CRC Joins National Day of Prayer

Members of the Christian Reformed Church Board of Trustees (BOT) joined CRC staff to participate in the U.S. National Day of Prayer.

Held in the atrium of the denomination’s Grand Rapids, Mich., office, the event was one of hundreds held late last week in cities and communities across the United States. The BOT was in Grand Rapids for its May meeting.

As they offered prayers on a range of matters, CRC participants were marking the day set aside by U.S. President Harry Truman when he signed a law in 1952 designating the first Thursday in May for this purpose.

In his own National Day of Prayer message this year, President Barack Obama said: “The threats of poverty, violence, and war around the world are all too real. Our faith and our earnest prayers can be cures for the fear we feel as we confront these realities. Helping us resist despair, paralysis, or cynicism, prayer offers a powerful alternative to pessimism.”

The CRC event, which began with words of welcome from Steve Timmermans, executive director, took place at mid-day and focused on particular topics for prayer. After someone introduced a topic, small groups took time to pray about specific items in that category.

“I pray for this denomination, for love, for grace, for mercy, and for care as we go about the discipleship mission that God has placed on us locally and overseas,” said Colin Watson, Sr., director of ministries and administration. The topic at hand was The Mission of the CRC — the Gospel Proclamation Locally and Globally.

“This is your world, God,” Watson continued. “There is brokenness everywhere. Go before us, God, and give us passion and commitment to make disciples for you.”

The small groups then prayed softly about items including the freedom to worship and proclaim the gospel, being able to help change lives and communities, and finding peace and hope through Jesus.

Bonnie Nicholas, director of Safe Church Ministry, addressed the topic Family, Youth, Children, and Education. She began her time of prayer by reading from Psalm 46: “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. . . .”

After reading from the psalm, Nicholas said, “We pray for our children and for you, God, to work among us . . . and that you would give us hope.”

In the small groups, participants then prayed for safe communities and schools, for healthy families and marriages, for people in poverty, and for the eradication of racism.

On the topic of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, Rev. Darren Roorda, Canadian Ministries director, opened with these words: “I pray that we become more and more Christlike. I pray for the agencies and committees and the groups and subgroups and everyone in them in the Christian Reformed Church.”

And in their small groups people prayed for the CRC leadership in the U.S. and Canada, for the upcoming Synod 2016, and for healthy CRC congregations.

The 30 minutes of prayer ended as people recited the Lord’s Prayer. From there, like countless others who took time to pray and connect with God on that day, they dispersed and went back their normal routines.