The annual See You at the Pole event will be held at schools across the nation and around the world on September 25. Participation has steadily increased since its humble beginnings.
A small group of teenagers in Burleson, Texas, came together for a DiscipleNow weekend in early 1990. They came seeking God, and little did they know how powerfully he was about to move when they became broken before God and burdened for their friends. Compelled to pray, they drove to three different schools that night. Not knowing exactly what to do, they went to the school flagpoles and prayed for their friends, schools and leaders.
God used what he did among those teenagers and others who were holding similar prayer meetings at their schools to birth a vision in the hearts of youth leaders across Texas. The vision was that students throughout Texas would follow these examples and meet at their school flagpoles to pray simultaneously. The challenge was named See You at the Pole at a brainstorming session during a meeting of key youth leaders.
On Sept. 12, 1990, more than 45,000 teenagers met at school flagpoles in four different states to pray before the start of school. A few months later, a group of youth ministers from all over the country gathered together for a national conference in Colorado. Many reported that their students had heard about the prayer movement in Texas and were equally burdened for their schools. No other events had been planned, but it was clear that students across the country would be creating their own national day of student prayer. There was no stopping them.
The following year, an estimated one million students gathered at school flagpoles all over the country. From Boston to Los Angeles, from North Dakota to the tip of Texas, students came together to pray. Some sang, some read scripture, but most importantly, they prayed. Like those first students, they prayed for their schools, for their friends, for their leaders, and for their country.
Now each year, an estimated one million students from all the world participate in See You at the Pole. Students in more than 64 countries have participated. In places such as Canada, Korea, Japan, Turkey and the Ivory Coast, students are responding to God and taking seriously the challenge to pray.
For additional resources or more information, visit. See You At The Pole.
–Dwight Widaman | Metro Voice