The Coshocton County Beacon August 26, 2020 | Page 17

August 26, 2020 The Beacon • 17
Community prays together as children head back to school
Rev. Matt Anderson prays for the teachers in the community.
By Tara Gracyk
On Aug. 16 the Coshocton
Ministerial Association
held a community prayer for
Coshocton, Ridgewood and
River View schools at the
court square in Coshocton.
This was the third year the
ministerial association held
the back-to-school prayer
meeting.
Some of the pastors, reverends
and ministers in the
area decided a few years ago
to put aside doctrinal differences
and join together
to focus on the needs of the
people in the community and
the needs of their congregations.
Accordingly, they have
tried to meet once a month
to do a praise and worship
service that is open to the
community, as well as hold
community prayers such as
the back-to-school one.
“Going back to school
is probably the single-most
important thing that’s happening
this fall, and we
want to be in prayer about
this,” said Joe Sanders, pastor
of First Baptist Church.
The night of prayer
included worship led by
Sanders and Bryan Kittner,
pastor of Emmanuel Lutheran
Church. Worship took
place throughout the event.
Kittner led the prayer for
school administrators.
Next, Mike Jansen, pastor
of Coshocton Christian
Tabernacle, prayed for the
school staff.
West Lafayette United
Methodist Rev. Matt Anderson
then prayed for the teachers,
followed by Sanders,
who prayed for the parents.
Finally, Cindy and Larry
Massie, pastors at Solid
Rock Foursquare Church,
prayed for the students.
“It is a privilege to pray,
to come before the Lord
and to lay everything down
at the foot of the cross,”
Anderson said.
“We know these are
challenging times when
our schools and those who
are responsible for leadership
are facing an amazing
responsibility and challenge,
and we know that
parents and children are
facing, also, a very trying
time as they’re moving into
this time of uncertainty of
what it’s going to mean to be
in school together,” Kittner
said as the event began.
As Kittner prayed for the
school administrators, he
asked God to give superintendents,
principals, guidance
counselors and curriculum
coordinators the gift
of leadership, to give them
guidance so they will know
what choices to make, and
Tara Gracyk
he prayed for God to give
them the gift of wisdom for
the school year.
Jansen, who was a high
school teacher for 20 years,
said he was blessed to be a
teacher and that the whole
school would fall apart if
it were not for the staff.
Therefore, he felt honored
to pray for school staff. As
he prayed, he asked God
to bless all staff (secretaries,
custodians, bus drivers,
kitchen staff and more) with
discernment and knowledge
and that God would
help everyone stay safe and
sound.
Anderson began by
thanking the teachers for
their ingenuity in transforming
their classrooms
to virtual classrooms in
a matter of days this past
spring when COVID hit
- WEEKLY CROSSWORD -
ANSWERS
BF-00489965
and schools were forced to
switch to remote learning.
Anderson asked God to
help teachers to continue to
do their jobs, to go above
and beyond what they have
been called to do, and that
they would be able to uplift,
teach and guide the youth.
He asked for a supernatural
love to fill the teachers, a
love for their students, their
fellow faculty members,
their administrators and the
community. He prayed for
God to protect the teachers
and the teachers’ families
and loved ones.
Anderson prayed God
would bring teachers
peace, wisdom and guidance
throughout the school
year and that God would
open their eyes so they
are able to discern what
is going on with their students.
He further prayed
teachers this year would
have an extra sense of care
for others and that God
would allow them to be a
voice of calm and reason to
the students and that students
would be receptive
to their teaching.
Sanders prayed for parents,
especially single parents.
He said parents have
a hard task this year as they
are carrying heavy burdens
and are trying to deal
with everyday stressors and
problems and now have to
decide what to do with their
children. He prayed God
would help parents know
they are loved and cared for
by God and that the children
will know and feel loved
and cared for by their parents.
He asked God to guide
the words parents speak to
their kids and the actions
they make and that parents
would be able to pour out
unconditional love to their
children.
Sanders asked God
to give parents a special
blessing of wisdom and
knowledge so they would
know how to deal with circumstances
and that God
would make the parents
available to their children
every day.
Register ONLINE
Go to missjennifer.com
Over 60 classes available for ages 2 and up
Classes include: Ballet, Jazz, Hip Hop, Tumbling,
Pointe, Tap, Contemporary, Cheerleading,
Musical Theater, Ballroom and More!
Register by August 31st for only $10
Find us on Facebook and Instagram
740-622-3423
785 S. 2nd St. (Next to Rural King)
Similarly, the Massies
asked God would help the
children retain information
and not have difficulty with
schoolwork regardless of the
method of teaching. They
prayed for peace, for God’s
hand to be upon the children,
and for God to lead,
guide and direct the kids and
bless them. They asked God
to give the children sound
minds so they are not full of
fear, and they prayed against
stress. They also prayed and
asked God to minister love
to the children.
Anderson concluded
the meeting, letting everyone
know another backto-school
prayer meeting
will take place Sunday,
Aug. 30 at 6 p.m. at Burt
Park in West Lafayette. The
event will be a joint effort
from pastors of the West
Lafayette Ministerial Association,
and they will pray
specifically for Ridgewood
schools during the meeting.
This event is open to
the community, and all are
welcome to join.
Register Now for Fall Classes
CLASSES BEGIN SEPTEMBER 8TH