family member, a grandmother, who prays for them or every now and then when they talk to them, they encourage them to trust in the Lord and read the Bible and whatever it may be,” he said.
Pray for this chaplain and others as they seek to prevent the tragedy of suicide among America’s young people through the promise of life in Christ.
Pray for America’s Media
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a Florida law would undermine the First Amendment rights of social media platforms, since they are private companies. One provision blocked by the court would require social media platforms to allow de-platformed users to access their own data stored on the platform’s servers for at least 60 days. “Social media platforms have never acted like common carriers,” the court said.
In another case, a U.S. judge in Ohio ruled that Google is a “common carrier” that can be regulated. The massive company should be treated as a common carrier or a business of public accommodation, similar to utility companies or telecommunications companies, which are not allowed to discriminate against consumers who are willing to pay fees.
Pray for judges as they rule in cases regarding “common carrier” issues.
Pray for America’s Education
A North Carolina elementary school recently confiscated a set of LGBTQ-themed flashcards that a teacher was using to teach preschoolers about color. The “Rainbow Families” flashcards were not approved as part of the school’s curriculum. The card for the color “White” showed a woman hugging a pregnant man, for example.
Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany canceled a “Drag Queen Story Time” event that was scheduled for June 2 after Senator Marco Rubio of Florida strongly urged against placing “children in a sexualized environment.” The storytime was being offered to the young children of service members as a way to celebrate Pride Month.
Pray for school officials, federal legislators, and parents as they attempt to protect young children from being introduced to sexual concepts and information too early.
Pray for America’s Technology
A technology company is using artificial intelligence (AI) and optimization algorithms to address problems with the supply chain by matching truckloads with drivers in the “most efficient way possible” in order to maximize driver productivity and “eliminate waste of time.” The company states that using this technology can ensure drivers are paid more and that it passes along “more reliability and cost savings to shippers.”
Pray for officials in companies that are using available technology to address problems with the supply chain and other issues that contribute to inflation.
Pray for Needs Across the States
Montana’s Department of Health and Human Services said that it would replace “gender” on birth certificates with “biological sex.” The agency order read, “Sex is different from gender and is an immutable genetic fact, which is not changeable, even by surgery. Accordingly, this agency rule does not authorize the amendment of the sex identified/cited on a birth certificate based on gender transition, gender identity, or change of gender.”
By a narrow margin, the New Hampshire House failed to pass a “parental rights” bill that would have required schools to notify parents of a number of developments with their children, including their gender identity and expression. They also rejected a subsequent “motion for consideration,” effectively sealing the fate of the legislation.
Pray for state leaders as they deal with current moral and cultural issues.
Pray for America’s Faith Community
“We can know that whatever we are facing—including a formidable virus—we have a God who has promised to never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Jesus said that He would be with us always (Matthew 28:20). So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear” (Hebrews 13:6). He is the Good Shepherd who loves us. In the 23rd Psalm He promises to lead us into green pastures and beside still waters. He is the One who restores our soul. Even though we may go through the valley of the shadow of death, we do not have to fear any evil. Our Lord is with us and is able. He has a rod to guide and direct us, and He has a staff to correct us. We can take great comfort in knowing that He has prepared a table for us. He anoints our head with oil.Right now, America’s soul needs to be restored, and that is something only the Good Shepherd can do.“ – Franklin Graham, in Decision Magazine, April 1, 2020
