By JIM LAWRENCE
For the Stafford County Sun

Published: May 7, 2008

STAFFORD — Lieutenant Gov. Bill Bolling addressed a group at a National Day of Prayer breakfast held at Regester United Methodist Church on May 1.

Bolling said it was a day for “prayers for our country, prayers our Commonwealth and prayers for our community.” Bolling said he grew up a Southern Baptist and converted to the United Methodist church in the 1980s.

He stated that being “lieutenant governor is what I do, not what I am.”

The most important part of his life, he said, was his “relationship with God and in a Christian context, his “personal relationship with Jesus Christ.” He said his faith gave him a foundation for which the rest of his life is based.

“It’s interesting to me,” he said, “that the National Day of Prayer receives the full stamp of approval of the government of the United States of America… It stands as a call from us to humbly come before God seeking His guidance for our leaders and His grace upon us as a people and goodness knows, we’re living in a time where our leaders need God’s wisdom and God’s guidance and God’s grace. And the national day of prayer belongs to every American as a day that transcends differences , bringing together citizens from all backgrounds and all different types of faith…”

Along with Bolling, representatives of the media, business, education, church, family, government and military members each offered prayers regarding the people and affairs of their respective professions.

The event was sponsored by the Stafford Ministerial Association and proceeds went to help the area’s homeless. 

Though the observance of the day in its present form dates to 1952, it can claim origins back to 1775, when the Continental Congress “designated a time for prayer in forming a new nation.” It is observed annually on the first Thursday of every May.

For more information concerning Regester Chapel Methodist on Bells Hill Road, and the Stafford Ministerial Association, call (540) 659-2642. The association can also be found at staffordchurches.org.

Jim Lawrence is a contributing writer at the Stafford County Sun. Reach him at .