Additional National Prayer Needs
Pray for our Military
The Pentagon is deploying helicopters and Special Forces beyond the airport as President Biden considers pushing back the August 31 deadline for troop withdrawal. Violence has been reported outside airport gates and at Taliban checkpoints.
Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby denied that the US. has made payments to the Taliban in an effort to allow Americans free movement to the airport in Kabul. The question came to him as U.S. leaders grapple with how to get thousands of people out of the country with the August 31 deadline for a full withdrawal quickly approaching.
Pray for America’s military, from the top Pentagon leaders to the men and women on the ground in Afghanistan aiding in the withdrawal processes.
Pray for AMERICA’S FREEDOMS
Legal experts are divided over whether two New York judges overstepped their authority when they recently ordered two defendants to get vaccinated against COVID-19. One law professor from Fordham said he did not think the judge’s order was an “incredible intrusion into someone’s bodily integrity.” A New York Law School professor stated that he saw nothing wrong with it, as long as defendants do not have health concerns or “legitimate religious objections” to the inoculation.
Pray for U.S. officials to guard individuals’ freedom to decide for themselves whether or not to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
Pray for AMERICA’S FOREIGN RELATIONS
A Taliban commander said Afghanistan will not become a democracy under the Islamic militant group but will be ruled under its strict interpretation of Sharia law. “It is Sharia law and that is it,” he said, adding that the women of Afghanistan will like it because they are good Muslims.
China is using the challenging U.S. exit from Afghanistan to warn the people of Taiwan that if armed conflict over the disputed nation ever breaks out, America will not be able to assist them. China has already been conducting assault drills and training exercises in the air and waters off Taiwan, using warships, anti-submarine aircraft, and fighter jets.
Pray that U.S. diplomatic and military efforts to support allies will not be hindered by the Afghanistan withdrawal issues.
Pray For AMERICA’S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
Americans who have received two COVID-19 vaccine doses are considered fully vaccinated, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said. “But,” he added,” we also need to continue and accelerate our efforts to vaccinate the world. This is not an or choice; it’s not this or that. We have to do both if we want to end this pandemic. … We will not stop in this effort until Americans and the rest of the world are protected against COVID-19.”
The CEO of Pfizer said the company believed a COVID-19 vaccine-resistant variant will likely one day emerge, although the company has a system in place to turn around a variant-specific “jab” within three months. “Every time that the variant appears in the world, our scientists are getting their hands around it,” he said.
Pray for U.S. health officials as they continue to assess and evaluate the virus and methods of mitigation.
Pray for AMERICA’S RELATIONSHIP WITH ISRAEL
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will introduce a new Iran policy when he meets with President Biden on Thursday. Bennett’s government feels that a return to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal is already useless because the Iranian advances in enrichment and nuclear research and development will mean a revived deal will not provide the same nonproliferation benefits. He believes now is an opportunity for the U.S., Israel, and other regional players to work together to counter Iran.
Israel—and the United States—received a warning from Hezbollah not to interfere with an Iranian oil shipment headed to Lebanon, as Hezbollah stated that they will consider the shipment a Lebanese territory as soon as it sets sail from Iran. Lebanon has been facing crippling fuel shortages for the past two years, and there is a potential for hospital closures due to a lack of diesel fuel, they said.
Pray for those officials who continue to consider the return to an Iran nuclear deal to have discernment in updating provisions for curtailing the advances Iran has made.
Pray for AMERICA’S ECONOMY
Unemployment claims in the U.S. fell to a pandemic low of 348,000, down for the fourth straight week, according to Labor Department data. Federal supplemental jobless benefits are set to expire the end of August, but some states and local governments will use pandemic relief funds for added help beyond the deadline and the surge of the Delta variant of COVID-19.
The bipartisan infrastructure bill is not likely to have a big impact on growth in the next few years, economists say. However, in their opinion, longer-term investments in highways, ports, and broadband could make the economy more efficient and productive.
Pray for financial advisors and leaders as they evaluate and work on solutions for increasing inflationary pressures.
Pray for Justice in America
A statue of Christopher Columbus in Philadelphia that city officials claim is controversial will remain, a local judge said, overruling city official’s attempts to remove it. Judge Paula Patrick wrote that the city failed to provide an adequate opportunity for the public’s input about the statue’s future. She further said the decision to remove it was not supported by law and was baseless due to insufficient evidence. “The city’s entire argument and case is devoid of any legal foundation,” she said.
Pray for state and local leaders and judges who face decisions in the shifting culture and the efforts to rewrite American history.
Pray for Goodness in America
Eighteen new bicycle routes have been added to the national system, increasing it by 2,903 miles. The new routes are spread across California, Indiana, Ohio, Utah, and Washington. “The growth of the system benefits every person who has, is, or will be traveling by bike,” said the executive director of Adventure Cycling.
Give thanks for efforts made by the government and private groups that enable people to enjoy the beauty God has placed in America’s outdoors and wildernesses.
Pray for America’s Education
All New York City Department of Education employees, including teachers and school staff, must receive at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine by September 27, the New York City mayor announced. The mandate affects about 148,000 people working in the nation’s largest school district and is a move that is likely to be duplicated by education departments across the nation.
Pray for America’s schoolchildren, their teachers, and others, as classrooms reopen for in-person learning.
Pray for America’s Technology
T-Mobile said hackers had accessed the personal data of an additional 5.3 million of its wireless customers. The company had earlier reported that 40 million former and prospective customers, as well as 7.8 million existing T-Mobile wireless customers’ data, had been stolen. The data includes addresses, dates of birth, and phone numbers of customers. The company said it had no indication that the accessed data contained financial information such as credit card or other payment data, but their investigation is ongoing and will continue for some time.
Pray for software engineers to be able to establish programs that increase security against hackers.
Pray for Needs Across the States
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed an executive order directing state departments to begin collecting voluntary self-identification information pertaining to sexual orientation and gender identity. She says the information will be used to enhance the capacity and ability of state agencies to address health disparities and identify and remove barriers to effective care.
The senate president pro tempore of Pennsylvania said that hearings will begin this week on a “full forensic investigation” of the state’s 2020 presidential election. One unsolved question is how Pennsylvania’s senate partisans will pay for an Arizona-style audit without private donations after concern was expressed about the legality of funding the undertaking with private money.
Pray for state leaders and legislators to look out for the best interests of their constituents.
Pray for America’s Faith Community
“Most believers claim to live by faith and not by feelings, but in everyday practice, many do measure their spiritual lives by the way they feel. You may be doing all the right things — regular Bible reading, diligent prayer — and still feel like you are not growing in the Lord.
You may be totally oblivious to the tremendous maturing process taking place inside you. Paul likens our spiritual growth to the growth of our bodies, with our souls being nourished in the same way as our physical joints, muscles, and fibers. He calls this ‘[growing] with the increase that is from God’ (Colossians 2:19). Such growth comes from the Head. Simply put, as you trust and abide in Christ, a never-ending flow of his life is pumped into your soul.
Jesus is a constant life-force in your being, a living stream that never shuts down. Therefore, his life is constantly being infused into yours, even while you are sleeping. He provides a fresh supply to you every day, no matter how you feel.“ – David Wilkerson, founder of Times Square Church and Teen Challenge
