Holy Hands

This is our tenth year of covering my classroom wall with student hands. Here is a look at how it started from September 14, 2011.

It came from Leila. One of my students at Friendship Christian School, she visited me several years after graduation. At that time, she was working with her youth group at church and told me about a project they had to pray for each other. Each member traced their hand and all the hands were collected into a notebook. One of their number would take the notebook each night, place their hand on each of their friend's hands, and pray for them by name. As I remember, the prayer notebook would be rotated through the group.

 I used that idea a number of years ago when when I was sponsor of our Westbury Christian chapter of the FCA. In recent years, I reinstated it with my sophomore and eighth grade Bible classes. I instructed each student to trace their left hand, print their name, and add their birthday. (In the interest of style and individuality, they were also allowed to decorate a little bit.) We passed a sign-up sheet around in all five classes for volunteers to take the notebooks home each night and pray for their classmates. The next day, they simply passed it on to the person below them. About half of the students volunteered to pray for the others. I tried to make the point in one of my classes that this was a great way to get to know those who occupy the other desks in Room 258. I find that students often know little about each other, even when they sit next to each other. This is a terrific way to get involved....and increase the amount of time they speak to the Father.

For the past two years, we have changed the idea from a hand notebook to a hand wall. My student aide, Kaitlyn, took all the handprints and arranged them as you see above. This morning, our Moms-In-Touch prayer group came to my room,  placed their hands on the students' hands, and prayed for them by name. What a wonderful way to get involved with a child you do not even know yet! There are quite a few puns I could use here but I don't want to diminish the point. Praying hands do the will of the Father who gave us those hands.

Applicable quote of the day:

"I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess."
Martin Luther

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1

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E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com