As a new academic year begins, Matt Wan from Cross Connecting believes that families have a unique opportunity to serve their communities, support teachers and students, and shape the next generation through prayer
Praying for our schools has never been more important than it is today.
As parents, churches and youth leaders prepare for the start of another academic year, there is one statistic that should stop us in our tracks: more than 95% of young people are not engaged with a local church, yet 99% of them are in mainstream education. That’s not just a challenge, it’s an incredible opportunity.
For many of us, it’s easy to think that sharing the love of Jesus is what happens overseas or through organised church programmes. Yet one of the greatest opportunities in the country is sitting right in the middle of our communities. Every day, millions of children and young people gather in schools. They build friendships, ask questions about life, navigate challenges and search for meaning and identity. Schools are safe places where the next generation is being shaped, and where Christians have the unique opportunity to serve, support, and share hope.
if we want schools to flourish, and if we want Christian staff to be encouraged in their faith, then prayer must be our starting point
Across the UK, many churches are beginning to catch a fresh vision for engaging with their local schools. Whether through, assemblies, mentoring, Christian lunchtime clubs, or practical support, Christians are discovering new ways to serve the communities around them. At the heart of all of this is prayer.
Jesus’ words in Matthew 9:37-38 remain as true today as they were when he first spoke them: “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
If we want to see children and young people have opportunities to explore faith for themselves, if we want schools to flourish, and if we want Christian staff to be encouraged in their faith, then prayer must be our starting point.
The vision is simple: to see Christians across the UK unite in prayer for the schools in their cities, towns, and villages
Around 45,000 Christians work in education across the UK. Many of them are seeking to live out their identity as people of faith while serving in increasingly complex environments. We regularly hear from Christian teachers who want to respond well and appropriately when young people ask questions about faith, but who are unsure what they can or cannot say. Others are navigating challenging issues, heavy workloads, and growing pressures on the profession.
They need our prayer.
And there are many more who also need prayer too:
- School leaders need our prayer as they make difficult decisions for the wellbeing of their communities.
- Teachers and support staff need our prayer as they care for children facing a wide range of challenges.
- Children and young people need our prayer as they navigate questions around identity, mental health, relationships, life’s purpose, and questions of faith.
- Christian pupils need our prayer as they seek to live for Jesus among their peers at school.
If you’re a parent, it’s worth remembering that God has already placed you within a school community. Whether you stand at the school gate each day, volunteer at school events, know teachers personally, or simply receive regular updates from school, you are connected to a community that can benefit from your prayers.
Read more:
Serving Christ through serving your local school - The benefits of Christian parents becoming school governors
How a simple step of faith sparked a prayer community at school
Sometimes, we underestimate the significance of prayer, even what feels like small ones. A brief prayer in the car before drop-off. Praying for your child’s teacher by name. Taking a few minutes to pray for school leadership. Gathering with a couple of other Christian parents. These may seem like small acts, but prayer has always been one of the most powerful ways Christians can serve and support the communities around them.
That is why a growing number of Christian organisations are coming together for the National Day of Prayer for Schools on Wednesday 9 September.
The vision is simple: to see Christians across the UK unite in prayer for the schools in their cities, towns, and villages.
On this day, Christians will be gathering in many different ways. Some will join national online prayer gatherings. Others will meet in person to pray with fellow parents, teachers or church members. Some churches will organise times of corporate prayer, while others will prayer walk around local schools. Many families will simply pause during the day to pray for the schools and people they know.
As a new academic year begins, let’s commit ourselves afresh to praying for our schools as places that shape the next generation
What matters is not so much how we pray, but that we do pray.
If supporting your local school matters to you too, here are three simple ways to get involved:
1. Pray together
Join one of the national online prayer gatherings taking place during the day or gather with others locally. This could be a church prayer meeting, a group of Christian parents, a staff prayer group, or even at a church youth group. There is something powerful about uniting with others to pray for our schools.
2. Make use of the Prayer Resources
Throughout the day, a variety of prayer resources will be shared by various partner organisations on social media and online. These resources are designed to help you, your family, and your church to pray intentionally for schools, staff, and pupils.
3. Organise a Prayer Walk
Prayer walks are a simple yet powerful way to pray for your local school and community. Why not gather with a few others and walk around your local school while praying for the school? It’s a practical way of supporting our local schools.
Schools matter because children and young people matter. They are places of enormous opportunity, but also places facing significant challenges. As a new academic year begins, let’s commit ourselves afresh to praying for our schools as places that shape the next generation.
Wherever we are and whatever role we play, we can all be involved. Let’s come together on 9th September and pray for our schools.
To find out more about getting involved, prayer gathering information, or prayer resources, visit here.
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