About 1000 people attended the Great Hall of Parliament House in Canberra yesterday as part of the National Day of Prayer and Fasting while hundreds of churches around the country also paused to mark the day.
Matt Prater, chairman of the day, says he was aware some churches had replaced their Sunday service with a prayer event while others had included in within a service.
Matt Prater speaking at the National Day of Prayer and Fasting in Parliament House, Canberra.
“There’s lots of different ways people did it,” he says.
Prayer at the national event in Canberra – which attracted Christians from across Australia and spanned a variety of denominations – covered everything from revival in Australia to Godly marriages, sexual purity, an end to abortion and the breaking of the drought in parts of Australia.
“One of the best parts of the day when when these farmers from Goondiwindi in Queensland got up to pray,” says Mr Prater.
“It was a father and son…and they have a ministry to farmers and pastors and they really had a heart to come and pray so they got up and prayed and shed a bit of a tear about what was happening to some of their farmer mates. That was a really powerful moment. That’s one big thing we’d like to see as an answer to prayer was to see that drought break.”
Mr Prater says another highlight was having an Aboriginal worship team close the day with an hour of worship and prayer and a declaration of revival. “That was a really powerful way to close the day.”
The day followed a day of prayer in Queensland on Saturday with about 150 people attending. Mr Prater says it is hoped that this state-based day of prayer would be taken up in other states.
“We’re looking for people that might want to help coordinate those,” he says.
The date for next year’s National Day of Prayer and Fasting has been announced as 15th February with ‘Destiny’ being the over-arching theme.
Another national prayer initiative – 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting – kicks off on Wednesday to coincide with the traditional period of Lent.
~ www.nationaldayofprayer.com.au
