Teaching Students to Pray

Christian educators have the great privilege of teaching students to pray in the classroom. It is heartbreaking when I hear high-school students who have grown up attending Christian schools tell me, “Ummm… I don’t really know how to pray.” We have around 180 opportunities to explain, model, and encourage our students in prayer during a school-year. Since God is a real Person who hears and loves us, it is imperative that we develop our students’ ability and desire to pray. Here is a simple outline of how to start.

First, offer a strong definition of prayer. Give students a target.

John Bunyan, the famed author of Pilgrim’s Progress, offered one of the best definitions in I Will Pray in the Spirit (1662). He said,

“Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to the will of God.”

Note that prayer is 1) sincere (you mean it), 2) sensible (you understand it), 3) affectionate/passionate (attached to the emotions), 4) Trinitarian (to God through Christ by the Spirit), 5) scriptural (attached directly to God’s Word as written), 6) for the church (not only self-focused), and 7) submitting (desiring God’s will in all things).

During a 9-week span, it would not be difficult to focus on one of these items for a week at a time and then review them. Many students have been taught that prayer is “simply talking to God,” and, while that is true, we must explain how we should go about talking with God.

Second, model prayer for the students.

It is one thing to talk about something, but another to demonstrate it. Think about the difference between explaining a slam-dunk to a student and having someone demonstrate it. It is important for them to see what prayer looks like in real life.

It might be wise to take a moment to explain one element of Bunyan’s definition and then to show it. For example, you could tell them, “It is important that we don’t pray out of a dead ritual or school tradition. In the Bible, God says that He hates it when we do religious things, but don’t really care about Him. That is why our prayers need to be sincere. So, as I pray, I am going to be real with God and ask Him to help us focus and learn today so that we can understand a little bit more about how great He is through [math/science/reading/etc.]…” At at point, you would model a short and clear prayer to show the students how to do this.

Third, encourage students to pray and encourage them when they pray.

Don’t let your students be spectators only. If they are believers, they are not just students—they are your brothers and sisters in Christ. Give them opportunities to speak to God in your class. Show them that prayer is not an adults-only activity. And when they do pray, make sure to build them up. Thank them. Make biblical connections to what they prayed. Help them develop a scriptural framework. Overall, try to create a pro-prayer culture in your class.

So how does this discussion on prayer relate to biblical integration? Here are a few answers:

• If we really believe in the God of the Bible, we will pray to Him.
• If what we learn about God in our classes (that He is involved, present, active, powerful, caring, wise, etc.) is true, we should pray to Him.
• Christianity is not just knowing about God, but knowing Him personally. So speaking to Him in prayer is important for our relationship.
• If we never speak to God, it may show that we think He is not listening, not important enough to talk with, or not real.
• Most importantly, God listens and responds to our prayers. Therefore, biblical integrators should be seeking God regularly in prayer.