INTRODUCTION TO PRAYER:

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3 INTRODUCTION TO PRAYER: Prayer is one of the ways by which we communicate with God. When we pray we are exercising our faith and trust in God. We are trusting him to hear and answer our prayers. Through the great Apostle Paul, God instructs us to pray without ceasing. Often times prayer is viewed only as something that is done in church, during a crisis or before a meal. Prayer is much more than we think. Prayer is about connecting with God through heart-felt conversation and dialogue. It is about being transparent, real, honest and taking the time to listen and hear. God uses prayer to guide, direct and pursue his children. Ask yourself this question: Is my prayer life what it should be? Consider these passages that give us some great insights about prayer: Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. (MATTHEW 6:9-13) Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (PHILIPPIANS 4:6)

4 Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving. (COLOSSIANS 4:2) Pray without ceasing. (1 THESSALONIANS 5:17) I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. (1 TIMOTHY 2:8) HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE: This 30 day prayer guide is intended to serve as an outlet and provide an avenue for you to fulfill the scriptural call to ceaseless prayer.this particular prayer guide will focus our attention on four topics that will be broken down weekly (School Staff, Fellows Students, Parents and The Church). As you pray, be sure to pray for the corresponding day. Make these prayers your own. With each topic of prayer there is included a weekly challenge. Our hope is that your prayer life will be defined by a life that continuously and consistently seeks the Lord through daily conversation. While this prayer guide is only 30 days long our hope is that you will continue to use it each month so that over the course of the school year you will have prayed several times over. May God bless you as you continue to seek him in all you do.

5 PRAY! (DAYS 1-7) This week you will be praying for your school staff. Teachers, coaches and school administrators don t often get the respect they deserve. A teacher s or coach s identity is, often times, determined by a one hour session five times a week. It is often forgotten that teachers are people just like you. And just like you, they have their own issues, their own problems and their own lives to lead outside of the classroom. Verse of the Week: Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. (Romans 13:1) Weekly Challenge: Look for opportunities this week to honor your teachers as the authority God has placed in your life and show them the love of Jesus. Day 1: Pray for the home life of your teachers and coaches. Take a moment to remember that your teachers are people who

6 come from all walks of life. Many come from divorced homes or have other family issues. Many of them may be struggling in their marriages or with their own children. Some may struggle with feelings of inadequacy and selfhate. Pray for your teachers to feel valued not only in school but outside of school as well. Day 2: Pray for Peace. Teachers and Coaches often experience a higher degree of pressure for you to win or succeed more than you do for yourself. Their very jobs often depend on the success of the team, the program or class they are overseeing. Pray for them to experience God s peace, and comfort as they run practices and teach class. Day 3: Pray for teachers and coaches who help with extracurricular activities. Many times your teachers and coaches help with extracurricular activities as a volunteer and will not get paid. They do these things because they care for their students. Take time to thank God for your their willingness to serve.

7 Day 4: Pray for your own behavior. Sometimes things happen in class or practice that can frustrate you and your teachers. Pray for yourself to behave in a way that is acceptable of a child of God. Pray that by your attitude of submission a teacher can be reached and touched by your obedient spirit. Day 5: Pray for your administration. The administration at your school is what keeps the school running. Without them the school would cease to function. They play an integral role in the school and it is often a very thankless job. Pray that you and fellow students will be able to show appreciation to your administration. Day 6: Pray for the teacher that stays late after school every day. There are teachers and coaches, alike, who stay later than is required each and every day just to help students. Instead of going home to their families or going home to relax they stay there with you. Pray for energy, strength, and motivation for those teachers.

8 Day 7: Pray for patience. Both the students and the teachers can get frustrated with each other pretty quickly. Today pray for God to give you, your teachers and coaches patience.

9 PRAY! (DAYS 8-14) The teenage years provide some of the most anticipating and exciting times in life. Yet, being a teenager can also bring you face to face with some of the darker moments in life like divorce, drugs, alcohol, bullying, peer-pressure and so much more. Knowing the daunting challenges that come with the territory of teenage-hood, take time this week to pray for your fellow students. Verse of the Week: Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. (John 15:13) Weekly Challenge: Look for opportunities to reach out to a fellow student. Invite them to sit with you at lunch or simply share a warm smile and a listening ear. The smallest of gestures can have the biggest impact. Day 8: Pray for the parents of your fellow students. Every year countless students deal with the pain and pressure that

10 comes with witnessing the break-up of their parent s marriage. Pray that their parents will stay true to their wedding vows and form a loving bond that is rooted in Jesus Christ. Day 9: Pray for students who are having a difficult time with school life. Pray for words of kindness and compassion to be poured upon them by other Christians. Pray that other Christians would, lovingly, reach out to them through various Christ-like acts. Day 10: Pray for students involved in the clubs, organizations and athletic activities of your school. Pray that they would be kept safe during times of travel and pray that they would represent their school, community and family well. Day 11: Pray for students with special needs. Special need students often go unnoticed and neglected by their peers. Pray that opportunities would arise to honor them and establish relationships with them.

