NPR | Arkansas Pastor Tapped To Lead National Day Of Prayer Group

An Arkansas pastor who was recently at the helm of the Southern Baptist Convention has been picked to be president of the National Day of Prayer task force. Dr. Ronnie Floyd is charged with promoting the federally recognized day of prayer.

Floyd says he’ll push for multicultural participation and digital outreach to bolster the day. The Rogers pastor says the nation is at “an urgent hour” he hopes to spur on “the next Great Spiritual Awakening.” His vision for his tenure is outlined in a press release.

“As part of his vision as new president, Dr. Floyd sees the National Day of Prayer becoming a larger multi-denominational, -ethnic, -lingual and -generational movement. He also believes the National Day of Prayer can become America’s leading provider of prayer resources and strategies, engaging Americans daily via the digital world. Dr. Floyd’s life mission is to help usher America’s next Great Spiritual Awakening, with prayer being the driving catalyst of this spiritual movement.”

The day’s origins date back to a 1952 law. The next observance is May 3rd, 2018. It will mark the 30th anniversary since the first Thursday in May was designated for the occasion during Ronald Reagan’s administration.

The private advocacy group National Day of Prayer Task Force, now led by Floyd, has had evangelical notables like Franklin and Billy Graham as past chairs. Former President George H. Bush also has served in the role.

Floyd will stay on as senior pastor of Cross Church in Rogers while taking on the prayer day organization’s duties. The church has a string of campuses in northwest Arkansas and claims to be one of the largest in Arkansas with about 20,000 members.

Read more at Arkansas Pastor Tapped To Lead National Day Of Prayer Group.