Every two years the theme for our high school conclave is, “God Talk.” We talk about God – who/what God is, how God communicates with us, and how we communicate with God. In one of the programs the students are asked to write “graffiti” on the walls in response to four questions, and every year I am impressed and moved by their responses. Here are some of their thoughts from this past February.

Prayer is: A way to reflect; Meditation and Peace; An Action; Peaceful; A way to solve problems; A time for asking God to make things different; Between God and us; Unreal; A sense of Security; Awkward; Asking for will power; Begging for renewal of spirit; Forgiving; Trying to find your place in the universe; Finding yourself; Your own; A time of thanks; Finding what is not in your power; Doing something more; A moment out of reality; Everything; A time that helps reflect and understand; Hope; Letting go of me; An offering of one’s soul; One’s truest self; A hope/wish; Awesome.

When I Pray I: Love myself; Can hear God; Like to be alone; Feel like I know what I have to do; Say it silently; Think about my life; Think and reflect; Try to let go; Thank God for the good things; Try to be as selfless as possible; Feel good; Sing; Feel surrounded by friends; Feel better; Think privately; Look for answers; Ask to help me be safe; Ask for strength; Put my head down and reflect; Hope that God hears me; Feel a strong personal connection with God; Reach out to God; Don’t know what to say; Ask God for the things I can’t ask anyone else; Thank God for the things I have; Ask for help with my problems, as well as the world’s; Ask for, beg for forgiveness; Listen to the part of myself I usually shut out; Make sure I know what I’m praying for; Understand life; Hope for meaning; Look inside me.

Prayer Is/ Works Best When: It holds emotion; It’s with others; I’m alone; I’m in temple; I’m alone at temple with my eyes closed; I’m uncomfortable; People are there to support and help you; You mean what you say; You believe in God; Praying outside; You are in a place where you feel close to God; You’re desperate and you let go; I have family with me; You’re praying for something worthy; I’m in need; I’m silent; I work at it; You see yourself as a small part of something bigger; I choose to pray; You mean it!; Ever you want to; You aren’t influenced by what others are thinking/doing; Saying something meaningful; You realize how blessed you are; You know you’re not the only one; I feel/need strength; You really think about the prayers.

The Hardest Thing About Prayer Is: Finding the correct words to use; Understanding what it means; The thought that no one is listening; Thinking of something reasonable; Meaning; To know how much to pray for; Talking to God is hard; Nobody tells you how to do it; It’s limitless; It’s personal; You must realize that you are a link to an everlasting chain; Letting out your feelings; Finding the meaning of the prayer; Finding a connection to God; Not always having them answered; Finding a peaceful space; Knowing when to ask; Knowing what to pray for; Finding time for it; Keeping faith that God is listening; Realizing that life isn’t that bad and believing in yourself; Recognizing things worthy of prayer; Expecting that God’s answer may not be one you want to hear; Finding faith. Even though you are not in high school, here’s a challenge: How would you answer each of these questions?

Please join us on Saturday evening, May 26th, as we celebrate the festival of Shavuot and honor our 10th grade students as they confirm their place in Jewish life. I promise, you will be inspired by our students, as I am throughout the year.