Blue Umbrella Official Blue Umbrella Winter 2018 Issue | Page 15

Calling All Students to
Mo n d a y Pr a yer
By: Sammy C.
I recently interviewed Mr. Bouwman ,
one of the Bible teachers here at AOA, about
our school's Monday Prayer online class.
1) What is Monday Prayer?
This is a gathering of AOA students in an
online class setting for the purpose of praying
for each other, our families, our fellow students,
our school, our churches and our communities.
2) When did these meetings start?
These online prayer meetings started in the
2010-2011 school year. We have met nearly
every Monday since - except when AOA is
closed for a holiday that is observed on
Monday. We also do not meet from about
mid-June to mid-August.
3) About how many students attend a
meeting?
On any given Monday, 12 to 15 students join
the meeting. At present, we have 65 students
registered, so many students join on weeks
they can, or when they wish to pray for
someone specific.
4) What is your favorite part about
Monday Prayer?
My favorite part of Monday Prayer is listening
as students pray for one another and adding
my "Amen!" I also enjoy hearing the various
accents in their voices and realizing that our
student body includes students from 40
countries as well as every state.
5) Have you seen a positive outcome
out of this prayer effort?
Oh, yes! There is the obvious reminder to all
who participate that we attend a Christian
school, and we can turn to Jesus to bring our
praise and to seek his help--just as He directs
us in the Bible. Additionally, students are
blessed as others in the class that day pray
specifically for them. From time to time, a
student will return to report an answer to prayer
raised in an earlier session.
6) What else can you tell me about
this class, and how can other students join
this online prayer group?
We begin at 3:30 and end at 4:00 p.m. Central
time. We spend the first 12-15 minutes sharing
items for prayer. If prayer requests are sent in
the chat box, I copy and paste those prayer
requests into the slides of the power point we
are using that day as either Praises or
Requests. Also, students may unmute
themselves to share an item audibly if they
prefer. Then we read a verse, or a few verses,
of Scripture in order to focus our thoughts on
our Lord. After that, those who wish to offer
prayers are invited to pray and we take turns
doing so. We usually close the class with a
reading of the Our Father.
AOA is a real Christian community, and
anyone who joins Monday Prayer will
experience this and will feel welcomed and
supported by his or her fellow students.
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