"We honor and experience the divine presence of our children and teens as an integral part of our ministries.
We serve all God's family by applying Truth principles in the
spirit of love and joy."
PRAYER FOR OUR CHILDREN
By Diane Venzera
As with anything when we have the desire to create we turn to the Christ presence within us and connect to the universal power and presence of God.
With open hearts and minds we allow this power and presence within to guide our thoughts, inspire our dreams, and move us into action.
We recognize what precious gifts our children, youth and families are and know that they brighten the world with their faith and love.
We provide a safe and nurturing environment that allows that faith and love to unfold.
We draw to us all the resources, people and ideas needed
to bring this idea into manifestation.
We acknowledge God as our source and know that in co-creating
we bring these ministries into being.
For it is through the wonder and power of God that all things exist.
We give thanks that the way before us is bathed in light and we step
forward in faith knowing that through the power and presence of Jesus, the Christ, our way is made clear.
"Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them;
for it is to such as these that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs."
Matthew 19:14
The Youth Ministry programs in the Great Lakes Region are being held in unending prayer.
The "Pray It Forward" program is based on the idea of passing on a good deed from the movie, "Pay It Forward." In the movie a young man was challenged to "make a difference." He came up with the idea that if he did a good deed for 3 people, then asked them to do a good deed for 3 more people that good deeds would abound.
In this program we are going to use Prayer as our good deed. It will be a way to encourage our youth to pray daily and to focus on giving.
HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS:
My Part:
1. I am holding your youth programs and ministries in prayer.
2. You can e-mail me a prayer request whenever you would like to.
Your Part:
1. Know that prayer moves mountains.
2. Send me specific prayer requests if you have them.
3. Involve your Youth Ministry Program in the process (info to follow).
4. Choose 3 Ministries, groups, individuals, etc... and include them on your prayer list.
5. Send them a note to let them know you are praying with them and ask them to pray with 3 other groups. Send them this program if they are not familiar with it. You can have you kids create cards like the one above and include it
with the note.
Author Unknown:
"Do not be attached to the outcome of prayer. You simply spread the word of God and let the Holy Spirit do the rest.
We can speak something, but it only becomes something when the Holy Spirit moves within someone to make it
something. we do not know the workings of God. We never know the effect our words can have. We must see the
Divine workings of the Holy Spirit in ALL THINGS."
"So I tell you to believe that you have received the things you ask for in prayer, and God will give them to you."
Mark 11:24
Prayer Request
Created by Diane Venzera
This is a program we have been using in our church to help the children gain a greater understanding of the power of prayer and their part in it.
THE PROCESS:
1. Create a special prayer box and prayer slips for the children to use.
2. Have the prayer slips available during your pre-session time and all other times.
3. Display the prayer box in an easily accessible location.
4. During the Gathering Time of your program introduce the children to affirmative prayer. you can do this through
example or by encouragement.
5. Use a Bible quote based on the power of prayer to give the children a Biblical base. An easy way to find quotes is
to go to and type in the word you are looking for. The site will them give you a compete
listing.
6. Encourage the children to write or draw out their prayer requests and place them in the prayer box.
7. Each class then takes turns each week to bless the prayer box.
CHILDREN AS PRAYER LEADERS:
Each of our 4 classrooms have been assigned a week in the month to be our PRAYER LEADERS. After our Gathering Time, and we have broken into our individual classrooms, the class in charge brings the Prayer Box to a sacred area. It can be a prayer room, chapel or office, but it does need to have a speaker phone.
We share with the children that they have a sacred honor that Sunday, that they are in charge of praying for the requests in the box. We talk a little bit about AFFIRMATIVE prayer and then we say a short prayer over the Prayer Box. I then ask them if they have any prayer requests. Based on what they say, we agree on a Prayer topic.
We then explain that SILENT UNITY is a place that prays 24 hours a day and we can call them anytime we want to. They will ask for our prayer requests and then will pray with us. They will continue to pray with us for 30 days.
We then make a group call to Silent Unity, 1-816-969-2000, and use the speaker phone so all can hear. The teacher introduces themselves and the class and shares that we are learning about prayer and that we have a request. We share the one that we agreed on previously. We request a letter to be sent to our class and when it comes we share it with the class and post it in the room.
We make a Silent Unity call every Sunday. The children are very receptive to this and are willing to pray and share their prayers. We use this program with children ages K to Y.O.U.
You can include your "PRAY IT FORWARD" churches in your Prayer Box and really get the children involved in the process. You can even ask them to choose 3 people of their own to pray with.
AS THE PRAYER CONSCIOUSNESS RISES:
The next steps would be to encourage your children to become comfortable with praying out loud and taking more of a leadership role in the process.
To begin:
1. Invite a member of your congregation's Prayer Team to come in and lead the prayer instead of calling Silent Unity. This will give the children an example to follow.
2. Once the children are comfortable with this ask one of them to volunteer to lead the prayer. This way the whole
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1. I am holding your youth programs and ministries in prayer.
