Awaken
As I write this, I think back to September 11, 2001.
I remember exactly where I was that day, and what I was doing on the campus of
Mississippi College. I witnessed that morning on TV such evil as I had never
before seen in my young life.
Today, our world is not less evil. And the evil in
our world is more insidiously imbedded into our American culture than we
realize. The enemy is not Islam. The enemy is sin, and this enemy is thriving
in our local schools. But I have hope. I am awakened to the knowledge that Jesus
has not left our schools, no matter what school administrators can or cannot
do. I know this, because I talk to students who are bringing Christ and His
love with them to class every day. They are frustrated by the sin they see in
their schools, and they are passionate about seeing Christ change their entire
school. And I, too, believe that He can do just that!
Paul, who was given a special task to deliver
Christ's good news to all non-Jews, wrote a letter to the church in Ephesus,
declaring to them that he was praying that God would help them see that His
love was broader and longer and higher and deeper than what was first believed,
and it included not merely the Jews but also the entire world. This
God-breathed passion of Paul's sent him to his knees. We, too, can find
ourselves on our knees, begging God to change our schools through an upcoming
event called See You At The Pole. Their theme for this year is
"Awaken," and they emphasize the passage I just described, Ephesians 3:14-21.
Paul tells the Ephesians he is praying for them, and
finishes with the following words:
These words are why I believe that Christ can change
our schools and our world. (1)He can do more than our dreams can imagine. In
fact, he has done just that time and again! (2)He deserves glory for making
available forgiveness and love to every single student, every single day. (3)Also,
Christ deserves glory year after year for moving in his people. I attended See
You At The Pole as a high school student. Years later, I am encouraging our
high school students to do the same!
But for change to occur, a first step is necessary,
which is prayer. And See You At The Pole could provide that step. However, it
is possible for SYATP to be done in a way that does not take that first step at
all.
Last year, I and other youth workers were not
satisfied that our students cried out to God for Him to change them and change
their schools. I thought instead that most of the schools in our town staged an
event with songs and a verse or two and a prayer. But the purpose of this event
when it began two decades ago was not to produce an event. It was to PRAY! To
cry out that God would save them, and would save their school! I am urging that
students not organize a shortened worship service at their flagpoles, but to
organize a time to truly pray.
Adults, please pray for the students all over this
big, sin-filled world who will be praying at the flagpole of their respective
school on Wednesday, September 26, 2012. Pray that God will prick hearts about
the enemy of sin, and that His glory will shine in the cries of His people that
day!
Thank you for your hopeful prayers.
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