A DAY TO REFLECT : MILLIONS MARK NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER.Byline: Jeanne Mariani-Belding Daily News Staff Writer It's 3:15 p.m. Thursday afternoon when Danny Erbaugh abruptly stops working. Sitting at his desk, Erbaugh, folds his hands, closes his eyes and slips into 15 minutes of silent prayer. He prays for the students he teaches, for people dealing with life's hardships and for the country. Erbaugh is one of millions people across the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. who devoted part of their day to celebrating National Day of Prayer - an annual daylong spiritual observance for people of all faiths. ``This is a day when people who don't regularly go to God are praying. It's a time for people to refocus Verb 1. refocus - focus once again; The physicist refocused the light beam" focus - cause to converge on or toward a central point; "Focus the light on this image" 2. ,'' said Erbaugh, who runs a religious program for high school students for the First Baptist Church First Baptist Church may refer to many churches: Canada
``I certainly prayed for the hearts of all people. I was thinking of all the people that are hurting, and I prayed I beg; I request; I entreat you; - used in asking a question, making a request, introducing a petition, etc.; as, Pray, allow me to go s>. See also: Pray that more people will go to God and that people will see the need for God in their lives,'' he said. Nationwide, more than 12,000 organized prayer chains, breakfast prayer meetings and other events were held to mark the National Day of Prayer, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Beverly Rykerd, spokeswoman for the National Day of Prayer Task Force. In the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. , hundreds of people from more than 200 Valley-area churches gathered at the Los Angeles Baptist High School Los Angeles Baptist High School is a Christian, independent, coeducational day school located in Sepulveda, California with approximately 962 students enrolled in grades 7 through 12. gymnasium in North Hills for two prayer breakfasts. The spiritually charged event drew the Valley's most prominent pastors, including Pastor Andrae Crouch of Christ Memorial Church in Pacoima. Crouch, a multiple Grammy award-winning gospel singer, praised God in song and preached about healing the Valley. ``It is so important for us to come together in prayer,'' Crouch said. ``We are spiritually deprived as a society. ``We are not a country that can say, `In God we trust'. Just look at the news,'' Crouch said, singling out the prevalence of crime and drugs. The National Day of Prayer was a concept first developed by the First Continental Congress in 1775. The national observance of a prayer day was formalized for·mal·ize tr.v. for·mal·ized, for·mal·iz·ing, for·mal·iz·es 1. To give a definite form or shape to. 2. a. To make formal. b. by Congress in 1952. But it was President Reagan who proclaimed the first Thursday in May as a National Day of Prayer. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Danny Erbaugh, who runs a religious program at the Fi rst Baptist Church of Reseda, performs a fifteen-minute observation for National Day of Prayer on Thursday. Myung J. Chun/Daily News |
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