Cultivating a Culture of Prayer

“Have you prayed yet?” This simple yet profound question has been displayed on a chalkboard in my room for the past semester after hearing a sermon on Acts 4. The chapter opens with Peter and John before the council because of their boldness in proclaiming the resurrection. Finding no way to punish them, the council threatened them to speak no more of this name and released them. Upon hearing the news, the believers immediately gathered and “lifted their voices together to God,” (Acts 4:24),[1] praying that they would continue to speak the word of God with boldness, and that the hand of God would continue to heal and perform signs and wonders that proclaimed His glory.

Acts 4:32 recounts that “Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul” and “they had everything in common.” They were willing to sacrifice to see God’s work come about, to proclaim the resurrection! Great power and great grace were upon them. The power of the Gospel united them, and prayer sustained them through their lives together. There was a culture of prayer.

Although there are many obvious differences between the group of believers seen in Acts 4 and a classroom of students in a school building today, the Bible is clear that God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow (Hebrews 13:8) and that “he hears the prayer of the righteous” (Proverbs 15:29). The Bible is filled with prayers of despair, delight, and everything in between, from which we can learn. We, as teachers, should seek to cultivate a culture of prayer in our classrooms. However, we must first examine our own hearts. Ponder the answers to the following reflection questions.

• Is prayer a natural response to any situation you encounter?
• What prevents you from praying?
• What prompts you to pray?
• What dominates your prayers?
• Who do you pray with?
• Who do you pray for?
• Whose prayers do you model?
• Who imitates your prayers (because they have heard you pray)?
• Prayer exposes where trust lies. Where is yours placed?
• Do you recognize the power and need for prayer in your own life?

Acts 4 is one example of how early believers were united in their prayer for boldness and the power of prayer. Be encouraged by the following scriptures that exhort us to pray, and may I humbly encourage you to read them in their full context.

• “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:43-45).
• “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:26).
• “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” (Romans 12:12).
• “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak” (Ephesians 6:18-20).
• “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).
• “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working” (James 5:13-16).

With this sampling of scriptures setting the focus, let’s now look at practical suggestions for creating a culture of prayer. The following practices can be implemented by any teacher, but if the teacher is not personally committed to prayer, the result is likely to be a lifeless routine or the development of a culture that is antithetical to prayer and to God. When the teacher sees prayer as essential and central to his or her own life, students will not see it simply as the act that occurs to begin Bible class, but rather part of the ethos of their classroom culture.

Practical suggestions:

• Ask how you can be praying for your students, actually stop and pray, and then provide time for students to share updates. Yes, make it a routine but one completed with sincerity.
• Encourage students to pray orally in front of each other (you may have to start with partners).
• Provide time for students to pray individually through various methods such as a prayer journal or drawing. Encourage creativity!
• Participate in a day of prayer through ACSI or a local organization. Involve the whole school to encourage a culture of prayer among all students.
• Pray through scripture or other written prayers from resources such as The Common Book of Prayer or The Valley of Vision.

Prayer unites and emboldens and can be motivated by pain or joy, request or thanksgiving. But above all, prayer is an essential spiritual discipline that we are called to devote ourselves to as the people of God. Even in a classroom where public prayer is not permitted, a teacher devoted to prayer in his or her own life will see the Spirit move in the classroom. So we return to the opening question, “Have you prayed yet?”

Laura Ames taught for five years in South America where she enjoyed the wonder of preschoolers and learned along with her students while developing a gospel-centered dual language kindergarten curriculum. This curriculum became the capstone for her recently completed MAEd. Laura enjoys adventuring in nature wherever she finds herself and is looking forward to teaching again in South America!