Since 1990, the Women’s Ministries Department of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists has promoted a special day when women have the opportunity to strengthen their spiritual bonds as they pray for and with each other. The International Women’s Day of Prayer will be held this year on Saturday, March 5, 2022. Women across the territory of the Atlantic Caribbean Union of Seventh-day Adventists (ATCU) will gather in their churches to lead out on this significant day. This year’s theme, “Praying in the Last Days,” focuses on the need for prayer in the last days, underscoring that in these uncertain times, one can find comfort and peace, strength and courage by connecting with God through prayer.
In past years, this special day has been celebrated in a variety of ways: prayer breakfasts, fasting and prayer, consecration services, weekend prayer conferences, women preaching the sermons for church services, and other special programs. A resource manual, with ideas and a planning guide for making this a life-changing day for women and men in the church, is available for download in the resource section of the Women’s Ministries Department’s page on the website of ATCU.
According to Arleen Sands, Women’s Ministries director of ATCU, the International Women’s Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for women to learn about each other and pray for one another. It is a time to reunite with God and one another to strengthen spiritual bonds. Prayers for women everywhere create a spiritual network of empathy and understanding between Adventist women. Thousands of women (and men) gather to pray on this day. Although the essential purpose of the day is for prayer, the day can also provide women with an opportunity to strengthen their ties with other Christian women as they pray together.
Commenting further on the purpose of the day, Mrs. Sands noted, “Women from ATCU will join globally with our sisters as we examine varying facets of prayer. Prayer is the way we communicate with our heavenly Father. What a wonderful opportunity to unite in prayer and have an undeniable experience of joy. Prayer can provide the comfort we desire and some of us are so desperately seeking.”
All women (and men) throughout the union territory are encouraged to plan, organize, attend, and celebrate this prayer day. With a membership of 33,130, ATCU, which is headquartered in Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas, comprises four fields, namely, the Cayman Islands Conference, the North Bahamas Conference, the South Bahamas Conference, and the Turks and Caicos Islands Conference. In addition, Northern Caribbean University, which is located in Mandeville, Jamaica, is jointly owned and operated by ATCU and the Jamaica Union.