Since its beginning in the 1990-1991 school year, Christian high school students have gathered in small groups around the flag poles on their campuses to offer prayers for their fellow students and their schools on the fourth Wednesday of September. Initially, See You at the Pole (SYATP) was organized in response to a challenge given to students at a DiscipleNow weekend in Burleson, Texas. (See the article by Diane Chandler written for the Baptist Press and posted on SRN News, “3 Million Students Pray for Their Schools.”)
Burdened hearts for fellow students, as well as word of mouth, encouragement by youth pastors and the advent of the World Wide Web has turned that first event, over the intervening years, into a global day of student prayer. According to Chandler, “Organizers say the movement draws more than 3 million students to prayer at schools in all 50 states and 20 other countries” (SRN News).
Academy students share this burden for high school students in their communities even though they may not be daily on those community school campuses. When opportunity was given on September 28 to academy students to log in to an online, all-day, prayer event, 60 students participated. Some logged in from other countries such as Brazil, Canada, France, and Thailand. At least 12 states in the U.S. were represented including North Carolina, Ohio, Wisconsin, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, New York, Mississippi, Texas, Kentucky, Florida, and Iowa. All converged to pray.
And pray, they did. Prayers were offered for
- The lost, that they would hear the Gospel and come to understand salvation by grace through faith in Jesus.
- Teachers and students to be freed from evolution-only propaganda
- Students dealing with unplanned teen pregnancies
- Students intimidated by bullying and gang recruiting
- Students who have dropped out of school or are considering doing so
- Students whose parents are in the military and serving in harm’s way
- Revival in the United States and in France
- The lost in Thailand
- The tensions and fighting between North and South Korea
- U.S. troops in Afghanistan and the other people there
- God to raise up a new generation of young believers to fight for the truth
- Japanese people and students struggling to recover from the earthquake and the tsunami
- The homeless and those in poverty, and underfunded and understaffed schools
- Students and children suffering harm from child abuse and sex trafficking
- Students trapped by drug abuse and schools suffering from drug trafficking
- Marriages to be saved and families spared from the suffering divorce brings
- Families and students who have suffered because of lost jobs and lost homes
- Families and students that have had to evacuate due to wildfires or floods, or who lost their schools due to tornadoes or earthquakes
- Government officials to preserve parental rights to homeschool their children
- The safety and protection of police, firemen and other first responders
- Celebrities to serve Christ and use their influence for his kingdom and glory
- The body of Christ to stay true to the Word of God
- Christian outreach efforts like Agenda 21 to have far reaching impact
Prayers were also offered for our own school, Ignite Christian Academy. We prayed for our academy leadership, faculty, staff, and our students. We prayed for specific needs and situations of family members and relatives. We prayed that “God would help each of us to recognize the talents and abilities he has given us . . . and that we would use those abilities for his glory.” We prayed that “God would move us to pray . . . even when it is not a special day of prayer,” and we prayed that “we would represent Christ well to the world around us.”
Is it difficult to fill eight and one half hours with petitions and praise? Not at all! The day flew by, and at 4:23 p.m. CST, Sofia said it best, “We’re closing? What? Can we do this again, please?” I’m certain that we will. Thanks to all who participated in our SYATP day of prayer for students, schools and education policy makers all around the world.