What is the National Day of Repentance?
The National Day of Repentance is a day for all people in the US to get on their knees before a Holy God and ask God to forgive us for anything and everything we have done wrong. For nearly 2 years I have been thinking about the biblical concept of a sacred assembly. The people of Israel had such an assembly at the time of the dedication of Solomon’s temple. Several hundred people in the state of Tennessee had a sacred assembly at their Legislative Plaza in Nashville on October 5, 2014 and elsewhere around the state in the following months. They were times of prayer, repentance, and humbling themselves before God at these events.
Why should we have a National Day of Repentance?
As a country we were founded on Judeo-Christian values. Most of our Founding Fathers adhered to the Christian faith. While some of them may not have referred to this country as a Christian country, they knew the importance of following God and His Holy Word, the Bible. Since our founding more than 200 years ago, we have strayed from following the Bible. We as a country need to humble ourselves before God, ask Him for His forgiveness for our wrongdoings, ask Him to lead us according to His will not our own.
We have asked God to bless us as a country and He has. What have we done with that blessing? We have not honored God with it. We have not thanked Him for what He has given us. We have denied Him instead by our words and/or actions even if unintentionally. We are destroying our land and all of the blessings from it that God has given us.
What has God said about repentance?
In 2 Chronicles 7 Solomon and the people of Israel were gathered for the dedication of the temple Solomon built for God. In verse 14 the writer records the following spoken by God: “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (NKJV)
If we call on God, confess our wrongdoings, turn away from them, humble ourselves and seek Him only, He will forgive us and help heal this mess of a country we currently live in.
When is the National Day of Repentance?
This year, it will be October 12. This coincides with Yom Kippur, the Jewish high holy day the Day of Atonement. I plan on having this as an annual event. Each year it will coincide with Yom Kippur. There will be prayer prompts in the week leading up to the event and throughout the day. There will be a special time of prayer of repentance for our country and our leaders starting at 2pm ET. There will be multiple prompts that hour.
Where is the National Day of Repentance located?
The National Day of Repentance is located wherever you are located. You can choose to do this as part of your small group, with friends or family, with your church or a group of churches. The options are nearly limitless. Just follow #NDoR on social media for prayer prompts. It’s that simple allowing you to join at any time during the day.
Why does it coincide with Yom Kippur?
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, was the 1 time of the year that the Jewish high priest could enter the Holy Place in the tabernacle to atone for his sin, his family’s sin, and the sin of the whole nation of Israel. Yom Kippur was the day that people had all of their sins forgiven regardless of if they knew about the sin or not (intentionally doing a known wrong versus doing a wrong & not realizing it was wrong). The high priest offered a sin offering for his & his family’s sin. Then he offered a baby goat as a sin offering for everyone in Israel. A second baby goat was presented before the Lord alive then sent off to the wilderness (it’s likely where we get our term scapegoat).
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