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How Do We Prepare for See You at the Pole?
Pray ... for See You at the Pole, for students, for leaders, for students who want to participate but are afraid to take a stand on their campus, and that God will be glorified.
Contact local youth ministries, inviting them to be involved. Encourage them to begin praying regularly that God would direct the prayer movement in their area and raise up obedient student leaders.
Local youth ministers may want to work together to organize pre-pole rallies or follow-up rallies in their area. Suggestions for hosting a rally are included below.
While See You at the Pole needs the support of youth ministers, it is a student-led event. Strong student leadership is crucial. Youth ministers can help student leaders by offering guidance and support as the students prepare for SYATP. (See Ideas for Adults.)
Student leadership teams should: promote the event, contact school administration, and lead the actual prayer time at the pole. Specific helps for these tasks are included in other sections of this site.
It is important for student leaders to know that they are supported by adults from their churches, communities, and schools. Contact adults who will serve at local campuses by praying, recording video, taking pictures, etc. Adult volunteers should not lead the SYATP event. They should only be present to offer their support to the students. Adults in the community should also be encouraged to pray at locations other than the school campuses (i.e., courthouse flagpole, office building flagpole, military base flagpole).
Prepare ...
Although students can freely gather for prayer before school, it's best to let your school administration know about See You at the Pole.
Publicize ...
Get the word out to your friends! Use posters, flyers, t-shirts, videos, etc., to promote SYATP. Free publicity and clip-art for creating materials are available at this website. Promotional materials are also available at a reasonable cost by calling 817.HIS.PLAN (447.7526).
Plan ...
Someone needs to plan the event. Having a pre-pole planning meeting is a great way to get everyone together to talk about what you will do during SYATP. Many groups sing worship songs, read Scripture, and give testimonies while forming a big circle, then break into groups of three to five students to pray.
Rally A pre-pole rally is an excellent way to both promote and plan See You at the Pole. Student groups, individual churches, or a group of local churches can host a rally. Some suggestions for a rally:
- Use it as a final planning event before See You at the Pole. A pre-pole rally is a great time for students to meet with other students from their campus to pray for the event and to go over the Pre-pole checklist. This will help students make final preparations for SYATP.
- Hold the rally sometime in late August or early September. Any time the week before the event is a good time. Some groups have found the Sunday night before SYATP to be a convenient and effective time to hold a rally.
- Things to include in a rally: testimonies from previous SYATP events, SYATP promo video, speakers, worship band, etc.
Pray ...
Meet at the flagpole or an agreed location on the third Wednesday in September and do what you planned at your meeting. If you aren't able to meet or can't personally attend, remember that the point is to praywherever you are.
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Questions to Consider... | | |
Have you informed your principal about this event?
What time will you begin on your campusBefore school? At lunch? After school?
Where on your campus will you gather?
Do you have an alternative meeting place off the school property?
Do you have an alternative meeting place in case of rain?
Do you have more than one flagpole to choose from?
Should students wear Christian t-shirts promoting the day?
Will someone supply any other means of signifying participation?
How will you handle distractions such as traffic noise, onlookers, etc.?
How will you begin the event? Who will lead off?
Will there be other elements, such as singing?
Will you hold hands, kneel down, break into small groups, remain in a large group, etc.?
What will you pray for or about on that day?
Will you have audible or silent prayer?
How will you know when its over?
Has a student contacted/informed the FCA and/or other Christian organizations adult representative(s) at your school?
How will you answer questions regarding your participation in this event?
How can each person promote this event before September 18?
Will you have a post-SYATP rally?
Will you be the one, even if no one else will?
(Provided by Scott Bennefield.)
Ideas For Promoting SYATP
| | | | Publicize SYATP primarily by word of mouth. The strongest form of promotion is a personal invitation. Encourage students to make a list of friends that they will personally invite to participate. Organize phone committees to invite Christian youth to pre-pole and post-pole events, as well as to remind them to be there the morning of SYATP.
Distribute flyers primarily through your youth group. You may wish to reproduce the promotional flyer available in the SYATP handbook. Ask students not to blanket the campus with leaflets or to stuff lockersthis may be irritating to the administration and is not within the rights of students. Be sensitive to pick up any promotional material that might be discarded or vandalized.
The SYATP promotional video is an excellent resource to use at rallies, Bible studies, worship services or other Christian gatherings. The video is professionally produced, inspiring, and has several brief segments appropriate for various settings.
