The Top 5 Questions Students are Asking

“If you could ask God any question, what would it be?” We asked hundreds of students this question, and they came up with these five. We cannot say everything there is to say about these topics, but here is a great place to start!

1
Why Is There So Much Suffering in the World?

If God is this all-good, all-powerful being, doesn’t He have the resources to prevent evil and suffering?

Without the freedom to choose right and wrong, we would be like robots. While God does have the power to prevent suffering, He has created us with the freedom of choice. We can obey Him and live by faith doing good things, or we can disobey and do evil and thus suffer consequences of our wrong actions. And others may suffer from our evil actions as well.

Maybe the better question is, “Is there any purpose to our suffering?” The Bible shares many good results from suffering. Here are three of them:

  1. To develop character and hope: Paul tells us in Romans 5:3-4, “Suffering produces perseverance; perseverance produces character; and character produces hope.” Character is involved in the ability to handle tough situations and help others who are going through similar suffering. Hope keeps us from giving up and helps us to see how God is loving us in our present reality.
  2. To get our attention: Sometimes when we are doing the wrong thing, our Heavenly Father uses suffering to get our attention. He wants to remove everything from our lives that keeps us from walking close to Him in a love-faith relationship. Suffering, as a result of wrong behavior, can either bring us closer to Him or it can make us angry and push us away from Him. (Hebrews 12:5-11)
  3. To help us understand God: Sometimes suffering is not because of something we have done. There will be times when God allows us to suffer so we can understand how much He is in control and He is able to work in peoples’ lives. Jesus was drawn like a magnet to human grief, sorrow, and suffering; His very heart beats for the hurting. God feels hurt and compassion when we suffer, and He does not stop at empathy. Christ’s suffering on the cross for our sins proves that He understands and cares enough to step into suffering on our behalf. Even if we cannot understand the exact reason behind our suffering, we can still receive comfort and strength from a God who really understands and cares about us. (See 2 Corinthians 1.)

Sometimes when we are doing the wrong thing, our Heavenly Father uses suffering to get our attention. He wants to remove everything from our lives that keeps us from walking close to Him in a love-faith relationship.

2
Will God Really Forgive All My Sins?

Experiencing guilt is like being a live rabbit in the mouth of an enthusiastic dog. It grabs us by the back of the neck and shakes us around. We feel helpless until released from its grip.

We respond in different ways to this guilt. We beat ourselves up for being bad, try to justify our actions, or blame someone else for what happened. None of this truly gets rid of the guilt. What we need is forgiveness, either from the person we hurt or from God.

To experience the forgiveness of God, we need to accept what God says about payment for sin. God, as a righteous and perfect judge, has declared that all people who have sinned need to be punished for their crimes. Sadly, we are included, because all people have sinned.

Because of His great love and justice, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to earth to become a human. He lived 33 years, trained 12 men, and at the height of His popularity was crucified in Jerusalem by Roman soldiers. While Jesus hung on the cross, God the Father poured out His righteous and holy anger against sin, punishing Christ for all sins ever committed by anyone, past, present, and future.

Jesus was perfect and God was completely satisfied with Him and with His substitutionary death for us on the cross. Christ paid the full penalty for our sins, and He offers to completely forgive all our sins. All this was part of God’s plan. Our response is to accept that forgiveness. How do we do that?

  1. Confess Your Sin

Confess means to agree with God. We are agreeing with Him that our thoughts or actions were wrong and we agree that Jesus’ death on the cross covers us and that He is still forgiving us. Admitting we have done wrong brings us back into a close walk with God. Once you first come to trust Christ, you are always forgiven, but your daily relationship is hurt by your continual sins.

It’s like this with your mother. If you do something to hurt her, she will still be your mother, but your relationship with her will be strained. If you admit to her you are wrong and she forgives you, then your relationship is restored. It is similar with God. If we confess our sins to God, He can always be trusted to forgive us and take away our sins. (See 1 John 1:9.)

  1. Repent and Accept Forgiveness

To repent means to turn away from sin, to change your mind. It expresses sorrow for sin and a desire to quit doing what you have just confessed. Accepting forgiveness means we trust God forgives us just like it says in 1 John 1:9.

When we sin, we naturally want to run away from God, not towards Him. It takes faith to come back to God to confess your sins. Part of repentance is paying back people if you have stolen or broken something. If you have hurt another person, you must apologize.

