National Day of Prayer on May 4
Apr. 29—Prayer is powerful, especially when Christians come together en masse, said local National Day of Prayer coordinator Steve Temmer.
On May 4, the faithful from across the country will come together to ask God for his help at the national, state and local levels.
"This is a nondenominational time to pray," said Steve Temmer, "It's not about any denomination, but about welcoming everyone to come and ask God to intervene in our city, state, country and world."
This year's theme is "Pray fervently in righteousness and avail much," which is based on the Bible verse James 5:16 "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
First Baptist Church (FBC) of Brunswick will host a special National Day of Prayer service from noon to 1 p.m. involving pastors from across the county — Chris Winford of FBC, Kris Dockery of The Chapel, Jermaine Johnson of Community Church Brunswick, Jamie Jackson of Remnant Church and Lucas Ramirez of Wesley United Methodist Church — who will lead prayers directed at specific issues, Temmer said.
Starting at 11:45 a.m. on May 4, the Glynn Academy choir will open the service with song. Other performances include the Heritage Christian Academy handbell choir and singer Lori Nichols.
First Baptist, at the corner of Union and Mansfield streets, is glad to host the event every year, said FBC Administrator Taylor Gordon. It gets everyone out of the elements, and the congregation is very familiar with the power of prayer.
"We have experienced the fruits of prayer in our prayer meetings, and it's so important to this community," said Gordon. "That's why we open our doors, because it works."
While the National Day of Prayer event at First Baptist Church will be led by pastors, churches across the county will open their doors on National Day of Prayer for anyone who can't make the main event in Brunswick or who feels the need to pray about something on their own. Two are Wesley United Methodist Church, which will open its sanctuary from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and St. Simons UMC, which will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., said committee member Mary Staeger.
The National Day of Prayer organization, a privately funded group dedicated to promoting prayer, has seven pillars on which it asks Christians across the country to focus — family; church; business and workplaces; education; military; government; and arts, entertainment and media.
National Day of Prayer goes back to 1952, when Congress passed a law giving the president the authority to "set aside and proclaim a suitable day each year, other than a Sunday, as a National Day of Prayer, on which the people of the United States may turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups and as individuals," according to the organization's website.
"It was back in the early 50s, and I think it was President Truman that tried to come up with something to get people to pray for our country on a national basis," said Steve Temmer
It wasn't until the tenure of President Ronald Reagan that the National Day of Prayer was assigned as the first Thursday in May, Temmer said. This year, it's May 4.
None of the members of the planning committee on Wednesday knew exactly when observance began as a group affair in the Golden Isles. Mike Murphy said he and Bill Ligon, former pastor of Christian Renewal Church of Brunswick, were involved in a joint prayer event on the steps of the Glynn County Courthouse as early as 2000, but individual churches undoubtedly observed the day before then.
After the weather got in the way a few years, churches started taking turns hosting the National Day of Prayer event, Murphy said. For the last six years or so, First Baptist Church of Brunswick has hosted it.
