National Day of Prayer
What is National Day of Prayer?
May 1st is National Day of Prayer, which calls all who will humble themselves and seek God’s will for our nation to pray regarding specific areas of concern to all of us. These areas are: Government, Military, First Responders, Business, Education, Church, Family, and Neighborhood. The FPC Prayer Ministry invites you to spend some time each day for one week praying for each of these areas. If you are someone who would like to follow along to prayer guides, feel free to use the resources below.
Day 1: Prayer for Our Neighbors
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second most important commandment is this: Love your neighbor as you love yourself. There is no other commandment more important than these two.”
- Mark 12:28-31 (GNT)
PRAYER: God of Community, we praise You, as the God of relationship, who Himself exists in the triune community of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Lord, we pray for:
1. The 300 plus people in transitional living or housing, in York city. Protect them and give them hope for a healthier, more stable future.
2. Non-citizens in our country and the fear and anxiety they are feeling right now for their future and that of their families. May the peace of Christ guard their hearts.
3. We hold up to You, Lord, the staff and volunteers of the Caring Ministry. We ask for safety, wisdom, strength and renewal as they minister to our community.
4. We ask for an outpouring of support for the Caring Ministry during the Give Local/Give York yearly fundraiser, on May 1 – May 2.
God of Providence, we thank You for working through each of us to help, sustain, heal and protect one another.
In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
Day 2: Prayer for Children and Families
So do not fear, for I am with you; don’t be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. - Isaiah 41:10
PRAYER: We praise You, Abba, as our faithful Father who always keeps His promises, has our best interests at heart, and fulfills His purpose in our lives. We pray Abba Father:
1. For all types of Families: that Your love would protect, build-up and strengthen them. Make the way, Abba, for families to have quality time together and build strong relationships.
2. We ask for comfort and strength for families moving forward through loss of job, illness, shelter or from grief.
3. For Parents and Caregivers, for patience, understanding, and wisdom as they guide children through life.
4. For Children, we pray for safety when they go to school and when they play. For prayers that they may learn to be kind to each other and learn to work together as they grow. Pray that they receive the assistance they need as they learn and grow.
Thank you Abba Father for always working to bring out the best in us and our situations.
In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
Day 3: Prayer for Our Government & Judicial Systems
Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. - Psalm 82:3
Prayer: Sovereign LORD, we thank and praise you for being everywhere and in everything including our halls of justice. We ask that you:
1. Provide our judges with discernment as they are confronted with people struggling with addiction and mental health issues.
2. Provide our judicial system with the resources necessary to help broken families.
3. Give our judges a spirit of kindness in dealing with our troubled children.
4. Provide the wisdom to foster respect and a spirit of cooperation amongst the co-equal branches of government.
In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
Day 4: Prayer for Our Churches
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. - John 13: 34-35
Prayer: Emmanuel, God with us (עִמָּ֥נוּ אֵֽל), Jesus give us your new commandment to “love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34). What is new is our grateful awareness of your unconditional love for us so that we, in turn, love others with your unconditional love for them.
1. We pray that our church would seek your grace to follow Jesus everywhere people are needing kindness, compassion, empathy, healing, protection, advocacy, and justice. May we be for them the faith community committed to enflesh your inclusive, diverse, and equitable love.
2. We pray for unity with and among churches that reveal your Divine love to the world that transcends national, racial, cultural, and gender boundaries (John 17:23).
3. For integrity and boldness in our churches – that God’s people look and act and live differently from the world and advocate for a more just, equitable, and peaceful world for all God’s people.
We thank you, God, for being with us in Love and mercy. Thank you that the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead now lives in us to inspire and empower us to embrace all people with that same love and mercy.
In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
Day 5: Prayer for Business
I have filled him with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, ability, and expertise in all kinds of jobs. He is a master craftsman, an expert in working…
- Exodus 31:3-4
PRAYER: God of Provision, Your blessings never come to an end because You are a loving God of infinite grace. We pray for:
1. The ways and means to open ethical businesses in York County, especially in underserved neighborhoods hungering for opportunity and investment.
2. We ask, Lord, that you raise up a local workforce, nurtured in their homes and schools, that is filled with a spirit of excellence and dedication in all that they do. May the gifts of their work be a great blessing to their families, employers and their community.
3. May our York County business leaders learn from Abraham who also lived in a time of chaos and uncertainty. He only needed to do God’s will. His obedience was the capital he invested, the principal that yielded an enormous return.
We thank You, God, that You are the ultimate source of everything we will ever need.
In Christ’s name, we pray, Amen.
Day 6: Prayer for First Responders
Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. - Isaiah 41:10
PRAYER: Almighty God, nothing is impossible for You. We praise You for showing Your strength in us and for us when we are at our weakest. LORD, we
ask that You:
1. Grant our first responders courage when they are afraid, wisdom when they must make quick decisions, strength when they are weary, and compassion in all their work.
2. God, we also lift up prayers of thanksgiving and comfort for the families of first responders and all who support them. Give them hope and courage.
3. We thank You for and ask that You bless our local first responders who put themselves in harm’s way to help others.
Thank you Lord that we can always turn in faith to You, our All-Powerful God, the only one able to help us through any trials.
In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
Day 7: Prayer for Our Military & Families
He appointed military officers over the people and assembled them…and encouraged them with these words: ‘Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him. With Him only is the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles…
- 2 Chronicles 32:6-8
Prayer: We praise You, LORD, that Your name is a Strong Tower, a refuge, a stronghold in times of trouble. The righteous run to You and are safe.
Tower of Strength, we ask that You:
1. Help our military leaders make wise and righteous decisions based on Biblical principles rather than personal career gains.
2. Help all military personnel see You working in their daily lives; that You are with them whether they are in the field, at home, or abroad.
3. Almighty God, please hold service members and their families close; may they look to You for the protection, strength and peace that only You can give.
We thank you Lord, for being an ever-present help and shield.
In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
Day 8: Prayer for Education
If you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom, and from His mouth comes knowledge and understanding. - Proverbs 2:3-6
PRAYER: All-knowing God, we praise Your sovereign power that knows the future, the past and the present. Hear our prayers:
1. We pray for a safe environment conducive to learning in all our schools. We ask that You bless teachers and staff with an outpouring of grace and endurance of such magnitude that it overflows onto students, schools and communities.
2. Set young people free from hopelessness, despair, depression, anxiety, loneliness and substance abuse.
3. Move the hearts of funding leaders to prioritize the needs that teachers and students have for learning.
We thank You, Lord, that nothing in our lives takes you by surprise. We trust in You because Your vast scope of loving understanding and attention to Your children is eternally faithful.
In Christ’s name we pray, Amen.
