Additional National Prayer Needs
Pray for our Military
The Pentagon claims that Russian forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine and indicated the willingness to help gather evidence of it. Officials say the Kremlin has carried out indiscriminate attacks as part of an international strategy in the conflict.
Three current and former members of the Tennessee National Guard are safe and accounted for, despite a Russian newspaper’s false report that the men were killed while fighting in Ukraine.
Pray for the safety of American troops stationed in various parts of Eastern Europe as the conflict continues between Russia and Ukraine.
Pray for AMERICA’S Freedoms
The Supreme Court declined to hear a discrimination case involving a lawyer who was denied a job opportunity with a Christian legal-aid clinic because of his sexual orientation. Their decision allows the lawyer to move forward with his case in a lower court. The high court stated that the case may be more suitable for its review when there is a final decision from the state court.
Pray for justices and judges as they hear discrimination cases and weigh the importance of protecting religious freedoms.
Pray for AMERICA’S FOREIGN RELATIONS
The UN High Commission for Refugees reports that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has caused more than 10 million people to abandon their homes. The scale of the humanitarian disaster is expected to increase as Moscow presses its attacks with missile strikes and artillery fire.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin downplayed Russia’s claims of using hypersonic missiles in Ukraine and said they did not present as “a game-changer” after Moscow said it had used the weapon to strike a munitions warehouse in western Ukraine.
Pray for U.S. diplomats, foreign policy advisors, and military leaders as they respond to Russia’s invasion and the instability it is causing in Eastern Europe.
Pray for AMERICA’S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
COVID-19 vaccine makers’ requests to authorize another round of booster shots have prompted a debate between the pharmaceutical companies and vaccine experts who say a fourth inoculation is not yet needed. Pfizer and Moderna have each requested to expand the number of shots to four.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention drastically reduced its reported number of child COVID-19 deaths by nearly 25 percent, without a clear explanation.
Pray for the leadership of the CDC and their methods of determining and reporting pandemic deaths.
Pray for AMERICA’S RELATIONSHIP WITH ISRAEL
A joint statement from Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid criticized the possibility of the U.S. removing the terrorist designation from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as part of nuclear negotiations. “The IRGC is a terrorist organization that has murdered thousands of people including Americans,” the Israeli leaders said. “We refuse to believe that the United States would remove its designation as a terrorist organization.”
Pray for U.S. officials to consider relations with Israel and the Middle East at large as they deliberate the stalled negotiations over renewing the nuclear agreement with Iran.
Pray for AMERICA’S ECONOMY
According to the founder of research consulting firm Pantheon Macroeconomics, the housing market is in the early stages of a substantial downshift as home sales could drop 25 percent by the end of summer.
Credit reporting firms plan to strip billions in medical debts from consumer records in a move that will make it easier for people to apply for loans and apartments while raising the risk to banks of losses.
Pray for U.S. economists and financial advisors as they assess inflation and its impact on American household budgets.
Pray for Justice in America
The state senate of Maryland passed a substantial juvenile justice reform measure, which now goes to the House. The proposal generally says a child younger than 13 will not be subject to the jurisdiction of juvenile court for delinquency proceedings and may not be charged with a crime. Juvenile courts would have jurisdiction over a child who is at least 10 and has committed the most serious of crimes, such as violence or murder.
Pray for legislators as they navigate issues surrounding juvenile justice, whether for simple truancy or violent crimes, and when a minor should be charged as an adult.
Pray for Goodness in America
Lt. Colonel James H. Harvey III, a 98-year-old veteran, finally received the recognition he and his teammates deserve for their history-making Air Force “Top Gun” win from 1949. He represented the 99th Fighter Squadron within the Air Force’s 32nd Fighter Group, who valiantly fought during World War II as a member of the Tuskegee Airmen. When asked if he had any advice for someone who is trying to gain recognition for an overlooked achievement, Harvey said, “Don’t give up. Continue to pursue it. Do what you have to do to get the recognition that you deserve.”
Give thanks for the recognition of the valor of the Tuskegee Airmen.
Pray for America’s Education
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Friday expressed opposition to the Florida bill that prohibits “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity” in elementary schools. He claimed that it protects bullies rather than empowering parents.
Pray for educators, administrators, and political officials as they determine or place restrictions on the nature of classroom instruction regarding gender identity and sexual orientation.
Pray for America’s Technology
Instagram is adding parental controls for the first time. The tools will let parents track the time teens spend on apps and see which accounts they follow. Meta is also introducing controls for Quest VR, an expansive library of games and entertainment.
Pray for technology leaders and federal regulators as protections are established for parents to track the app activity of their children and teens.
Pray for Needs Across the States
Upon hearing the suggestions of a Russian official that his country wanted Alaska back, Governor Mike Dunleavy said, “good luck with that,” and noted his state citizens are armed and ready to defend the state.
The Idaho legislature passed a ban on abortions at six weeks that would allow the patient or family to sue providers of the procedure, an enforcement mechanism resembling the one used in a similar law in Texas.
Give thanks that more states across the Union are passing laws that limit abortion.
