MONARCH — A sisterhood of faith that unites women around the world in prayer for their children and schools now includes a group in Union County.
According to its website (momsinprayer.org), the purpose of “Moms In Prayer International” is “to pray that our children will receive Jesus as Lord and Savior, then stand boldly in their faith; to pray for teachers and school staff; to pray that teachers, administrative staff, and students would come to faith in Jesus Christ; to provide support and encouragement to moms who carry heavy burdens for their children; to pray that our schools will be directed by biblical values and high moral standards; to be an encouragement and a positive support to our schools.”
That purpose is shared by the Moms In Prayer group that’s been meeting every Tuesday for the past three weeks in the Family Ministry Building of Bethel United Methodist Church next to Monarch Elementary School. One of the organizers of the group is Kathleen Read, who together with her husband, Sanders, the Rev. Tuie Wentz of Bethel United Methodist, and Carol Rector, joined hands to pray for the schools of Union County last Tuesday.
“Moms In Prayer is in all 50 states and 130 different countries,” Read said. “It is a group of women meeting once a month for an hour to pray for the children and the schools. The goal is to have one group for each school. In our case we will be praying for all the schools in Union County.”
Read said each session of prayer begins with the reading of a passage of scripture from the Bible. She said that in addition to praying for the children of Union County as a group along with the schools, teachers, staff and administrators, the group also prays for specific children at the request of their parents and/or grandparents.
“We use scripture and pray specifically for different children,” Read said. “The parents or grandparents lift up the name of the child. We pray for their relationship with God, for godly attributes, for their relationship with the family, relationships with their friends, for protection, for their future.”
The passage of scripture read at last Tuesday’s meeting was John 17:26.
And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou has loved me be in them, and I in them.
Wentz emphasized that while Bethel is a United Methodist church, the Moms In Prayer group is non-denominational. He said the location for the group’s meetings was chosen because of its proximity to Monarch Elementary.
Those who participate the group can do so praying silently.
“We also put an emphasis on that you do not have to pray openly,” Wentz said. “You can just be here, just be a part of the group and pray silently. Those that are led may pray out loud though.”
Moms In Prayer International was founded by Fern Nichols, who Read described as “one mother who was disciplined to pray for her own children daily. In that prayer she asked God to give her one other mother to pray with her and He answered that prayer and it began.”
The prayer that led to the founding of Moms In Prayer International was prayed by Nichols in 1984 out of concern for her two eldest children were entering junior high school. The organization’s website states that her request for another mother to pray with her for their children and school was answered, beginning a ministry that has since grown from one group praying to groups around the world meeting in prayer.
Moms In Prayer meets at 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Bethel United Methodist Church Family Ministry Building, 1705 Lockhart Highway.
Editor Charles Warner can be reached at 864-427-1234, ext. 14, or by email at cwarner@heartlandpublications.com.
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