Lord God, Creator of all wisdom and truth, we lift up our prayers to you as summer winds down and many begin a new school year. Both our students and our teachers are coming through the most disruptive year in memory due to COVID-19. Help both groups negotiate the new “normal,” granting them patience and wisdom for the unexpected. Grant health and protection from illness, especially for those too young for a vaccine or with unique vulnerabilities.

We lift up the children who are beginning their formal education by entering Kindergarten. We pray that you will bless their educational journeys. Grant them a love of learning, positive growing experiences, good friends, and hearts for you.  Please protect them from harmful influences and help them feel your presence and guidance along the way. We pray especially for all who will be teaching these first-timers, whether in public school or private school or home school, that you grant them energy, creativity, competence, patience, and understanding.

We pray for an extra measure of grace for all students who are transitioning to a new school this fall. Grant these students the courage they need to make new friends, stretch beyond their comfort zones, and grow in their ability to face new challenges. We pray also for new teachers and teachers in new schools, that you might empower them to pursue their calling with excellence.

We pray, dear God, for all students with special needs and for those who teach them. Help these students to make progress, to feel cared for, and to be better understood by others. Grant that their teachers may feel appreciated as they respond to the specific needs and challenges of their students.

Lord, we also remember children around the world who due to poverty, war, slavery, abuse, addiction, neglect, and violence have no opportunity to pursue an education. Please grant a double portion of your spirit to all who labor in such places, who seek to change these conditions so that children everywhere might have the opportunity to learn and thrive.

O Lord, please be with those students who are nearing graduation; grant them growing clarity regarding their vocation and how you might use their developing gifts for the greater good of your kingdom. Where clarity is lacking, grant wise counselors, a mind at peace, and feet that follow wherever you lead.

O gracious Father, we also pray on behalf of students who are going off to college. We pray that your special grace be with first-year students leaving home for the first time. Grant them godly wisdom, Christ-like discernment, and a Spirit-led heart. Guide them as they pick majors, activities, and friends. Bless their professors with insight, skill, and compassion as they help their charges explore your incredible universe.

We lift up all these students and their teachers to you, O Heavenly Father, through the power of the Holy Spirit, and in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, Amen.

Andy Wall
Author: Andy Wall