Day 1 : God, the Teacher of teachers
Key Text: John 3: 1-2 “There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him” (KJV).
“Nicodemus held a high position of trust in the Jewish nation. He was highly educated, and possessed talents of no ordinary character, and he was an honored member of the national council. With others, he had been stirred by the teaching of Jesus. Though rich, learned, and honored, he had been strangely attracted by the humble Nazarene. The lessons that had fallen from the Saviour's lips had greatly impressed him, and he desired to learn more of these wonderful truths” (Desire of
Ages, p. 167).
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Prayer emphasis:
Revival of the slumbering believers in the Church
Conversion of false believers in the Church
Eradication of the Laodicean spirit that is steadily settling in the Church
Awakening to Bible study in our homes, churches, and schools
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Day 2 : Why Should God alone teach our children?
Key Text: 1 Corinthians 1: 20
“Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?”
The purpose of God’s system of redemptive and restorative education is clearly amplified by the Spirit of Prophecy as follows: “These schools were intended to serve as a barrier against the wide-spreading corruption, to provide for the mental and spiritual welfare of the youth, and to promote the prosperity of the nation by furnishing it with men qualified to act in the fear of God as leaders and counselors” (Education, p. 46).
The Lord’s intention has always been to attend to the greatest want of the world, which is “the want of men—men who will not be bought or sold, men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall” (Education, p. 57).
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Prayer Emphasis:
The spirit of surrender to God
The spirit of promoting and sponsoring Adventist education
The spirit of financially supporting Adventist education
The spirit of training all our children in Adventist education
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Day 3 : Where does the Lord want to teach our children?
Key Text: John 10: 1-5
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth
his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.”
“There are two classes of educators in the world. One class is those whom God makes channels of light, and the other class is those whom Satan uses as his agents, who are wise to do evil.
One class contemplates the character of God and increases in the knowledge of Jesus, whom God hath sent into the world. This class becomes wholly given up to those things which bring heavenly enlightenment, heavenly wisdom, to the uplifting of the soul. Every capability of their nature is submitted to God, and their thoughts are brought into captivity to Christ. The other class is in league with the prince of darkness, who is ever on the alert that he may find an opportunity to teach others the knowledge of evil” (Child Guidance, p. 303).
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Prayer Emphasis:
Revival of family worship and bible study
Role modeling in Church life and activities
Integration of faith and teaching in our schools
Integration of faith and service in our workplaces
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Day 4 : What shall the Lord’s teaching entail?
Key Text: 2 Timothy 3: 16-17
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”
“True education means more than the pursual of a certain course of study. It means more than a preparation for the life that now is. It has to do with the whole being, and with the whole period of existence possible to man. It is the harmonious development of the physical, the mental, and the spiritual powers. It prepares the student for the joy of service in this world and for the higher joy of wider service in the world to come. The source of such an education is brought to view in these words of Holy Writ, pointing to the Infinite One: In Him ‘are hid all the treasures of wisdom’” [Col. 2:3] (Education, p. 13).
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Prayer Emphasis:
Our children in public and non-Adventist private schools
For our children in the hands of non-Adventist teachers in “Adventist” schools
For reclaiming our schools from the governments in some countries in WAD
For infrastructural rehabilitation and improvement of teaching and learning in Adventist schools in WAD.
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Day 5 : When Should the Lord teach your children?
Key Text: 2 Timothy 4: 3-4
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."
“There is a blind affection that gives the children the privilege of doing as they please. But to allow a child to follow his natural impulses is to allow him to deteriorate and to become proficient in evil. Wise parents will not say to their children, ‘Follow your own choice; go where you will, and do what you will;” but, “Listen to the instruction of the Lord.’ Wise rules and regulations must be made and enforced, that the beauty of the home life may not be spoiled.
It is impossible to depict the evil that results from leaving a child to its own will. Some who go astray because of neglect in childhood will later, through the inculcation of practical lessons, come to their senses; but many are lost forever because in childhood and youth they received only a partial, one-sided culture. The child who is spoiled has a heavy burden to carry throughout his life. In trial, in disappointment, in temptation, he will follow his undisciplined, misdirected will. Children who have never learned to obey will have weak, impulsive characters.
They seek to rule, but have not learned to submit. They are without moral strength to restrain their wayward tempers, to correct their wrong habits, or to subdue their uncontrolled wills. The blunders of untrained, undisciplined childhood become the inheritance of manhood and womanhood. The perverted intellect can scarcely discern between the true and the false” (Counsel to Parents, Teachers, and Students, p. 112).
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Prayer Emphasis:
Our children pursuing academic degrees in life sciences and earth sciences programs
Adventist teachers in life sciences and earth sciences programs in non-Adventist institutions
Adventists who are getting theological education outside of Adventist institutions
Adventists who are receiving Spirit-of-Prophecy books from non-Adventist-accredited publishers.
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Day 6 : Have the Parents themselves been taught by the Lord?
Key Text: Psalm 69: 5-6
“O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee. Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake: let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel” (KJV)
The Apostle Paul is inspired to query the Jewish Christians in Rome saying, “Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, And knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, An instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law.
Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal? Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege? Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonourest thou God? For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written” (Rom. 2: 17-24).
As parents, we cannot appreciate the usefulness of God’s teaching until we ourselves have been trained into His school. We cannot desire for our Children the blessedness of God’s teachings until we ourselves have benefitted from them. Our children will hardly desire to be taught by God until they see the usefulness of such teachings in the lives of their parents.
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Prayer Emphasis:
Revival of the local church concerning
Pre-marital relationships
Spousal relationships
Parenting infants, children, adolescents, and young adulthood
Christian role modeling
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Day 7 : All Your Children Shall Be Taught by The Lord
Key Text: Isaiah 54: 13-16
“And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children. In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee. Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.
Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy."
“We are now living in the great day of atonement. In the typical service, while the high priest was making the atonement for Israel, all were required to afflict their souls by repentance of sin and humiliation before the Lord, lest they be cut off from among the people. In like manner, all who would have their names retained in the book of life should now, in the few remaining days of their probation, afflict their souls before God by sorrow for sin and true repentance. There must be deep, faithful searching of heart. The light, frivolous spirit indulged by so many professed Christians must be put away” (The Great Controversy, p. 489).
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Prayer Emphasis:
The spirit of our pioneers with their intentional eagerness to enroll every child in a Biblerooted, God-inspired, Christ-centered, Spirit-led, Service-oriented, Heaven-bound Adventist Education, to redeem and restore our children, educating them for eternity.
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