Additional National Prayer Needs
Pray for our Military
The Pentagon has reported that a Chinese Navy J-11 fighter jet flew within 20 feet of a U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft, forcing it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision over the South China Sea on December 21.
The Air Force announced that the fleet of RC-26 surveillance aircraft that assist in border actions including countering drug smuggling at the border was shut down at the end of December. Service members have called this a “drastic change.” “The impact this plane and these operators have had in reducing, disrupting, and damaging operations of illegal narcotics has been amazing, and I am proud to have served alongside you,” one pilot wrote to his colleagues.
Pray for American service members as they see changes in policies and practices continue.
Pray for AMERICA’S FOREIGN RELATIONS
Taiwan has reformed and extended its period of mandatory military service from four months to one year in response to harassing actions taken by China against the island nation. Officials say the shorter period is no longer sufficient “in terms of quality and quantity of training” to meet the nation’s combat defenses.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has announced a ban on some imports from North Korea. Items manufactured by three companies accused of using forced labor in their supply chains have been particularly prohibited. A CBP official said, “Legally and morally, we cannot allow these goods into our commerce.”
Pray for the members of the administration tasked with establishing and maintaining America’s relationships with both allies and adversaries.
Pray for AMERICA’S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
Dr. Deborah Birx, part of the White House COVID-19 response team during President Trump’s administration, said that the U.S. is still “not ready for pandemics.” She said, “I’m glad we’re testing rather than just relying on symptoms, which we did three years ago, but this testing should have started weeks ago.” Dr. Birx said, the way hospitals in China are overwhelmed, “they’ve had widespread community spread for weeks… so we’re once again acting late.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention republished a “self-assessment tool” that urges teachers, administrators, and school nurses to adopt the LGBTQ+ curriculum and endorse transgender identities “in ways to increase inclusivity.” Their document states, “Schools play a critical role in supporting the health and academic development of all youth, including the access of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning youth.”
Pray for the leadership of the Health and Human Services Department and of the CDC and the direction they are moving the nation.
Pray for AMERICA’S RELATIONSHIP WITH ISRAEL
Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud government has placed settlement expansion on the West Bank at the top of its list of priorities. Their goal will “advance and develop settlement in all parts of the land of Israel—in the Galilee, Negev, Golan Heights, and Judea and Samaria.” The West Bank region of these settlements is considered an obstacle to peace with the Palestinians.
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan will go to Israel in mid-January to discuss U.S. policies with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Among the topics will be President Biden’s goal for a two-state solution and the proposed new outposts and settlements in the West Bank.
Pray for Prime Minister Netanyahu as he begins his newest government leadership.
Pray for AMERICA’S ECONOMY
According to a Lending Tree survey, holiday shopping debt for American households rose 24 percent in 2022, to an eight-year high per family of $1,549. A Lending Tree analyst said, “Anytime you see a 24% jump in debt, it’s troubling, but given that everything seems to be getting more expensive by the day, it all adds up.”
American farmers had a difficult year in 2022, with drought, supply chain shortages, and the rising cost of doing business. However, there are concerns that 2023 could be worse, with fertilizer and fuel shortages, extreme weather conditions, rising interest rates, and new government regulations. One farmer said, “I definitely think we have a food security threat” in the new year.
Pray for America’s food producers who are experiencing higher costs and diminished resources.
Pray for Justice in America
Attorney General Ashley Moody of Florida is conducting an investigation into “A Drag Queen Christmas” for possible legal violations of warnings against “exposing children to sexually explicit activity” which Governor DeSantis made a crime in Florida. She said, “This governor and our executive branch will not sit back while children or anyone else is harmed.”
Pray for all who are working to protect the innocence of children.
Pray for Goodness in America
A woman in Buffalo is being called a “true angel” for taking in an elderly, mentally-disabled man after he became lost in the deadly arctic blizzard that overwhelmed the area Christmas weekend. The woman said she heard the man, who had suffered frostbite, crying and asking for help. Reports say they had to cut off his socks, use a hairdryer to dry his pants that were frozen to his legs, and cut the straps of a grocery bag off his hands.
Give thanks for those who have practiced Jesus’ words, “I was a stranger and you took me in.”
Pray for America’s Education
Public school teachers are not subject to the Freedom of Information Act, a state judge in Michigan ruled. He determined that public school teachers are exempt from producing school-related documents in response to FOIA requests because they are not “public bodies.”
A new study by a Stanford University economist said students enrolled during the pandemic could expect to earn as much as $70,000 less across their working life when compared to the income of peers who graduated before schools were closed. He found that “pandemic” students are more likely to be less educated and underprepared for adulthood.
Pray for students as they work to catch up on what was missed during the pandemic.
Pray for Needs Across the States
Days before the bill was set to take effect, a state judge in Illinois ruled that the recently-passed SAFE-T Act that ended cash bail was unconstitutional. He said the state legislature “improperly attempted to amend the [Illinois] Constitution” through the Safety, Accountability, Fairness, and Equity-Today Act.
Under the recently passed $1.7 trillion federal spending package, the University of Alaska will gain hundreds of thousands of acres of land to resolve a land grant deficit that had eroded over time.
Pray for law enforcement officers and court officials as they address the increases in crime across America.
Pray for America’s Faith Community
“Philippians 4:13 is a verse of unlimited possibility. … Through Jesus Christ you can do everything God wants you to do this year. You can face everything he wants you to face, you can fight every battle he wants you to fight, you can obey every command, you can endure every trial, and you can overcome every temptation through Jesus Christ. … You can do ‘all things‘ if this year you rely on Jesus Christ. Not on your own strength, not on your own power, not on your own wisdom, and not on your own ability to figure things out. But if you will say, ‘Lord Jesus, this year I’m relying on you,‘ you can do all things through Christ.“ – Dr. Ray Pritchard, Keep Believing Ministries, New Year’s Day, 1993
