Tara is an incredible place, considered one of the most elite girls’ schools in Australia. The students have access to a phenomenal education, not to mention an amazingly well-developed department of Christian Studies. But material privilege does not guarantee spiritual freedom, and it takes a personal encounter with the living God to breathe new life into us.
Prayer is that direct line of communication with the invisible God. Michelle Kay-Browning, the Tara chaplain, has led a series on prayer for the past term, and she concluded it by providing an opportunity for Tara girls to engage in some tangible expressions. We partnered with her to facilitate a week of interactive “prayer stations” in the campus chapel, and to share our testimonies in the Christian Studies classes.
One of the prayer stations was a thanksgiving tree where girls wrote thank you notes to God on gift tags. An adoration wall covered in paper was filled with handwritten praise statements. An altar of remembrance in the middle of the foyer was completely covered in post-it notes (our modern symbol of remembering) with statements of what God had already done in the girls’ lives. A post-a-prayer station invited them to send prayer requests to teachers who had committed to pray on their behalf. In a quiet room they were able to write their own prayers of supplication to the Lord, requests for themselves and for others. In another room, a song about identity played and the girls were invited to breathe deeply, let go of their burdens, and receive the truth of the song. One of the favorite stations was a quiet area in the balcony where they gathered and had open discussion time with some members of the mission team, ranging from the topics of politics to differences in culture to deep theology and personal stories.
A particularly powerful station was the confession station, in which girls used a red pen to write down things they wanted to say sorry to God for. Then they washed the paper in a bowl of water, and the red ink would come off the page, symbolizing how Christ washes us clean. In 1 John 1:9 (NIV), God promises, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” For some girls, this station was a real moment of experiencing forgiveness and being washed of the guilt they had been carrying.
The beauty of all these stations is that they connected with the girls at different points along their journeys. For some 5- and 6-year-olds with a child-like faith, coloring or putting a tag on the thanksgiving tree was a perfect way to pray and simply adore God. But for older students, asking their cynical but honest questions in dialogue with the team was a far more fruitful way to engage with the person of Christ.
Admitting our doubt, our cynicism, and even our anger at God is better than remaining in apathy, and those conversations were life-giving for everyone involved.
Along with the prayer stations, we split up to visit Christian Studies classes and share our testimonies. The background of each person on this team is drastically different from the next, but the common denominator is that we have all been changed by knowing Christ. Collectively, we have wrestled with fear, loneliness, broken homes, abuse, drugs, violence, party culture, anger, unforgiveness, sickness, and enough hardship to fill many pages more. But we have also experienced freedom.
For many girls, they appreciate the knowledge they learn in their Christian Studies classes on an intellectual level, but it is not their own truth. The teachers interact with these girls every day, but sometimes you need to hear the same message from a new voice in order for things to fall into place. Our American accents were literally a “new voice”—that often served as a fun icebreaker—and we pray that our stories served as a thread in the tapestry of the girls’ own journeys to Christ.
On the other hand, sometimes the girls wanted to believe or did believe already but had questions that seemed to make their faith feel foolish. They asked about the trustworthiness of scripture, the claimed resurrection of Christ, the gender of God, how to have faith in the invisible, the presence of evil in the world, the definition of love and sexuality, the creation account, and why Christ is supposedly the only way to God. Conversation was good. A really special moment happened when we found out that one girl had been wrestling with a question for years and finally felt like it was answered for the first time!
Please pray that they continue to ask questions and that God continues to meet them. Please pray that they and their families would be impacted by the love of Christ and strengthened through faith. And please pray for joy to sustain the Christian teachers and chaplains who are committed to the road ahead with these girls.
To wrap up the week on Friday, about 30 girls gathered for a Christian club to share testimonies and pray together. We stepped aside and were simply present as they led their own ministry. It was a beautiful end to the week. We are only a small piece of the big picture of what God is already doing in Australia. May His work continue, and His love pour out on us all.
Thanks so much FWC! God is good!