Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord

“It is so important to pray for Ukraine and our government!” – This thought came to my mind after I took part in the 58th National Prayer Breakfast (NPB) as part of the team of volunteers from “Alpha and Omega”. This year, prayer united more than 3500 guests from the USA and 180 other countries of the world.

At the Breakfast they talked about religion and its role in the political life of the nations. The person of Jesus Christ who can unite the representatives of different religions was in the center. Some places from the Holy Scriptures were read and some Christian psalms were sung. The President of the US, Barak Obama, introduced himself as a person of faith, who recognized his imperfections and declared the importance of prayer and generosity for the common good. The Secretary of State, Hilary Clinton, spoke about the importance of human rights protection, the importance of faith and the necessity of helping the people of Haiti who are in big trouble now. She called everyone to follow one of her life principles: “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.”

Probably everyone understands that there are no ideal people and American politicians are not an exception. But it is still amazing to recognize that they are not afraid to speak from the platform about their faith, about their religious beliefs. They call people to pray and be righteous, to love and be compassionate to the people around us and do good things.

Though the event is called “breakfast” food is not its main purpose. NPB is an unofficial event where political, social and business leaders of the world can assemble together informally and build relationships which might not otherwise be possible.

It is interesting that the Prayer Breakfasts of congressmen started in 1950-s and were initiated by a pastor who emigrated to the USA from Norway. He thought that political leaders of America must pray for their country together. This idea was supported by president Eisenhower who understood that “without a moral and spiritual awakening, there is no hope” and later this event became the National Prayer Breakfast itself which brought about the organization of such Breakfasts in many other countries of the world.

NPB presents different meetings, luncheons and dinners in the context of the main Breakfast which takes place in Washington, DC every year since 1953 on the first Thursday of February by the initiative of the group of American congressmen and senators who regularly participate in such breakfasts at Capitol Hill. About three thousand people from all over the world, including the country leaders, senators and congressmen, diplomats, political and religious leaders come to the NPB every year. Traditionally two special guests speak. First is the President of the US and second is a person whose name becomes known on the day of NPB. This year Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Prime Minister of Spain and President of the European Union, was the special guest.

It was very interesting for us to be in the USA and have an opportunity to gain great experience working on the team of NPB organizers. It was a great privilege to be a part of such an important and grandiose ministry. It was also nice to hear the compliments about the “Alpha and Omega” team: “Ukrainian smiles decorated the National Prayer Breakfast”, - said Doug Burleigh, one of the organizers of the event, at the meeting with the delegation from our country.

In the context of the 58th NPB, a 2nd Ukrainian Prayer Breakfast took place. Our politicians and other important guests from the US, Russian and Ukraine were present. Michael Zhovnir, the President of the “Alpha and Omega” Christian Youth Center, is the main organizer of the Ukrainian Prayer Breakfast in the USA. We hope that soon the tradition of NPB will come to our country. May God bless Ukraine and our government! Let’s believe and hope only for the better because the prayer of the righteous can do a lot!