"Lord, hear our cry"

Thursday, May 7, was National Day of Prayer, an annual event in the United States since 1952. This year's theme is "Lord, hear our cry." According to religonnews.com, more than 90% of Americans believe in a higher power, but what do they pray for? The majority, 82%, pray for their family or friends. 74% pray for a solution to personal problems. 42% pray to be forgiven for their own sins. 38% pray for relief in national disasters. 37% simply recognize God's greatness. 36% pray for future prosperity, and 20% pray for folks of other faiths or no faith at all. The Pew Research Center (no relation to church pews) finds 55% of Americans pray every day while 23% pray weekly or monthly. In either case, a  survey by Beliefnet found 41% believe their prayers are answered.

For example, people in New Orleans, LA, have recently received positive messages from heaven, or at least from the sky, when clouds of love appeared out of thin air. Words like hope, faith, and "coexist" have also appeared over the city. "We were at a jazz festival today and we saw a big heart in the sky," said Jimi Harper.

The author of these Godlike ideas was businessman Frank Scurlock, founder of the Noigiler Foundation (that's religion spelled backwards) He was so moved by the violence in New Orleans and nationwide that he hired Nathan Hammond, one of only five sky-writers left in the United States, to paint the sky with messages of hope. His goal is to inspire everyone. Let's pray he's successful.