Thank you for joining with us to pray for the Dallas Metroplex today, July 7 and throughout the month of July.
JULY 2013 PRAYER GUIDE
“Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well,
for it is your life.” Proverbs 4:13
According to the 2013 Kids Count study by the Annie E. Casey
Foundation, Texas ranks 30th among U.S. states for economic well-being, 36th in
child healthcare, 48th in families and communities and
31st in education.
“Children aren’t faring very well in our community and
across Texas. What we see is kids are
really suffering before they really get their shot at life,” “This is something
that collectively we all should be concerned about. Children of all circumstances make up our
future.”
Daphne Barlow Stigliano,
President of the Boys & Girls Clubs
of Greater Fort Worth
This month AP4C is highlighting education. It is our intention for believers from all
ethnic, socio-economic and denominational backgrounds to unite in prayer and
use this guide as a catalyst for our on-going prayer and the advancement of
Christ’s Kingdom.
Let these Scriptures and your time with God renew your heart
for our Metroplex. Please prepare your
heart before you begin to pray through the AP4C categories.
SALVATION
Start children off the way they should go, and even when
they are old they will not turn from it.”
Proverbs 22:6
“Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to
abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good
lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may
see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:11-12
Thank the Lord for the Christian students, administrators,
teachers and staff He has placed within our schools.
Pray for God to open the door for the Gospel to be
proclaimed on our school campuses in the context of genuine personal
relationships between students, teachers, administrators, parents, and
volunteers.
Pray for God to touch the hearts of those who don’t know Him
so they can respond to God’s love and free gift of salvation through Jesus.
DISCIPLESHIP
And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk
humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8
“Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily
food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does
nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by
itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” James 2:15-17
Pray that Christian teachers and administrators will be
wise, godly, caring individuals who will have a powerful impact within their
schools. Pray for wisdom and guidance as
they navigate topics such as world religion, literature, science, and
history. Help them watch for opportunities
to teach truth and dispel lies.
Pray for Christian students to be powerful witnesses for
Christ even when that’s difficult. Pray for them to hunger after truth and
righteousness and learn how to think through the lens of God’s Word.
Ask the Lord to open all our eyes to see injustice and
oppression and to move us to advocate and volunteer. Pray for the Church to respond with urgency
to the education needs within the Metroplex.
Pray that God will raise up faithful intercessors to pray for students,
parents, teachers and administrators on an on-going basis.
COMMUNITY
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled
is a tree of life.” Proverbs 12:12
“Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your
servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name.
Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this
man.” Nehemiah 1:11
Pray that parents would be genuinely interested in their
children’s education; that they would take an active role in their children’s
lives; and that they would respect, support, and cooperate with teachers.
Pray that students will be academically and emotionally
prepared for college, the military, and/or a living-wage job when they graduate
becoming productive members of our communities.
Pray for God to watch over our schools and to keep all
students, staff, family, and volunteers safe from harm.
Pray that God will grant favor to the Church and open the
hearts of all district and school administration, allowing us access to serve
every public school. Praise the Lord for opening most of our local districts.
TRANSFORMATION
“The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.
On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish
arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of
God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2
Corinthians 10:4-5
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and
deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual
forces of this world rather than on Christ.” Colossians 2:8
Pray for God to raise up devoted teachers and principals who
will serve as positive role models for our students. Pray for wisdom for them
as they make efforts to improve the schools and endurance as they face daily
trials.
Pray for emotional and physical protection for the
superintendents, principals, and other administrators of our school districts
as they make tough hiring and firing decisions.
Pray for curriculum creators and textbook writers to be
guided by the Spirit of Truth as they develop future educational materials.
Pray for the state of education in our country.
THE STATE OF EDUCATION
Every year, 5,000 students in Dallas County fail to
graduate.
Only 9% of DISD students who do graduate are college-ready.
By 3rd grade, only 40% of Dallas County students are reading
at a level on track for college. By 4th
grade, that number has already dropped to closer to 30%. Not reading at grade level by the 3rd grade
is a strong indicator of future drop-outs, poverty and incarceration.
There is an overall low level and a consistently wide gap
between the testing achievement for literacy between students who are
economically disadvantaged compared with students who are not.
There are over 460,000 K-12 children in Dallas County. 91% of them go to public schools. 87% of DISD families are eligible for
government benefits.
Think this is limited to Dallas County? There are 24 campuses in Plano ISD alone
attended by mostly low-income children.
“In these kids eyes, going to college is as achievable as
going to the moon.”
Byron Sanders, Dallas Education Foundation
Should a child’s future success be limited by their parents’
income? With the right opportunities,
they can accomplish as much as any other.
What additional obstacles do children in low-income families
have outside of the classroom?
Their families typically move more often.
Children in many low-income communities across the Metroplex
don’t have access to healthy, affordable food outside of school. Lack of a balanced breakfast makes it harder
to pay attention and to think.
To make ends meet, parents often have to work long hours
sometimes leaving the children unsupervised after school.
Poverty is stressful—not only for the adults but also for
the children.
What can the Church do?
Over 160 church-school partnerships have been identified
across Greater Dallas. The goal is for
every low-income school to eventually have at least one church partner.
Hundreds of cross-trained tutors/mentors are needed at the
beginning of the school year and the 2nd semester. Strengthening and empowering low-income
families and communities—especially through churches located in those
communities—will create homes and neighborhoods more conducive to learning.
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