Posted February 2, 2015 by
Tags: Spiritual Life My Wheaton Campus
Weekly All-Campus Prayer
God is stirring a passion for prayer on this campus. This, I have been told, is customary before God brings revival to Wheaton. So as multiple prayer groups have been popping up in Smith-Traber Hall on Monday nights, at the Chaplain’s Office early Tuesday mornings, in Williston Hall on Wednesday nights, and at off-campus houses on Thursday nights (just to name a few), it seemed fitting to have a space where people from all different Wheaton friend groups and activities could come together in prayer for our school.
Last semester, a prayer time was held during chapel time on a Tuesday for the events surrounding Ferguson, Missouri, the people involved with it, and the change it was inspiring. I was blown away by the power of people coming together from across campus to bring our worries and hopes before God. As I was leaving the campus-wide prayer time, the students I left with vocalized the same thing I was feeling: “This needs to happen all the time.”
This semester we are making it happen every Tuesday during chapel time (from 10:30-11 a.m.). Every person who is a part of the Wheaton College community is invited to come to the east wing of Edman Chapel to join with us in prayer.
Campus Prayer began this past Tuesday, and was led by myself, freshman class chaplain Mikey Mitchell, and sophomore class chaplain Maddison McGee. We all serve in chaplain roles within Student Government. We provided the following prayer requests to give direction and inspiration during the prayer time:
In coming weeks, we are asking different groups around campus to lead the prayer time by sharing the things that their group hopes to see God do on campus.
Another element incorporated into the campus prayer time is art. In order to remind those who gather in prayer about the things we have been praying for, every group that leads is providing a picture—drawn, painted, or otherwise—of the things they hope to see God do on campus. The idea is that in seeing the art from past weeks, we can remain faithful in praying for those things as well as recognizing the ways in which God has answered our prayers.
So please pray with us! Whether you are able to be present with us in person on Tuesday mornings or not, we can all be praying for God to do great things at Wheaton this semester. I have confidence that you can stand with us in great expectation that our prayers will be answered.
Katrina Burlet is a senior studying political science. Every Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. during spring semester 2015, in the East Wing of Edman Chapel, students, faculty, staff, administration, and local alumni will gather for campus prayer. The photos above were captured at the first meeting of the semester on Tuesday, January 27th. Student Government Chaplain Katrina Burlet, Sophomore Class Chaplain Maddison McGee, and Freshman Class Chaplain Mikey Mitchell led students, faculty, staff, and members of administration in prayer for God to give the campus a renewed desire to seek him together; for all faculty, staff and students to take advantage of the fresh start of the semester to examine where God is prioritized in our lives and establish new routines that keep him at the center; and for Wheaton to become a place where every member of the campus community confesses their sins, and that with the rise of confession would come a spirit of freedom and joy. The illustration above, presented at January 27th’s prayer meeting, was completed by Julia Zeller ’15.