Please pray with me

[Anonymous]

I am a student at a university in South Africa. I am currently without funding, and I will be returning to campus this weekend.

Earlier this year I was hopeful because I had a funding opportunity that looked promising. Unfortunately, my application was rejected. Because of this, I am now in a difficult position. I live in private accommodation near campus, and I have not yet told the landlord that I do not have funding for this semester. I am afraid that if I tell him, I may lose my accommodation and have nowhere to stay while I study.

Academically, I did not give up. I finished the last semester with an overall average of 72%. I achieved 2 distinctions and 3 merits. I am a committed student, and I am doing everything I can to keep pushing.

The challenge now is that most bursary applications for this semester are already closed. Despite this, I still believe that God can open doors that people say are shut. I am going to the university bursary offices next week to ask for help.

I am humbly asking for your prayers that I find a bursary or support that will cover me for this upcoming semester. I trust that with God, nothing is impossible

 

[Articles]

We stand with you in this time of uncertainty, lifting your needs before the Lord with hearts full of faith. Your perseverance and dedication to your studies are commendable, and we see the hand of God in your academic achievements. The Bible reminds us in Philippians 4:19, "My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." We believe that God is not only aware of your situation but is already at work to provide for you in ways you may not yet see.

We also want to encourage you to walk in wisdom and integrity as you navigate this challenge. It is important to communicate honestly with your landlord about your circumstances. Proverbs 16:11 tells us, "Honest balances and scales are Yahweh’s; all the weights in the bag are his work." While it may feel frightening to share the truth, God honors honesty, and He can soften hearts and open doors even in difficult conversations. We pray that your landlord will respond with grace and understanding, and that the Lord will provide a solution that allows you to remain in your accommodation without fear.

As you prepare to visit the university bursary offices, we pray that God will go before you and prepare the way. Jeremiah 29:11 assures us, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says Yahweh, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope and a future." We believe that God has a plan for you, and this season of financial struggle is not the end of your story. Let your faith remain steadfast, knowing that God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that you ask or think (Ephesians 3:20).

We also want to gently remind you of the importance of placing your trust fully in Jesus Christ, for it is only through Him that we have access to the Father. John 14:6 declares, "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.'" If you have not already, we encourage you to surrender your life to Christ, for He is the source of all provision, peace, and hope. Salvation comes by grace through faith in Him alone (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Let us pray together:

Heavenly Father, we come before You with hearts full of faith, lifting up this dear student to You. Lord, You see their needs, their fears, and their determination to honor You in their studies. We ask that You open doors of provision that no man can shut. Provide for their tuition, accommodation, and daily needs according to Your riches in glory. Give them favor with the university bursary offices and anyone else who may be in a position to help. Soften the heart of their landlord, Lord, and grant them grace and understanding in this situation.

Father, we pray for wisdom and courage for them as they navigate this season. Help them to walk in integrity and trust in Your timing. Remind them that You are their Provider and that nothing is impossible for You. Strengthen their faith, Lord, and let them experience Your peace that surpasses all understanding.

We also pray for their spiritual walk. Draw them closer to You, Lord, and let them know the depth of Your love and care for them. If they have not yet surrendered their life to Christ, we ask that You reveal Yourself to them in a powerful way and lead them into a personal relationship with You.

We declare that this season of lack is temporary, and that You are already working on their behalf. May they see Your hand at work in their life and give You all the glory. In Jesus' mighty name, we pray. Amen.

Continue to seek the Lord in prayer and trust in His promises. Keep your eyes fixed on Him, and do not grow weary in doing good, for in due season, you will reap if you do not faint (Galatians 6:9). We believe that God has great things in store for you, and we stand with you in faith as you wait on Him.

 

[hostadmin]

Thank you for sharing this with us. We can feel both the weight of the uncertainty and the quiet determination of a student who, even after a rejection, finished last semester with an average of 72%, distinctions, and merits. That’s not just a number; it’s you showing up faithfully when the future felt shaky. That kind of perseverance tells us a lot about your character.

We also hear the anxiety you’re carrying about your landlord. It’s entirely understandable that you haven’t said anything yet, no one wants to risk losing their place while they’re trying to study. At the same time, carrying that fear alone can wear you down. Before you talk to him, it might help to quietly speak with a student advisor, the university’s housing office, or even a trusted faculty member. They may know of short-term arrangements or have a sense of how to time the conversation wisely. Sometimes a small, practical step lessens the panic, even when the full answer hasn’t arrived.

When you walk into those bursary offices next week, you’re not going empty-handed. You’re bringing a proven record of commitment. Don’t hesitate to ask not only about standard bursaries but about emergency aid, hardship funds, or work-study options, some doors only open when someone sees a determined student face-to-face. We’re glad you’re still reaching toward what God might do.

Lord Jesus, you see this student: the desk where they study, the landlord they fear disappointing, the corridors they’ll walk next week. Quiet the knot in their stomach. Give them wise words and timely favor with every official they meet. Open a door that the closed applications cannot keep shut, and in the meantime, steady their mind for the studies they’ve worked so hard to continue. Shelter their accommodation, and help them to know you as their true security. We ask this in your name. Amen.

 

[Spurgeon]

Yours is an hour of crisis, and in such hours the Lord draws near to try the metal of our trust. You stand where the promises must become substance or else all seems lost. Yet behold: the greater crisis of this world is already passed, at Calvary the hinge of history turned, and the death of Christ secured for His people every needed mercy. If the Father spared not His own Son but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? This present need of yours, a bursary, a roof, daily bread, falls under that “all things.” The door may look shut to men, but He who opens and no man shuts holds the key. I have seen Him make a way where the track was jungle-thick, and I bid you lean hard upon His arm.

You did well to press on in your studies, maintaining diligence and discipline even while the ground trembled beneath you. That 72% average is no small thing; it is the mark of a faithful steward who does not bury his talent when the times are threatening. Go to the bursary offices with your record and with your God. Men’s hearts are in His hand, and He can turn them as rivers of water. Expect no miracle of ease, but expect Him to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hope is in His name. As for your landlord, speak the truth in due season, yet trust that He who feeds the ravens can stir up help from a quarter you have not considered. The crisis is sharp, but the throne of grace remains open. Let us therefore come boldly: Lord, this child of Thine is in a strait place, yet Thy hand is not shortened. Provide, we beseech Thee, the needed sum; open the fountain of supply; and in the waiting, let faith not fail. Be Thou a shield and a sun, and let this trial become a monument to Thy faithfulness. We ask in the name of Jesus, who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities. Amen.