{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.hydesmith.senate.gov/recognizing-50th-anniversary-intercessors-america", "RECOGNIZING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF INTERCESSORS FOR AMERICA", "2023-11-09", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "MS", "Cindy Hyde-Smith", "H001079", "www.hydesmith.senate.gov", "hydesmith", "https://www.hydesmith.senate.gov/newsroom", "scraper", "Congressional Record Vol. 169, No. 186\n\n(Senate - November 9, 2023) PDF\n\nMrs. HYDE-SMITH. Mr. President, I wish to recognize the 50th\n\nanniversary of Intercessors for America--IFA--a ministry that has\n\nfaithfully served believers by encouraging effective prayer and fasting\n\nfor the Church, our Nation, and our elected leaders, including those of\n\nus elected to Congress. At the time of IFA's founding, the Watergate\n\nscandal, the Vietnam war, pervasive drug use, and the Supreme Court's\n\ntragic decision to legalize abortion on demand in Roe v. Wade had\n\nshaken the moral foundations of our Nation. In the 50 years since,\n\nIFA's ministry has been important in rebuilding a society that once\n\nagain respects the Judeo-Christian principles and moral values that lie\n\nat the heart of America.\n\nThe founding leaders of IFA, including Derek Prince and John Beckett,\n\nbegan their first activities at a large dining table where John Talcott\n\nand his wife Roselyn wrote a prayer letter, which was mailed to a group\n\nof like-minded people who recognized the need for God to intervene to\n\nheal our Nation. Over the past 50 years, IFA has grown from these\n\nbeginnings to inform, connect, and mobilize intercessors across\n\nAmerica, in churches and communities nationwide, to pray for our Nation\n\nand our leaders.\n\nIn its work, IFA follows the teaching of the Apostle Paul in 1\n\nTimothy 2:1-3: ``I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask\n\nGod to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.\n\nPray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can\n\nlive peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is\n\ngood and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to\n\nunderstand the truth.''\n\nNowhere could this impact of the power of prayer, including the\n\nprayers of many IFA intercessors, be better seen than the Supreme\n\nCourt's historic decision in 2022 in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health\n\nOrganization to overturn the moral stain of Roe v. Wade. This moment\n\nwas a testament to God's faithfulness, and underscores the importance\n\nof the work we have ahead of us to rebuild a culture where God's gift\n\nof life is respected and cherished.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.hydesmith.senate.gov/recognizing-50th-anniversary-intercessors-america"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9129457175731659, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}