National Day of Prayer events scheduled on Thursday across the High Desert

The 73rd National Day of Prayer on Thursday will include several public gatherings in the High Desert, including an early morning event at Granite Hills High School in Apple Valley.

With the National Day of Prayer Task Force theme “Lift Up The Word - Light Up The World,” residents will gather to pray for the nation, first responders, teachers, students, families, the economy, and more.

Granite Hills High School

Granite Hills High School will host its National Day of Prayer gathering at 6:30 a.m. on Thursday at the high school, 22900 Esaws Rd. in Apple Valley.

Sitting Bull Academy

Sitting Bull Academy will host a prayer event at 7:15 a.m. on Thursday at the school located at 19445 Sitting Bull Road in Apple Valley,

Adelanto

Pastor Dane Davis of Impact Christian Church in Apple Valley and community leaders from across the area will lead the National Day of Prayer event at noon on Thursday at Adelanto City Hall at 11600 Air Expressway.

Apple Valley

The Church for Whosoever in Apple Valley will host its annual National Day of Prayer event at noon on the Town Hall campus at 14955 Dale Evans Parkway. This will be the church’s 28th year of hosting, co-hosting, or participating in the prayer event in Apple Valley.

Barstow

The Barstow Christian Ministerial Association will host a National Day of Prayer event at 7 p.m. on Thursday at New Life Fellowship, 134 W. Main St. in Barstow.

Hesperia

• A National Day of Prayer event is scheduled at noon on Thursday at Hesperia City Hall, 9700 Seventh Ave.
• Calvary Chapel of the High Desert will host a National Day of Prayer event at noon on Thursday at 14740 Eucalyptus St. in Hesperia.

Victorville

The Interfaith Council of the High Desert will host its National Day of Prayer event at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 12100 Ridgecrest Road in Victorville.

National Day of Prayer history

Since 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a nation, the call to prayer has continued throughout U.S. history, according to the task force.

In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a day of “humiliation, fasting, and prayer.”

National Day of Prayer was created in 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan and both Houses of Congress made it an annual event.

The task force is a privately funded organization encouraging participation at each event. It represents a Judeo-Christian expression of national observance based on its understanding that the U.S. was “birthed in prayer and reverence for the God of the Bible.”

For more information on the National Day of Prayer, visit NationalDayofPrayer.org .

Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on X @DP_ReneDeLaCruz

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: National Day of Prayer events scheduled on Thursday across the High Desert