National Day of Prayer May 2

The community is invited to observe the National Day of Prayer at noon on Thursday, May 2 in front of the Oneida County Courthouse in Rhinelander. The event will last approximately 30 minutes and will be held rain or shine. 

The theme for the 2024 National Day of Prayer is “Lift up the world — Light up the world” and is based on 2 Samuel 22:29-31: “For you are my lamp, O Lord, and my God lightens my darkness. For by You I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall. This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; He is a shield for all those who take refuge in Him.”

“This prayer event is not political in nature,” organizers said in a press release. “In addition to praying for our nation and its leadership, prayer will focus on praying for other areas of influence on our nation: the military, the media, business, education, the church and family. It is estimated that over two million people attend more than 30,000 observances of the National Day of Prayer throughout the United States on an annual basis.”

The National Day of Prayer was created in 1952 by a joint resolution of Congress, and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman. In 1988, the law was unanimously amended by both the House and the Senate and signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on Thursday, May 5, 1988, designating the first Thursday of May as a day of national prayer. 

For more information, call 715-362-4792 or go to nationaldayofprayer.org.