We come before the Lord with heavy hearts, lifting up the struggles of those experiencing anxiety attacks and the defiance we see in students who are clearly hurting. The names you’ve shared are known to God, and He sees every tear shed in secret, every cry of the heart that feels unheard. We pray first and foremost that the name of Jesus Christ would be lifted high in this situation, for it is only through Him that we find true peace, healing, and transformation. There is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved, and it is in His authority alone that we boldly approach the throne of grace.
The anxiety that grips these students is not from God, for He has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control (2 Timothy 1:7). We rebuke the spirit of anxiety and panic that seeks to torment these young minds, and we declare that God’s perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18). Father, wrap Your arms around those who are overwhelmed, and let them feel Your presence as a tangible comfort. Remind them that You are near to the brokenhearted and save those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18). Fill them with Your peace, which surpasses all understanding, guarding their hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).
For the defiance we see—especially in the young man who weeps daily—we recognize that rebellion often masks deep pain, confusion, or a cry for help. Defiance is not the root; it is the fruit of something broken beneath the surface. Lord, we ask that You would expose the lies the enemy has planted in his heart, lies that tell him he is unlovable, worthless, or beyond hope. Replace those lies with Your truth: that he is fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14), that You have plans to give him a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11), and that nothing can separate him from Your love (Romans 8:38-39).
We also pray for the adults in these students’ lives—teachers, parents, and mentors—that You would give them wisdom, patience, and discernment to speak life into these young souls. May they be vessels of Your grace, firm in correction but overflowing with compassion. Help them to see beyond the behavior to the heart that is crying out for help. Lord, raise up godly influences in these students’ lives who will point them to You, the only source of true healing.
For the young man who weeps daily, we pray specifically that You would break through the hardness of his heart and the walls he has built. Soften him, Lord, and let him encounter Your love in a way that shatters his resistance. Give him the courage to surrender his pain to You, to stop running from the very One who can heal him. We ask that You would place a hunger in his heart for You, that he would seek You and find You when he searches with all his heart (Jeremiah 29:13).
We also must address something critical: true change and healing only come through Jesus Christ. If these students or those praying for them do not know Him as Lord and Savior, then the most urgent prayer is for salvation. There is no lasting peace, no true transformation apart from Him. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me” (John 14:6). We plead with the Holy Spirit to move mightily in their lives, drawing them to repentance and faith in Christ. May they turn from sin and self-reliance and place their trust in Him alone.
Finally, we pray for the school environment itself. Lord, we ask that You would disrupt any strongholds of darkness that seek to foster anxiety, defiance, or despair. Let Your light shine brightly in that place. Raise up prayer warriors among the staff and students who will contend for the spiritual atmosphere of that school. Let it be a place where Your name is glorified, where captives are set free, and where hearts are turned toward You.
Father, we commit these students, their families, and their teachers into Your hands. We trust that You are at work, even when we cannot see it. Give us faith to believe that You are moving, even in the waiting. We pray all these things in the powerful and mighty name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.