A Back to School Prayer

I know that many of us are already well into a new year. I’m about to begin my third full week. But, so much of the worries and stressors that I can tell are going to plague me this year only NOW began to show up.

You can’t always tell what the problem spots in your year are going to be on day one. You can’t even always tell after week one.

But now? Three weeks in? I can see them.

I can see the holes in the new curriculum that is harming student data. And I can see how accountable I am for that student data, but how strict my district is being about using the curriculum ‘to fidelity’.

I can see the student personalities better, and I can see which students need to be enriched, which ones needs to be remediated, and who needs me to foster a positive relationship with them longer than some of the others.

I can see the parent relationships I will need to work hard to foster, because something about their prior school experience has broken their trust…and they may not trust me yet.

I can see the coworker dynamics that are tense or awkward. I can see the ones that are already going well, but not everyone is feeling the same comfort levels with everything.

It’s a lot. It’s always a lot.

So, as we embark on a new school year, I have a back to school prayer that I am going to be working through regularly. I thought I’d write it down to share with you, too.

First, think back to school years in the past. What were some of the most difficult aspects of those years? A student/parent/teammate/admin/curriculum situation that felt at the time like it may break you. Have there been instances in years past that you thought would be the thing that pushed you out the door?

Or maybe you’re a first year teacher, and you don’t have any prior experience to pull from. Think back to moments in your personal life that felt like they would stop you from moving forward.

But they didn’t, did they? You’re here. You’re teaching. You made it through each of those moments.

Picture those moments and thank God for bringing you through them. Take time to reflect on where God’s hand was in those tough moments. That parent who was vehemently against you? How did that work out? That student who you could not motivate? What happened? That admin who pushed and pushed…how did you make it through?

Praise God for what He’s done for you.

Dear God,

Thank you for the times that you guided me through difficult moments in my life and career to get me to where I am now. I can see how you protected me and led me through those moments. I can see how you kept my career and my mental health in tact, even when I felt like it was too difficult to keep moving forward. I trust that you did that for a purpose. I believe that I am teaching this year to serve You through my work.

Now, take a minute to meditate on the things bringing you those same feelings of stress and angst this year.

Turn them over to God and ask Him to work through you, once again.

In the same way that You brought me through those tough moments, I will look to You to get me through this school year. Please bless (insert names, situations, relationships here). Please use me as a tool to glorify You with my words and my actions. Guide me through the difficult conversations and help me to foster positive relationships that will benefit my students and help me grow as a teacher.

I trust that you know what is best for both me and the people you have brought into my life this school year. I will trust that any difficult relationship or situation I find myself in can be used for a greater purpose. I will look to you to know what to do.

Amen.

I will be clinging to this cycle this year when I feel overwhelmed. If I feel like I’m in a situation that feels too big to conquer on my own, I will remember that I am not, in fact, on my own. I will thank God for the times He led me through stressors of past school years. Then, I will turn my new stressors over to Him and ask for the guidance that I need to make it through. Rinse and repeat, all year long.

Happy Sunday, everyone. I hope you each have a wonderful start to your school year!