Tag: Prayer

A Nation of Prayer Warriors

In 2 Chronicles 7:14 we read, “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” Much like the Israelites, our nation has turned from God. He has been banned from many places where we once invited Him to help us: as we taught the next generation in our schools, as our political leaders began discussions on how to best lead our nation, even for protection as athletes took to the field to play a game.

Sin is wreaking havoc on our nation. And while you may be thinking that you don’t have the power to change that, I believe we have a very powerful tool that we under utilize – the power of prayer.

Paul writes in Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” What if we took this passage to heart and truly became a nation of prayer warriors? Imagine the difference it would make in our own lives and in the world around us.

Then, let’s take that one step further. What if as a people we were focused in our prayer life? Praying specifically each month for God’s protection and blessing for a particular group in our nation. 

Attached to this post is a document containing 12 bookmarks, one for each month of the year. Each bookmark contains a scripture for each day of the month that can be prayed over that month’s focus group. The last two months include prayers of thanksgiving and prayers of praise for all that God has done for us. These scriptures can be handwritten in a prayer journal or incorporated into your daily prayer time.

Personally experiencing the power of prayer will change your life. When our son was airlifted to children’s hospital, it was humbling and overwhelming to hear from more people than I can count who were praying for us. People from all over the world. People we had never met. Those prayers carried us through a very difficult time.

You may be thinking that you simply don’t have long periods of time that you can set aside each day to talk to God. That is okay. There have been seasons in my life when my drive to work or the time I spent in the shower was the only time I had to myself all day. Regardless of where you are, you can talk to God and share with Him whatever is on your heart. 

The beautiful thing about prayer is that it is available to us all day every single day. And God loves to hear from us. Whether it be to ask for His help as we are walking into a difficult meeting or His wisdom as we are disciplining our children. He wants to be a part of our everyday lives. 

I hope you will keep track of the things you pray for. It is so powerful to see all the ways God is working in our lives. When I look back on the things I have prayed for, I can see how God’s answers have been exactly what I needed. No, He hasn’t always answered my prayers the way I wanted Him to. There have been times that He has protected me by saying no to what I thought I wanted. There have also been times that He has answered my prayers in ways greater than I could have ever imagined. 

God wants us – all of us! Let’s turn over every single part of our lives, entrust Him with our nation and watch as He works through us.

a-nation-of-prayer-warriors-bookmarksDownload

School is starting soon!

The start of a new school year is just around the corner! Some of you are jumping for joy and others are groaning with sadness. I feel you both! I am excited about fresh new beginnings, a routine, brainstorming with my colleagues and being with teenagers every day. I am a little sad that I will no longer be able to lounge around in my pj’s drinking my coffee until mid-morning while I decide what I am going to do for the day.

Someone asked me a few weeks ago how my summer was going. It has been one of the most relaxing I can remember. And then it dawned on me, this is the first summer in 22 years that I have not had a child at home. I have set my own schedule. I have chosen my own activities. It has been weird. It has been sad. It has been fun! 

I have already had the initial first-day-of school dream. I am sure there will be others. This one was crazy. By the way, I am a high school Spanish teacher. In the dream, my desk was in the hallway. It was already piled with papers to grade. I couldn’t figure out how to get into the grading program so I had no idea which level of Spanish I was teaching which hour. I knew that I didn’t have a first hour because the tardy bell rang and no one showed up. That meant I would definitely have second hour, but I had no idea how to prepare. Several coaches were hanging out around my desk talking to me. I couldn’t answer their questions. And, worst of all, I had forgotten to make the coffee.

Yes, even teachers still get the first day of school jitters. I have been doing this for 19 years, and I don’t think I have ever had a year that I didn’t struggle to fall asleep the night before school started! The first day of school is a big deal. 

I have 19 days before I head back. I still have a couple of rooms to de-clutter, a trip planned to see my grandma (we are celebrating her 90th birthday), some projects to complete and time carved out to spend with friends. 

I have 19 days to be in prayer. I hope that you will join me. 

  • For the administrators (both district and building) who are already working trying to fill positions that opened up last minute, finalize schedules, and prepare for the required in-service that teachers will be attending. 
  • For the technology department as they prep new equipment and try to keep up with the countless websites that need to be blocked to protect those precious minds that we are in charge of guiding. 
  • For the cafeteria managers and workers as they begin determining menus and ordering food. 
  • For the administrative assistants who wear a thousand different hats during the day and can juggle more tasks than is humanly possibly. 
  • For the counselors who are busy with paperwork and trying to stay on top of the latest research in mental health so they can be prepared for the vast needs of so many students. 
  • For the custodial staff who are preparing our buildings right now so that they will be ready when that first bell rings.
  • For the transportation department who maintain a fleet of buses and drive those precious kiddos to and from school. 
  • For the teachers as they create new activities, sit through in-service, prepare their classrooms and try to find ways to reach those who are so difficult to reach.

And, for the students. They are all coming with different needs, different perspectives, different socioeconomic statuses, different learning styles, different attitudes. Some make friends easily, some can dress cool without too much effort. Others are struggling to find a place where they fit and will be choosing paths that will set their course for many years. 

There are so many moving pieces in a school. So many variables due to the many personalities, beliefs and ideas of so many people working towards one goal. That 19 days doesn’t seem long enough! It’s a lot to pray over. 

For me, personally, I want to be a light that points others to Jesus. I want to be different and do the unexpected when it comes to showing grace, mercy and forgiveness. I want to be like Jesus. 

We are all human. We make mistakes as we try to educate and guide the youth in our charge. What an opportunity we have to show them how we can also apologize and learn from our mistakes. We will shape them. It is exciting and scary! It is a huge blessing and a huge responsibility. Please lift us up in prayer as we make thousands of decisions each day and try so diligently to make the right ones.