May 1, 2008 marks the National Day of Prayer. Wherever you are when you read this, stop for just a second and Adore the Lord who has given us this wonderful nation, Confess that we have sinned and strayed from His laws, Thank and praise Him for the incredible riches both material and immaterial with which He has blessed us (including our religious freedom!) and in Supplication, ask the Lord to protect our land, and to turn the hearts of all its people back to Him.
I think that sometimes when we hear the word “prayer” we automatically think “obligation.” We may even have an instant feeling of guilt, or inadequacy, sensing that we’re not praying “enough.” I believe that what the Lord would have us feel when we hear the word “prayer” is his great love for us. How incredible, that we are so dear to the very Creator of the universe, to the Savior of our souls, that he listens constantly for our voices, just as we listen for the phone to ring as we anticipate the call of a loved one.
I often hear people confess that they don’t really know how to pray – as if a special formula or technique was needed. The apostles must have felt the same lack, for they very specifically asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. Jesus began his prayer with a word of affectionate address to Our Father in heaven. With that, He gives us an indication of the nature of all prayer – that of a conversation. If you can converse, you can pray. Prayer doesn’t have to wait for a church service, or even a time of sitting quietly with our Bibles in front of us (although that is wonderful!). We have conversations with people in all sorts of places and all kinds of ways – on the phone, in person, in the car, in the store, while working, while relaxing, while playing. We have many different types of conversations with people – light-hearted and serious, complimentary and complaining, thanking and asking for favors, apologizing and reconciling; conversations where we ask for advice; conversations where we just sit quietly and share each other’s presence. That’s how it is with prayer -- our conversations with God. We are not limited to one time or one place or even one way for us to talk with our God, and He wants us to “pray constantly” (as the apostle Paul put it) – letting Him know our thoughts, our needs, our wants, and our thanksgivings and praises. A long time ago, I learned the following acronym for the four basic kinds of prayer. I offer it to you as a way of remembering the basic types of prayer. Keeping it in mind will help to ensure that we’re maintaining balance in the ways that we pray – in the kind of conversations that we have with the Lord – so that we bless AND confess, request AND thank:
“ACTS.”
A doration
C onfession
T hanksgiving
S upplication
Because he inclined his ear to me,
therefore I will call on him as long as I live. (Ps. 31:2)
The Rev. E. Kathleen Christopher
Director, Healing & Prayer Ministries
The Falls Church
Falls Church, VA
Prayer Ministries & Programs
Christ Our Lord Anglican has a group that meets once a month on a Sunday after church for lunch and prayer. They are the Parents Praying for Adult Children. Many have children college-age and older who are struggling with life and with their relationship with God. The parents come together to support one another and to pray for each others’ children.
Christ Church speaks of prayer as the ‘heart-beat’ of the life of the church. Outside church services special times for prayer include: Home Fellowship Groups (small groups) which are scattered throughout Manhattan – each group includes a prayer-time as an ‘essential’ component when they meet; ‘Praise and Prayer’ evenings: these are held once a quarter on Thursday nights – the whole church is encouraged to attend; ‘24 Hours of Prayer’ – once every few months each household is asked to commit to pray for one hour during a 24-hour period at a place that works for them – typically from 6:00PM on Friday to 6:PM on Saturday. An outline of suggested Bible readings and points for praise and prayer is provided. Each time they have done this every hour of the day and night is covered. And, everyone is encouraged (but not by way of ‘law’) to make Bible reading and prayer part of their daily life.
St. Stephen’s Anglican Church
Heathsville, VA
St. Stephen's Anglican Church in Heathsville, Virginia, has an active prayer ministry, with prayer chain, weekly prayer meeting and prayer ministers after worship. They begin and end everything with prayer, and often in the form of "circle prayers." On both Memorial Day Weekend and Labor Day Weekend, the church sponsors fundraising crafts festivals, which are attended by about 2000 people. At each of those they offer two mini-concerts and invitations to prayer. They publicize these events in the program, and ring the bell ten minutes before each mini-concert. At the mini-concert, prayer is offered in four forms: prayer request cards; prayer ministers; a closing prayer offered by the rector over the assembly; and an offer for appointments with the rector for prayer on a later occasion. They usually draw in 35-50 people at each of these events and commit to pray confidentially for 30 days for each request submitted on cards.
St. George’s Church
Helmetta, NJ
St. George’s offers a variety of ways for their congregation to come together in prayer:
A weekly list of concerns, local and global is prayed aloud Sundays during Prayers of the People and at that time parishioners also pray by name & generally for military members, and those celebrating birthdays. There is a little wooden box in the Bell Tower for collection of prayer requests. On the back wall of the church is a “prayer wall” where slips of paper are posted weekly, they offer an opportunity for people to give a Praise Report early in the service, very often answers to prayer are reported laying-on-of-hands (LOH) is offered during service, after communion, and any time somebody asks in general. (Not unusual to run into little bunches of praying people). St George’s has an active Order of St. Luke ministry & Chapter, and hosts those who practice healing ministry by LOH and prayer. Weekdays, there is an unscripted prayer service at 10 a.m.
The Prayer Chain carries requests immediately via telephone, and the newsletter carries a parish member/ministry area daily list for prayers, prayer and Eucharist open the Vestry meeting. They will soon be covering “how and why we pray” in the current ALPHA course and at any and all such times as the Spirit moves them!
