Sutherland Springs, Texas is a community that will forever be changed and the members of First Baptist Church while battered and bruised, they are far from broken. The White House has invited members of the Texas church where a two dozen people perished last year to Washington for the National Day of Prayer. The prayer service at the White House comes just two days before the six-month anniversary of the church s******g that took the lives of 26 members of the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs.
According to the Dallas News: “We did not expect a personal invitation to the White House from the President,” Sherri Pomeroy told the Express-News via text message. “When I received that email, I confirmed the legitimacy of the invitation and accepted, of course!”
The five Sutherland Springs visitors will be attending the National Day of Prayer’s evening services at the Capitol’s historic Statuary Hall. The Pomeroys will be interviewed by Pastor Ronnie Floyd, president of the National Day of Prayer Task Force, and Frank Pomeroy will lead a short prayer — all live-streamed across the country.
They’ll also attend a private banquet the night before hosted by the Task Force.
“We are very honored that we are invited to the White House and asked to pray for our nation in this historic place,” Sherri Pomeroy said. “While this invitation is bittersweet because of the events that brought us to this place, may we never turn down a forum to share the gospel of Jesus Christ wherever it takes us.”
The National Day of Prayer will be held in Washington DC’s historic Statuary Hall, and is an annual observance held on the first Thursday of May, inviting people of all faiths to pray for the nation. It was originally created in the year 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress. It was signed into law by President Harry S. Truman.