By Alvin Lansana Kargbo
The Pentecostal Fellowship of Sierra Leone (PFSL) observed its Annual National Day of Prayer and Fasting on Saturday, 31 January 2026 at the Freetown City Council Hall in Freetown, bringing together church leaders, ministers and worshippers in a coordinated national exercise of prayer, fasting and intercession for the country.
According to the Pentecostal Fellowship of Sierra Leone, the observance is aimed at mobilizing the Christian community to collectively seek divine intervention for Sierra Leone through prayer and fasting, while promoting national repentance, moral renewal, unity and peaceful coexistence. And also serves as a platform for interceding for national leadership, democratic governance, security and sustainable development, particularly at critical moments in the country’s socio-political life.
Delivering the welcome address, Bishop David Kamara highlighted the importance of collective prayer in addressing Sierra Leone’s challenges and calling on the Church to remain steadfast in seeking divine guidance for the nation.
Speaking in an interview, the President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Sierra Leone, Bishop Akintayo Sam Jolly, said the observance is biblically grounded, citing Joel 1:14 and 2:15 as a call to a solemn assembly where priests and the people seek God’s mercy, healing and restoration. He explained that the Fellowship deliberately convenes the programme every January to commit Sierra Leone to God at the start of each year.
According to Bishop Akintayo Sam Jolly, the central focus of the prayers was national healing, peace, prosperity and righteousness. He noted that special attention was given to the country’s current electoral season, with prayers offered for credible leadership, peaceful elections and national security amid rising incidents of violence and bloodshed. He also stressed that, while innocent blood continues to “cry out,” the Church is consistently appealing to the redemptive power of the blood of Jesus on behalf of the nation.
The PFSL President disclosed that participation in the National Day of Prayer and Fasting continues to grow nationwide, with churches from different denominations converging in Freetown while similar prayer programmes were held simultaneously in almost all districts across Sierra Leone. He attributed the increasing acceptance to a growing understanding among believers that intercession, rather than constant criticism, is essential for national transformation.
Addressing concerns over the persistence of national challenges despite the annual prayers, Bishop Akintayo Sam Jolly maintained that prayer must be sustained and not abandoned. He likened prayer to continuous medication for a chronic condition, warning that discontinuity only worsens the situation. Referencing 2 Chronicles 7:14, he emphasized humility, repentance and seeking God’s face as prerequisites for national healing, while Isaiah 58, he said, provides guidance on fasting that is accompanied by genuine repentance and righteous living. He urged believers to remain consistent, noting that many breakthroughs in history came only after prolonged seasons of intercession.
The remainder of the event featured coordinated prayer sessions, exhortations, prophetic declarations and worship, led by senior clergy from across the country. The prayers addressed thanksgiving, repentance, national leadership, elections, security, social challenges, development, spiritual revival and national unity, culminating in worship by a mass choir and a closing prayer.
The event stands as a testament to the nation’s enduring faith, collective responsibility and unwavering hope, reaffirming the role of prayer, unity and moral leadership in shaping Sierra Leone’s peace, stability and future development.
