The other day I got a weekly e-mail from the Department of Communications of the Wesleyan Church. It seems the youth of today aren’t much different than the youth of thousands of years ago.

A tablet found in ancient Assyria, dated around 2800 B.C. says, “Our earth is degenerate in these latter days. There are signs that the world is speedily coming to an end. Bribery and corruption are common.”

More than two thousand years later, Socrates charged, “Children are now tyrants . . . they no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize over their teachers.” And Plato grumbled about his students: “What is happening to our young people? They ignore the law. They riot in the streets inflamed with wild notions. Their morals are decaying.”

Our children are under attack as demonstrated by the past week’s events. Never have I felt such an impression to pray for our students daily. If we’re lucky, our churches get to teach them for 3 or 4 hours a week. My daughter showed her maturity this past Sunday during our prayer time as she asked the congregation to pray for all of the students. I urge you to pray for the students of your church. Pray for their church teachers and pray for their school teachers. Your students are not the church of tomorrow, but the church of today and beyond!