House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner participated in the 75th National Day of Prayer service on Capitol Hill Thursday morning.
Johnson and Turner joined several faith leaders and members of the National Day of Prayer Task Force in prayer and to discuss the impact of the Christian faith throughout American history.
Christianity and American history
“This formal tradition, as you know, was established by Congress at the height of the Cold War, and it reaffirms something that is so important that really goes to the heart of who we are as Americans,” Johnson said. “We are a praying nation, we always have been. It truly is part of who we are.
“It’s also a time to reflect on the great moral inheritance of which every American citizen, across every generation, has been the humble recipient,” he continued. “That inheritance goes back to the very idea upon which our nation was founded. We boldly proclaimed the self-evident truth that our rights do not come from the government, they come from God himself.”
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Turner talked about the power of prayer and God’s impact on the nation over the last 250 years.
“Prayer is very powerful because Almighty God is powerful,” he said. “That truth has gotten our great nation through mountain tops and valleys for the past 250 years. Our founding fathers were men of faith who understood that God is the cornerstone of our republic. All of us here recognize that truth as well, and we know that God’s power impacts both the lives of individuals and the destiny of our entire country.”
Turner also shared his personal faith journey and how he has “witnessed [God’s] sovereignty and actions” in his life.
“At 16 years old, I got my first job,” Turner said. “I was a dishwasher at Spring Creek Barbecue. I remind myself, I am a former dishwasher who has been guided by God through every step of my life and through every job since then.
“Whether it’s preaching in the pulpits in the churches of America or backpeddling down the football field in college, in the NFL, or leading the housing policy as a servant leader of Housing and Urban Development, every single day, we get to serve the most vulnerable Americans in our country. I am reminded that God has ordered my steps. I am unapologetic about that, and I am unashamed.”
Call to teach faith and freedom to future generations
The National Day of Prayer, an “annual observance held on the first Thursday of May,” was instituted in 1952 by Congress and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman, according to the National Day of Prayer website.
Christians across the nation were invited to participate and pray for the United States.
This year’s theme comes from 1 Chronicles 16:24 New American Standard Bible, “Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.”
“As Americans of faith, we see that as our responsibility,” Johnson said, reflecting on the verse. “We can never know what tomorrow brings, of course, but if God calls us to be faithful and to proclaim his good deeds.”
The House speaker concluded his remarks by calling on Christian Americans to continue to teach future generations about the importance of faith and freedom.
“On this grand anniversary, particularly, we have a great opportunity,” Johnson said. “We should use this entire year as a teachable moment to pass along to the next generation of Americans who we are, what we’re about, and why we are this great country.
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“So as you pray for our country today, we thank God for his acts of salvation and provision and deliverance,” he continued. “Let’s also pray that we may have the strength, just as our founders did, to hand the baton of faith and freedom on to the next generation that follows us, a generation that cherishes liberty and proclaims proudly what is right, and good, and true.”
Johnson is slated to give remarks alongside faith leaders and other government officials at Freedom 250’s “Rededicate 250” event on the National Mall, Sunday, May 17, in preparation for America’s 250th birthday.