Make national day of prayer permanent

THE EDITOR: The Christian Council of San Fernando calls for a national day of prayer and thanksgiving to be permanently included on the TT calendar.

As human beings, we tend to credit improvements and successes to the mechanisations of men and wisdom of our ways, because by nature we are inclined to exclude God in our praise. But no chapter of our lives is written without prayers and divine intervention in our affairs.

We rest assured in our faith that when a nation calls for his grace and blessings God responds. We encourage all leaders to include prayer in their regime for good health and success.

For many, the practice of prayer is usually left as a knee-jerk response and incidental to the processes of life. We should take note of this observation and seek to maintain a relationship with the divine through our portals of prayer.

Over the years, we have assigned days for many celebrations and commemorations, but not for prayer and thanksgiving. Now is the time to declare a national day of prayer and thanksgiving which will give us an opportunity to publicly acknowledge God in our dealings.

Other nations have set aside a day of prayer on their calendar, including the US, with an official day celebrated on the first Thursday in May of each year since 1952.

We trust that this submission meets with the approval of those entrusted with the responsibility to lead our nation. We suggest that the first Thursday of July each year be designated as the national day of prayer and thanksgiving.

We will continue to pray for our nation, the region and the world as we look forward to the celebration of a national day of reverence, such as is consistent with any God-fearing country.

TERRENCE HONORE

on behalf of the ministers

Christian Council of San Fernando