Additionally, you need to forgive those who have hurt you:

If you forgive others for the wrongs they do to you, your Father in heaven will forgive you. But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. (Matthew 6:14-15.)
Instead, be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ (Ephesians 4:32).

This is the forgiveness God intends for you. The result is experiencing real happiness and freedom that comes from knowing God and having a clean conscience. He no longer views you as guilty. Your Creator is not an offended judge, He is a gentle Father (Romans 8:15).

This changes how we relate to Him! The guilt you carry can be removed. When you seek forgiveness through Christ, you move from being alienated from God to being the object of His delight!

Christ paid the full penalty for our sins and He offers to completely forgive all our sins.

3
What Does the Future Hold for Me?

It seems only natural to ask God about our future. Deep down we know God is big, awesome, and all-knowing. Why doesn’t He let us in on some of what He knows? He does, if we know where to look.

Questions about our futures should not be consumed with who we should date, what job to take, or seeking fame, but rather how our ultimate needs of love, security, recognition, and significance will be met.

To understand our future, it helps to review the past, and here we have a choice of what to believe. Either we exist as a random, impersonal result of chemical reactions over billions of years, or we were created personally and lovingly by an Almighty God who rules the universe which He created. If there really is an eternal God who created you, then two important questions follow:

  • Where will you spend eternity?
  • What is your purpose for existing here on earth?

God tells us in Paul’s letter to the Romans in the New Testament that God has given us minds and a conscience to recognize truth and make right decisions. This ability is stronger when we trust Him to forgive us.

As we place our faith and trust in Jesus, we become a new person (2 Corinthians 5:17). From that point on, we can be sure of God’s promise to us that we will spend eternity in heaven with Him. This is a result of God making us spiritually alive as we place our faith in Jesus.

God changes our hearts and attitudes and causes us to want to love and serve Him and others in ways we could not do before we knew Him. We experience peace that literally goes beyond understanding, even in the midst of difficult problems.

God gives us the stable qualities of love, joy, peace, and a tremendous security, based on His unchanging forgiveness and love, as we learn more about Him and what He wants to do in and through our lives. These are the real needs and desires for which we all long.

Look at all the things around you that were designed by humans to make your life a little easier. All were made for a specific purpose. Your phone works best as a phone, not a small rectangular shovel. It operates best when used according to the original designer’s plans.

You are worth much more than your phone. God designed you for a specific purpose and knows exactly what you need. We, as God’s beloved children, exist to know God, to make Him known, and to be satisfied in His love forever.

What does the future hold for you? You really do not want the timeline of your life spelled out in the dirt; rather, you want to know everything is going to be all right. And with God, it will be ultimately. Why? Because He made you and He cares for you.

While you may not know what the future holds, you can know God is the one who holds the future and He is good (Jeremiah 29:11-12). Through prayer, study of the Bible, listening to the Holy Spirit, participation in church, and fellowship with other Christians, God will actively guide the decisions you will make as you trust and rely on Him daily.

God does not want you to impress Him with good deeds--He wants to be in a loving relationship with you.

4
What Does God Want From Me?

As we think about God, it seems inevitable that we will ask Him, “What in the world do You really want from me?” However, we run into a problem when we think about who God is compared to who we are.

God is perfect; He does not and cannot do evil, and He is always totally fair. This means He is holy. The problem comes when we realize this is also what God requires of us. He states quite clearly in the Bible, “Be holy as I am holy.” (See 1 Peter 1:16.)

We actually need God to be perfect. If not, then what would our lives be like if, whenever God spoke to His creation, all His decrees would now be open for revision and updates?

Here’s our deeper problem: If God really is good, then He has no option but to exercise His wrath and judgment on those who sin. That is a big problem. Remember, if God is holy and pure, then He cannot stand to be in the presence of evil.

So, God’s perfection does three things:

  1. It tells us what God is like and that we can actually trust God even more because we know His love and forgiveness never changes.
  2. It keeps us from self-destructing. God’s standard of perfection actually benefits all of us. Without rules and order in the world, we would self-destruct in a short amount of time.
  3. It shows us our need for God. God is the only one who can provide a solution for the problem of our falling short of God’s perfect standard. Our sin and its destructive consequences hurt and damage people, but we do not really understand the impact of sin until we recognize that it hurts God most of all.