11 Day 12: Pray for the Christian students in your school to be leaders and examples. Pray that they would stand firm in their convictions and not be swayed by peer-pressure or temptation. Day 13: Pray for students to do well in their studies. Pray that they would make their education a priority and not be sidetracked by the drama of school life. Day 14: Pray for students to be open to the Gospel. The teenage years present the greatest opportunity for salvation.

12 PRAY! (DAYS 15-21) This week you will be praying for your parents. Praying for your parents is critical! God has entrusted your life and upbringing to your parents. Can you imagine the pressure your parents feel knowing this? They love you and want what is best for you! So this week pray for them! Verses of the Week: Honor your father and your mother, that you days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. (Exodus 20:12) Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother (this is the first commandment with a promise), that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land. (Ephesians 6:1-3) Weekly Challenge: Look for opportunities to serve your parents. Sit down and ask them how their day was, and then listen to them talk about what is going on in their lives. Remember your parents have lives. Your parents are people that have

13 emotions, dreams, and needs just like you do. Maybe sitting down and asking how they are will show them how much you love and appreciate them. (Note: If you don t already do this, it may be a little weird for your parents; and they might even think you are only doing this because you want something. If this is the case, show them this prayer guide and tell them you are trying to honor them and show your love and appreciation for them.) Day 15: Pray for your parents to have a chance to rest and recharge. Your parents do everything they can to make sure your family has food, clothes, shelter and all the other things your family needs. Pray that your parents have a chance to rest and recharge from all the things they do. Day 16: Pray for your parent s marriage/relationships. Pray that their marriage or relationships would be pleasing in the eyes of God. Pray that their marriage or relationship would be refreshing and healing in their lives. Pray that God would bless their marriage or relationship, and that God would strengthen and renew the love that brought them together.

14 Day 17: Pray for your parents relationship with God. Pray that God would give them the desire in their hearts to seek Him with ALL that they are. Pray that God would draw near to them and that your parents would feel the peace and joy that only God can bring. Day 18: Pray for your parent s stresses.your parents may have many things going on in their lives that cause them to stress and worry that you may never know about. Pray that your parents would give those stresses and worries over to God (Matthew 6:25-34). Day 19: Pray for your parent s friendships. Yes, your parents have friends too! Pray that your parents would have time to spend with their friends and that the friends they have will encourage them in their relationship with Jesus. Day 20: Pray for your parents place of work. Pray that God would be with them while they are at work. Pray that God would

15 help them to have a day where they are constantly reminded of how great God is and how He has provided that job for them. Pray that the other people they work with would see how Jesus is at work in their lives. Day 21: Today s prayer will be a little different. Today ask your parents what you can pray for them about and if you can when they share, ask them if you can pray for them out loud right then. If they say yes, then pray for them! If they say no then pray for them silently sometime throughout the day. (Realize that depending upon your relationship with your parents this could be really hard to do. If this is the case before you ask them, spend some time in prayer asking God to give you the courage to take this step today.)

16 PRAY! (DAYS 22-30) This week you will be praying for THE CHURCH. Pray for the church you attend, the other churches in your town or city, the other churches in the great State of Texas, the other churches across our country, and other churches across the world. Verse of the Week: And all who believed were together and had all things in common. (Acts 2:44) Weekly Challenge: Look for opportunities to encourage and get to know people from other churches. Ask students from other churches how you can pray for their church and youth ministry. Day 22: Pray for your church. Pray for your church to seek Christ in all things! Pray for all of the different ministries your church may be involved in.

17 Day 23: Pray for the other churches in your town/city. Try and pray for them by name. Pray that in all the other churches, God would be glorified. Pray that God would be moving in the hearts of those churches. Day 24: Pray for your Pastor, Music Minister, Youth Minister, Children s Minister, and all other leaders in your church. Pray that God would make them aware of the spiritual warfare going on around them. Pray that God would give them peace in their lives. Day 25: Pray for the leaders of the other churches in your town/city. Pray that God would work in some incredible ways through their church. Pray that God would receive all the glory. Day 26: Pray that God would unify the different churches in your community. Pray that God would unite the churches under the common understanding that God loves us, and God wants to use us to impact His world with His love!

18 Day 27: Pray that God would destroy the spirit of competition among the different churches in your community. Pray that God would destroy that idea and churches would unite together to praise and glorify Jesus! Day 28: Pray for churches across the entire state of Texas. Pray that God would work in mighty ways across our state. Pray that people would go to church out of their love for Christ and not out of duty. Day 29: Pray for churches across our entire country. Pray for them to show people the love of Jesus. Pray that the church leaders would seek The Lord above all other things. Day 30: Pray for churches across the entire world. Pray for persecuted churches to have courage and boldness as they worship in the midst of turmoil. Pray that God would be glorified through their suffering. Pray that the message of Jesus would be taken to all of the people groups that have never heard of Jesus.

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