All Saints’ Church
Woodbridge, VA
www.allsaintsdalecity.org
As a church, All Saints' church is deeply committed to prayer. This is expressed by providing a dedicated room to pray. The goal as a church is to have All Saints' Church members praying in the prayer room 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The All Saints' prayer room is divided into 10 prayer stations. Each station has different topics on such subjects as "Prayers for the Church," "Prayers for our Nation," etc At each station there is a notebook of clearly stated prayer requests and simple information to guide prayers.
All Saints' Church also participates in "Prayer at the Fair" each year. Prayer at the Fair offers prayer ministry to those attending the Prince William County Fair for ten days in August by setting up a prayer booth. The purposes are to have a Christian presence at the fair, to partner with other churches in the Eastern Prince William Ministerial Association, to provide a cool drink/respite spot for fairgoers, to pray for those requesting it, and to provide brochures to those without a church. In 2007, over 300 people stopped at the booth to receive prayer.
The Falls Church
Falls Church, VA
http://www.thefallschurch.org
The Falls Church recognizes that prayer is central to all we do as Christians, both individually and collectively. We rejoice in seeing the evidence of the Lord’s response to our prayers for ourselves and for others. In our Healing and Prayer Ministries, we offer the following opportunities to receive prayer for the healing of physical, spiritual, and emotional needs:
-Intercessory prayer team: prays for requests submitted to 24-hour confidential prayer line.
-Prayer at the Rail: after each Sat/Sun service, there are prayer teams available to pray with you at the communion rail.
-Tuesday Drop-In Prayer from 1:30 to 4:00 pm half-hour sessions of prayer are available with a prayer team. You may sign up at the church office upon arrival or call the church office in advance (703) 532-7600.
-Monthly Healing Service – 7pm in the Historic Church the first Sunday of each month (next service: May 4).
-Monthly evening of healing prayer – advance reserved spaces for 1 hour of individual healing prayer. (For specific dates and times, go to www.thefallschurch.org/healing)
Individual Long-Term Prayer Ministry is also available. (An application form and a registration interview are required.
For more about our Healing and Prayer Ministries, go to
www.thefallschurch.org/healing.
(The Ministry Focus for May will be ministries and programs that focus on supporting families and marriage. Please submit information about your church's prayer ministries and events to hreichert@acn-mac.org.)
The National Day of Prayer - May 1, 2008 
There have been several national days of prayer in the U.S. before the day was made official in 1952. The Continental Congress issued a day of prayer in 1775 to designate "a time for prayer in forming a new nation". On April 17, 1952, President Harry S. Truman signed a bill proclaiming the National Day of Prayer into law. It was in 1972 that the National Prayer Committee was formed. It went on to create the National Day of Prayer Task Force, with the intended purpose of coordinating events for the National Day of Prayer. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill into law decreeing that the National Day of Prayer should be held on the first Thursday of May.
The Task Force is a privately funded organization whose purpose it is to encourage participation on the National Day of Prayer. It exists to communicate with every individual the need for personal repentance and prayer, to create appropriate materials, and to mobilize the Christian community to intercede for America's leaders and its families. The Task Force represents a Judeo Christian expression of the national observance, based on our understanding that this country was birthed in prayer and in reverence for the God of the Bible.
This year Dr. Ravi Zacharias is the 2008 Honorary Chairman of National Day of Prayer Task Force. The theme for the 57th National Day of Prayer is "Prayer! > America's Strength and Shield" and is based on the verse from Psalm 28:7, "The Lord is my strength and shield; my heart trusts in Him and I am helped."
The theme for this year is "Prayer! > America's Strength and Shield" and is based on the verse from Psalm 28:7, "The Lord is my strength and shield; my heart trusts in Him and I am helped."
Anglican Men's Weekend - West Coast
May 16-18, 2008
Forest Home Christian Conference Center
Forest Falls, CA
http://www.stjamesnb.org/
This event is hosted by the Men’s Commission at St. James Anglican Church. The speakers include The Most. Rev. Henry Luke Orombi, the Rt. Rev. John Guernsey, and the Rt. Rev. David Anderson. The cost is $175 if registration is received before April 15, 2008.
Association of Christians Ministering among Internationals
ACMI 2008 Annual Conference
May 29-31, 2008
McLean Bible Church
Vienna, VA
The theme is "Courage: At home, in the family, in the workplace and in the Church.” The speakers include Bishops Guernsey, Bishop Bena, Bishop Minns and the Rev. John Yates. The cost is $195 per participant and registration will be available online on a first come-first served basis beginning Sunday April 6, 2008.
Sharing Our Faith
Anglican Communion Network
Calendar Year 2008
Throughout the country
The ACN is holding evangelism training events throughout the country. These include workshops to train in evangelism, as well as actual outreach gatherings.
June 7, 2008: All Saints, Long Beach, CA
June 21, 2008: St. Edward's, San Jose, CA
September 12-14, 2008: Ascension, Pittsburgh, PA
If your church is having an event, we would be happy to publish it, not only so that interested people might attend, but so that we can be praying for you. Send information to newsletter@acn-mac.org .
Feel free to forward this newsletter to members of your congregation.
Our ordinary views of prayer are not found in the New Testament.
We look upon prayer as a means for getting something for ourselves;
the Bible idea of prayer is that we may get to know God Himself.
--Oswald Chambers
John Guernsey, Dean | George Beaven, Church Planting Director | Heather Adams, Executive Assistant | Heidi Reichert, Administrative Assistant
Mid-Atlantic Convocation | Anglican Network Communion
c/o All Saints' Church | 5290 Saratoga Lane
Woodbridge, Virginia 22193-3455
Tel: 703-670-0093
www.acn-mac.org
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