Once we fully grasp from what God has saved us, an attitude of thankfulness and service to God will be a natural response. God does not want you to impress Him with good deeds; He wants to be in a loving relationship with you.

As you begin to more fully embrace what it is that God has already done for you, can you see the original question, “What does God want from me?” becomes, “What do I get to do for God?”

As you walk by faith, you will be thrilled God has something far better in store than what you could have ever imagined. His love and forgiveness and the power He releases in our lives when we trust Him are the proof.

In fact, as you share your personal story of trusting God and seeing Him work, someone may be more inclined to trust Him as well. You can use our worksheet to help you share how God has changed your life! 

5
Aren’t All Religions the Same?

Devoted followers of all religions should go to heaven, correct? Let’s look at a few major world faith systems: Hinduism, New Age, Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity. Each of these religions has sects with differing beliefs, but let’s take a brief look at a central belief of each.

  • Hindus believe in 300,000+ gods.
  • Buddhists say there is no deity.
  • New Age followers believe they are god.
  • Muslims believe in one powerful but detached god.
  • Christians believe in a God who is loving and approachable.

In looking at these major belief systems and their views of God, we find tremendous diversity. Obviously, it is not logical to say all these claims are equally true, because different religions claim things which contradict the claims of other religions.

You are welcome to read read more about these religions, but a key distinctive of Christianity is God welcomes us into a relationship with Him. He is an all-powerful God who does not distance Himself from us, but Who loves us.

In other religions, a person has a relationship with teachings, ideas, paths, or rituals. In Christianity, a person has a relationship with the loving and all-powerful God. He welcomes you to know Him, to experience His joy, and to have confidence in Him in the midst of life’s challenges.

God yearns to adopt us as His children. He sent His son, Jesus, to pay the penalty for our sin and give us His Spirit to make us into a new kind of people. Think how much the Father loves us! He loves us so much that He provided a way back to Him so we could be called His children. (See 1 John 3:1.)

In Christianity, anyone can begin a relationship with God. It is as simple as recognizing that you have been going your own way in life, asking God for His forgiveness, and surrendering your life to Him. You can do this right now, simply by telling Him your heart’s desire, through a prayer:

“God, I ask you to forgive me and invite you to enter my heart right now. Thank you, Jesus, for dying for my sins. Thank you for coming into my life as you said you would.”

These are five of the most asked questions about God, but you can find even more answers to great questions about God at everystudent.com. Everyone has questions and we have tried to give answers to the most common ones there.

Do you have a friend who has questions like these, but you do not know how to start the conversation? Read more about how to take the initiative and start a conversation with your friend about what really matters.

Next Step
Ask three students you know what their top questions are about God. Be prepared to share what you've learned here. If you get a different question, research answers and follow up to help them find answers and know God better.

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The Claim Your Campus Prayer Strategy

CYC is an organization that exists to empower middle and high school students to pray for change on their campus. Their goal is to get one million students to claim their campus for Christ through prayer. CYC offers a phenomenal app you can check out here.

We encourage all campus movements to emphasize prayer and the Claim Your Campus app is a great way to engage students in prayer. Download it now to kickstart a movement of prayer on your campus!

5 Key Features of the Claim Your Campus App

Pray Now:
This section is designed to lead any student through a daily 15-minute prayer time for their school. The format is simple: Listen, Thank, Ask. Each day students read a passage of scripture, thank God for something specific He is doing in their school, and ask Him for help at their school and schools across the country.

21-Day Challenge:
Habits take time to build. The 21-Day Challenge can help you and your students build the habit of praying together daily.

Share Your Story:
Students from all over the country are using Claim Your Campus at their schools. This video feature gives students one minute to capture what God is doing at their school and then share it.

Groups:
Use the Groups section to form your own prayer group and/or join other groups. Students praying together in community for their school(s) is the foundation of CYC. The group feature keeps students connected, motivated, and encouraged to keep pressing on!

Prayer Walk Your Campus:
This feature describes how to prayer walk a campus in three easy steps. Invite. Pray. Report. It includes a brief tutorial and a downloadable prayer walk guide.

Social Media:
Stay connected through Tik Tok, Instagram, and Youtube pages; News and Updates can also be found in the app.

Cast the Vision: Prayer Equals Change

  • Use these videos to get excited about how God could change your campus through prayer and how He could use you to build a prayer movement at your school.
  • General Promo video
  • Marion School video

Invite Students to Be One in the Million

Students download the app using the QR code graphic & claim their campus!

