Additional National Prayer Needs
Pray for America’s Military
The U.S. Marine Corps is committing to more problem-solving approaches to its education methods. Colonel Karl Arbogast, director of the policy and standards division, said the service branch is replacing its “death by PowerPoint“ model with “outcomes-based” learning. He said, “Instead of teaching them what to think, we’re teaching them how to think.”
Pray for discernment for Colonel Arbogast and other military leaders in charge of training Marines, soldiers, sailors, airmen, and guardians.
PRAY FOR AN END TO THE WAR IN UKRAINE
Belgium is sending 30 F-16s made by the United States to support Ukraine’s defense. However, the military aircraft are being sent on the condition that Ukraine uses them for its defense and does not fly them over Russian air space. The Belgian prime minister said, “Everything which is covered by this agreement is very clear, it is for utilization by the Ukraine Defense Forces on Ukraine territory“
Pray for U.S. and foreign officials as additional military support for Ukraine is mustered.
Pray for AMERICA’S RELATIONSHIP WITH ISRAEL
The pier built by the U.S. Defense Department to bring aid to Palestinians in Gaza had to be towed to Israel for repairs after it was damaged by high seas and a storm off the west coast of Africa. After the pier was completed, aid organizations had difficulty ensuring the food and medicine reached the intended recipients as mobs and crowds made off with the humanitarian aid on truck convoys.
Pray for wisdom for President Biden and his administration officials as they seek to influence Israeli leaders in the war against Hamas.
Pray for AMERICA’S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
Members of the World Health Organization (WHO) were unable to reach a consensus and failed to pass a Pandemic Agreement. The organization’s director general pledged to continue the effort to legally bind all WHO member nations to the surveillance and other health and information-sharing policies of the group.
Pray for U.S. health officials and politicians as they assess the needs of the American people and the goals of the World Health Organization to require global compliance.
Pray for AMERICA’S ECONOMY
The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco released a study that anticipates extreme heat this summer will limit construction workers’ productivity and reduce capital investment. While agriculture and mining are also impacted by the heat, the Bureau of Economic Analysis projects that construction contributes more to the U.S. economy.
Pray for U.S. economic officials and members of the Federal Reserve to receive God’s wisdom as they assess the nation’s economy.
Pray for Needs Across the States
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed legislation that will continue to shrink the size of the state government. Cabinet-level state agencies are being reduced from 37 to 16, and 67 boards and commissions will be eliminated. Others will merge, and memberships will decrease.
The Illinois House of Representatives passed a budget for the coming fiscal year. Additional funding was approved for education, including a new quantum computing campus, and the formation of an Early Childhood Agency.
Pray for state officials to receive God’s guidance as they endeavor to address the particular concerns of their residents.
Pray for America’s Faith Community
“[Psalm 78:70, NLT] ‘[God] chose His servant David, calling him from the sheep pens‘ – he didn’t look the part, but he had the heart. He was a man after God’s own heart and God had set aside Saul and chose David to lead the nation. He took David from tending the ewes and lambs and made him the shepherd of Jacob’s descendants. He cared for them… he shepherded them, or he cared for them with a true heart… he cared for them with the integrity of his heart. So, he had integrity, this speaks of his character. Every leader, whether you’re leading your family, or leading in the church, or leading in the community, leading in your office, every leader must ultimately be a man of integrity. Character is the issue. And credibility. More important than competence, although competence is certainly important, more important than education, more important than preparation. All these are good, but without the energer, without the integrity, to put it all together at the core, then leadership fails.“ – Jack Graham, “A Life Well Lived,“ PowerPoint, May 2024