Use copies of a Church Bulletin Insert to enlist adult prayer support from local churchesor create your own insert. It is best if concerned adults meet at the same time at another pole in your community (such as a courthouse or city hall) or across the street from the school. Adults should not lead the campus-based prayer meetings. The student-led emphasis of SYATP is important.
Encourage students to wear SYATP t-shirts on a specified day during the week of See You at the Pole.
Place flyers or posters in local Christian bookstores.
Have SYATP announcements presented at youth functions and special events. Publicly praying for SYATP before September 18 will help keep it before students.
You may purchase top-quality SYATP promotional material, such as the promotional video, brochures, posters, book covers, banners, wristbands and more, at reasonable prices by calling 817.HIS.PLAN. (Online ordering coming soon.)
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Remember why you are there: PRAYER!!
See You at the Pole is not a public demonstration. It is not a club meeting. It is not a church service. See You at the Pole is a time for students to pray for their schools, friends, communities, and countries. Even when faced with opposition, students should keep in mind that they have gathered for the sole purpose of prayer.
What should we pray for?
- Pray for the needs of your campus, community and country, and for those in authority.
- Claim Gods power over Satans influence in the lives of your peers through alcohol, drugs, sexual immorality, suicide, the occult, etc.
- Pray for the gospel to be made clear on your campus throughout the year.
- Commit yourself to be involved in reaching out to your classmates who do not know Gods love and forgiveness.
(A suggested prayer time is about 15-30 minutes.)
You may want to include some music, especially as students are gathering. You might also want to read Scripture. There are some suggested scriptures below.
A Model You Can Use for See You at the Pole
"Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.
And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message,
so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ ..."
Colossians 4:2-3 (NIV)
Devote yourselves to prayer . . .
Read 1 Thessalonians 5:17 and 1 Timothy 2:1-2.
Devote yourselves to pray for the leaders of your campus, community, and country, that they would be filled with the knowledge of God and do His will.
. . . being watchful and thankful.
Read 2 Thessalonians 3:3 and 1 Chronicles 16:8.
Pray that God will protect you from the evil one, who will try to discourage you. Thank the Lord for who He is and what He can do through you at your school.
And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ . . .
Read 1 Peter 3:13-16 and Mark 16:15.
Pray that God will use SYATP to initiate or build up a core of students whose purpose will be to share the gospel with unsaved friends on campus. Ask God to bring spiritual awakening to His church.
Keep in mind that these are only suggestions. There is no specific formula for what to do at a SYATP gathering. Ask God to guide you in what you should do and how you should pray specifically for your school.
Students' Rights to Participate in
See You at the Pole
| | | There is no requirement to ask the administration or school board's permission to meet; however, it is wise and courteous to inform the administration about SYATP.
According to Supreme Court precedent and their constitutional rights, students already have permission. SYATP is student-led, it is before school hours, and it is outside of any school building. It does not cost the district anything financially for students to meet to pray, so they arent establishing religion with tax money. Students Legal Rights on a Public School Campus is a helpful resource book you may purchase by calling 817.HIS.PLAN. Help students see that their principal or other school officials may be unaware of the law and not deliberately trying to infringe upon their free speech rights.
WHAT ABOUT ADULTS? Legal counsel for SYATP has indicated that it is legal for adults (whether school employees or others) to participate in this before-school event. For more details, call the National Netowrk of Youth Ministries at 858.451.1111.
If opposed by administration, students should:
1. Know their rights. Students who take leadership should be willing to back up their beliefs, if necessary, by studying the materials available.
2. Plan their response. If ordered by a school official to disperse during SYATP, students should respectfully leave the school grounds and pray off campus. The goal of SYATP is to pray to God, not fight with man. They can make an appointment with the official later to discuss the situation.
3. Utilize their resources. Expert legal counsel is available from several groups offering free assistance to individuals in religious-liberty cases. Timely intervention has resolved almost every situation with a minimum of difficulty!
4. Remember they are representing Christ.
For more legal help contact:
Alliance Defense Fund800.835.5233, www.alliancedefensefund.org
The American Center for Law and Justice757.226.2489, www.aclj.org
Christian Legal Society703.642.1070, www.christianlegalsociety.org
The National Legal Foundation757.463.6133, www.nlf.net
The Rutherford Institute804.978.3888, www.rutherford.org
Pacific Justice Institute916.857.6900, www.pacificjustice.org
United States Justice Foundation760.741.8086, www.usjf.net |
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