We encourage all campus movements to emphasize prayer and the Claim Your Campus app is a great way to engage students in prayer.

4 Different Ways Students Can Claim Their Campus

  1. Start a Weekly Prayer Group. The CYC app provides prompts that change weekly.
  2. Host a prayer walk around your campus. The CYC app features a Prayer Walk Guide.
  3. Embed 5-10 minutes of Prayer into Your Weekly Cru Club Meeting. Build a CULTURE of prayer. CYC has done all the work for you. Click here for the Leader’s Guide and here for premade slides for up to 20 weeks. That is enough for an entire school year. CYC’s GRAB-N-GO resources make praying EASY.
  4. Participate in Annual National Events such as SYATP.

Invite the adults in your community to support SYATP by signing up for The Prayer Walk Project. This project offers a way for caring adults to join hands in prayer on the Saturdays before and after SYATP.

Prayer is the real power in any campus movement. Make it a non-negotiable in your ministry to emphasize prayer with adults and students and see how God moves.

Next Step

Download the Claim Your Campus app and consider how you could use it on your campus today. Do you have a prayer strategy for your plans? If not, send the app to a few student leaders and invite them to start praying for their campus!

DOWNLOAD THE APP
4 Ways to Prepare for a Prayer Walk
1
Prepare Your Heart

Surrender the Prayer Walk to the Lord. Ask the Lord for one or two scriptures to help prepare your heart. Jot them down. If you like, use them to inspire the people you invite, or share them with your team the day you meet to prayer walk. Pray for:

  • Divine appointments with people.
  • Connections with insiders at the school who are like-minded and willing to help.
  • God to guide your steps.
  • Open eyes to see the spiritual needs of the campus.
2
Prepare Your Team

Pray for Names. Ask the Lord to bring to mind specific names of students, volunteers, parents, pastors, and/or faculty you can ask to join your prayer walk. Keep in mind, this is not about numbers. Even one prayer partner is enough. Matthew 18:20 says, “Where two or three gather in my name, there I am with them.”

Invite the People
that He brought to mind. Decide what mode of communication is best: text? social media? phone call? Give them a brief description of what a prayer walk is and what they can expect that day. Share what has motivated you to gather a team to pray. Be sure to tell them the date, the start and end times, and the location. Give them an RSVP date.

Send them any final details
on the day before. Remind your team what time you will begin and end and the location to meet. Let them know what to bring and any adjustments needed due to weather or other factors.

(During a Prayer Walk) Pray for: Divine appointments with people. Connections with insiders at the school who are like-minded and willing to help. God to guide your steps. Open eyes to see the spiritual needs of the campus.

3
Prepare Your Campus

Check with an Insider at Your School. Once you choose your campus and gather your team, you may want to check with an insider at the school to see if there is anyone you need to notify ahead of time. Most likely, it will not be an issue if you are prayer walking after school or over the weekend on the parts of the campus that are open to the public. Avoid prayer walking on campus during school hours without permission.

4
Prepare Your Details

“WHO” DETAILS: By now, you know WHO is coming. But here are some other “WHO” questions to think about if you have a larger group. Who will…

  • begin the prayer walk (introduce/explain it)?
  • end the prayer walk?
  • lead smaller groups (if your team is large)?


“WHAT TO BRING” DETAILS
: You may want to bring copies of the Prayer Guide and the Leader Guide.

“WHERE/WHEN” DETAILS: Make sure everyone knows the date and time you will meet. Include starting point (address of meeting spot) and ending point (time and meeting spot).

“HOW” DETAILS: For your convenience, this Campus Prayer Walk Leader’s Guide provides a general flow and includes sample scripts of what to say from start to finish. If you can read it, you can lead it. But you may need to think through the unique needs of your prayer walk.

Would you like the prayer walk to be more casual or more organized? Do you have people who are comfortable prayer walking or more new people who may need more instruction?

You have prepared your part. Time to grab your walking shoes. Let’s do this!

Next Step
It is time to get on the campus to pray. Text one friend today and ask them if they would be willing to go to the school to prayer walk with you this week. Get your feet on the campus and pray together. Once you have done it yourself, it will be a lot easier to gather others to do it with you.
Prayer Walking

After the Israelites wandered for 40 years in the desert, God called Joshua to bring His people into the land He had promised them. The commander of the army of the Lord appeared to Joshua with instructions essentially for a prayer walk around the city of Jericho. And let’s just say the Israelites’ obedience to his words, made history. (If you are unfamiliar with this incredible story, you can read the whole story here.)

