Education is the process of acquiring general knowledge, developing reasoning and judgment abilities, and preparing oneself or others intellectually for a mature life. It involves imparting or acquiring specific knowledge or skills that may generally be required for the successful engagement of a profession.

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Education is effective when the educational process is based upon qualified values, when it is accessible across the socio-economic range of a given community, and when it demonstrates consistent qualified measurable success in the accomplishment of its stated purpose. 

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Because public education is funded by taxation under government oversight, education systems historically reflect the prevailing opinion of elected officials and the culture that elected them. Accordingly, under government oversight, public education was first bent away from poor and non-Anglo communities. That bend has been remedied to a point. Currently, public education, dependent on tax funding, is bending away from its qualified value basis leaving the education process and the students influenced by it increasingly estranged from proven ideals of healthy community.

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Attainment of effective education requires prayer attention to three arenas: (1) the culture of communities that vote to elect officials; (2) the elected officials and their personally held values; and (3) appointed officials with direct responsibility for the formation, design, and operation of the education system. It is a complex systemic issue.

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Therefore, we pray from our position of obedience for good government to meet its responsibility to honor God; to meet its responsibility to protect the welfare of those under its administration; and to persistently drive effective education that is based upon responsibility to God, responsibility for others, and voluntary sacrifice for greater good. 

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Our prayer is focused on the government officials with direct responsibility to shape the educational outcome -- School Board members, system administrators, local school principals, and teaching faculty.  Our prayer for these gifted men and women seeks God's infusion of His Spirit into the decisions and proceedings that shape the minds of students and the courage required to follow His leading in the demonstration of their respective responsibilities.  
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And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
He will delight in obeying the LORD.
He will not judge by appearance
nor make a decision based on hearsay.
He will give justice to the poor
and make fair decisions for the exploited.
The earth will shake at the force of his word,
and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked.
He will wear righteousness like a belt
and truth like an undergarment.  Isaiah 11:2-5

 

We pray for good government that persistently drives effective education.