What is Prayer Walking?

Prayer walking is just what it sounds like—praying as you walk. And you can do it anywhere: around your neighborhood, through your city, or even on your daily commute. Invite others to join you! As you walk together, let the Spirit of God use what you see to guide your prayers. Then, trust God to respond in His perfect way and timing.

One of the most impactful places for a prayer walk is around a school campus that means something to you. It puts you right where the students are—like God’s boots on the ground—allowing you to connect your heart to that specific location as you pray. And who knows? It might even lead to a chance meeting with a key person on campus. Many ministries have started with a simple “Hey there!” to a student or administrator during a prayer walk. A casual stroll can open unexpected doors!

If you have never done this before, no worries! Joshua—the young leader from the Bible—had not done it before either. It was his willingness and availability to God that mattered most. And the same goes for you—no experience required!

Prayer walking is just what it sounds like—praying as you walk.

Prayer Walk in Three Easy Steps

Meet Up (5 minutes)

Grab a friend or two and meet on campus- ideally after school or on the weekend. Select and read a meaningful passage from the Bible together. Take a minute to pray a blessing over this time, and ask the Holy Spirit to guide your prayers.

Walk & Pray (10-20 minutes)

Start walking the perimeter of the campus and let the Holy Spirit use who/what you see guide your prayers. Here are 5 ways you could begin praying:

  • Ask God to move by His Spirit on this campus and be glorified.
  • Pray people here would hunger and thirst for God.
  • Pray for the believers here to live wholeheartedly for Jesus and make others feel seen, known, and loved by God.
  • Pray for leaders in this school’s community (students, parents, administration, faculty, coaches, etc.)

Wrap It Up (5 minutes)

Select a spot to close your time together. Talk about how it went. Was there anything that stood out as significant or meaningful? Take a few minutes to thank God for this time. Express your love for Him and your confidence that He will respond to the prayers He heard today.

Other Prayer Walking Guides

If you would rather have a more specific guide to help you in your prayer walk, try one below:

One of the most impactful places for a prayer walk is around a school campus that means something to you.

Why Do It?

Prayer Walking Knocks Down Walls

What effect did Joshua’s and the Israelites’ obedience have on the fortified and powerful ancient city of Jericho? Well, the God of the Universe infused their faith-filled feet with power, causing the otherwise insurmountable walls of the city to collapse. That’s how they fought and won the battle of Jericho—without ever throwing a punch!

Now, maybe you are not planning to tear down any physical walls around your school—in fact, let’s definitely avoid that! But in the spiritual realm, every school is a battlefield for souls. On every campus, there are barriers to the gospel that need to be broken down. Inside every person, there are walls that separate us from God or keep us from fully experiencing the abundant life He wants for us.

Looking for a more current example of a battle fought and won with prayer? Check out this powerful story of what happened when a group of students in Marion, Indiana consistently and prayerfully put feet to their faith and watched God win the battle for their campus. If you want to read about more victories won with praying feet, check out Exodus 14 and 2 Chronicles 20:1-30.

Some Other Great Reasons to Prayer Walk Your Campus

  • It is a place to gather other believers who have a heart for the campus.
  • It is a way to be on campus with a purpose.
  • Sometimes God uses these times to introduce us to key gatekeepers on campus.
  • It might surface some needs on the campus with which you could help.
  • It helps your team become more familiar with the campus and less fearful of going there.
  • It is better than doing nothing. Sometimes God moves when we take action.

 

Within the campus ministry of Cru, prayer walking has actually been shown to be the single most effective strategy in seeing new gospel movements started.
Dan Allen, Director of Mission Expansion

 

The powerful presence of God always has and STILL does mix with our prayers and supernaturally connects us more deeply to God, ourselves, and others. Prayer breaks down barriers that lie between us and wins the battle for souls.

Prayer walking can be your lead foot on any campus. Ready to grab a friend and step into the unknown with Him? Prayer walking is something anyone can do.

Next Step
Plan 15 minutes this week to stop at your local high school, walk around, and pray for the school. Bring a friend or do it alone; just get your feet on the campus and pray. Ask God to show you what next steps He would like you to take.

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