All the Bible verses in this edition of The Presidential Prayer Team
for Kids Update are from The New Living Translation of the Bible.
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  • It’s October and that means…not the World Series, silly! The Supreme Court!
  • President Bush’s words of appreciation for our judicial system.
  • America’s first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court—do you know this great and godly man?

Things to pray for

Do you like to spell? If you get really good at spelling, it could get you a trip to the White House. That’s what happened to Kerry Close, seen here outside the Oval Office. Kerry, from Spring Lake, NJ is this year’s National Spelling Bee champ, and she paid a visit to President and Mrs. Bush last week. In this photo they are calling first dogs Barney and Miss Beazley. Photo courtesy of the White House.
  1. This week another school had to face a hostage-taking situation as a man walked into Platte Valley High School in Bailey, CO and took some kids hostage. This was a very sad situation, and it really reminds us to pray for all the schools in America to be safe places of learning and joy, asking God to protect them with His care. Pray for the principals and teachers of every school as they work to keep their schools safe, and pray that anyone who thinks about taking kids hostage in a school will be stopped from doing so before they even start. Pray that the hurting people in our country who take their hurts out on others will get the help they need.
  2. President Bush is working to keep people safe too. But he is concerned with the safety everyone in the United States! As he continues to lead our troops and our government in the war on terror, we must pray for the President to have God’s encouragement and wisdom every single day. His job is a very difficult one, and he looks to God for help, so when we pray for the President, our prayers are very effective! Pray for President Bush to be guided by God in everything he does to lead our country. Pray for other leaders on his team as they work together, especially in the war on terror.
  3. By now you probably know that our country has some big elections coming up very soon. Maybe you’ve seen political advertisements on television. It might seem to confusing to you, or even to your parents, but with only 40 days until the elections, it’s an important time to pray for the elections on November 7. Pray that all Americans will take time to clear away the confusion and pray about how they should vote on each candidate and each issue. Pray that people will long, with all their hearts, to do God’s will in these elections and that people who love God and who will truly honor Him will be elected on November 7. If you’d like help praying for the elections, The Presidential Prayer Team has great resources available for you. Click HERE to see them. Click HERE for a way to pray every day for the next 40 days. When you get to this room, click on the book that says “Pray the Vote.”
  4. Our troops are still working very hard all over the world. They are in Afghanistan, Iraq, Germany, Korea and many other places. They are making sacrifices to help us remain free here at home, so we must pray for our troops as they serve our country, asking God to protect each one with His power and care, and asking Him to take care of their kids and their family and friends back home.

Leaders to pray for

Portrait courtesy of the United States Supreme Court.

This week we are giving you a big list of people to pray for, and it is a very important list! These are the nine members of the United States Supreme Court, and the decisions they make can be very powerful, sometimes even changing very basic things about our country!

There are nine members of the Supreme Court. Each one is a judge who has a very good knowledge of the law and the justice system in America. One member is the head--known as the Chief Justice. He or she is responsible for the administration of the court in addition to writing opinions on cases. Currently, John Roberts, in the middle of the front row, is the Chief Justice.

The Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States as of 2006.
Top row (left to right): Stephen G. Breyer, Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Samuel A. Alito. Bottom row (left to right): Anthony M. Kennedy, John Paul Stevens, John G. Roberts, Antonin G. Scalia, and David H. Souter.

We always pray for you, and we give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for we have heard that you trust in Christ Jesus and that you love all of God's people. You do this because you are looking forward to the joys of heaven--as you have been ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News. This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world. It is changing lives everywhere, just as it changed yours that very first day you heard and understood the truth about God's great kindness to sinners.
—Colossians 1:3-6

Let us go right into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him. For our evil consciences have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.
—Hebrews 10:22

Photo courtesy of the United States Supreme Court.

What is the Supreme Court?
The Supreme Court is just what it sounds like--the top, the most, the highest court in the land! You can’t go any higher than the Supreme Court. The legal cases that come before the Supreme Court have been debated, discussed and ruled on in lower courts, but for a variety of reasons, they have been passed up to higher courts until they come before the Supreme Court. When the Supreme Court rules on something, it can’t go any higher, or to any other court.

This is an overhead view of the Supreme Court Building in Washington, D.C. The Court needs a large home to get all its work done well! Photo courtesy of the United States Senate.

When our Founding Fathers were pondering the manner in which our government would be set up, they knew that they couldn’t place all the power or authority with just one part of the government. For example, what if the federal government had all the authority? Then the states would not be able to protect their interests. What if the states had more say than the federal government? Then the states would be too powerful and the central government wouldn’t be able to do what it needed to do. But even if there was a balance between the states and the federal government, as anyone who has played “Go Fish” with just two people knows, two opposite forces can quickly come to a standoff. That’s how we came to have a system of courts in addition to the federal and state governments--as a way of balancing things out. The courts (or the judicial system, as it is called) are the balance to the federal and state governments.

You may have heard the phrase “a system of checks and balances” to describe how our Constitution settled this matter. The checks and balances are just that--a way of making sure that no single branch of our government has too much power. So the framers of the Constitution came up with a three-part system of government that we now take for granted. We call each part of the government a “branch.”

The Executive Branch--the President and the White House
The Legislative Branch--the Congress, providing representation for every state
The Judicial Branch--the Court system, all the way to the Supreme Court

Because of this system of checks and balances, our Constitution stands as a model of cooperative statesmanship and a great example of the art of compromise. Many other countries have copied the principles written in to our Constitution, and it has helped democracy flourish all over the world.

Photo courtesy of the White House.

We're all proud of our judiciary. We know that justice and security and prosperity can flourish only in a society governed by law. We're grateful to our federal courts, we're grateful for the vital work that they play in our American system. Federal judges are key to make sure America functions well. Every day, they uphold the rights of an individual, protect the innocent, they punish the guilty. Their rulings are essential to the rule of law in our nation.
--George W. Bush

Portrait of John Jay courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery.

John Jay was one of our Founding Fathers. He was a member of the First and Second Continental Congresses and he served for a time as the President of the Continental Congress. He helped write the Constitution of New York and was also the Governor of the State of New York. He helped young America in her foreign affairs too, by serving as minister to Spain and by negotiating peace with Great Britain (along with John Adams and Ben Franklin). John Jay was also a man of great and godly faith who wanted to see America honor God in all her ways.

Educated at King’s College (now Columbia University), Jay was not too excited about the idea of America’s independence at first--after all he, like all of our Founders, was a loyal British subject. In fact, Jay resigned from the Continental Congress rather than sign the Declaration of Independence. But, once independence was declared, John Jay was very supportive of the new country, and got very involved in working together with other leaders to decide how it could be governed fairly. He helped in many ways, including drafting the Federalist Papers, a document that urged the support of the new Constitution.

Once the Constitution was in place, George Washington appointed John Jay to be the very first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. This was a very high honor. After serving as Chief Justice for five years, he stepped down from the Court and became Governor of New York. President John Adams asked him to again become Chief Justice in 1800--an opportunity he politely declined.

This painting shows John Jay in his judicial robes, just as he looked when he served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. After Jay, Justices began wearing all black robes, in keeping with more conservative styles. You can see Chief Justice Jay’s brightly colored robe in the Smithsonian Institution. Portrait courtesy of the Supreme

John Jay didn’t just serve his country with enthusiasm, giving himself in many challenging ways. He was also elected President of the American Bible Society in 1821. He was a godly man whose faith in God was unquestioned. In that sense, he was much like many of the other Founders. His faith in God and his belief in the Word of God pretty much governed everything he did. Here are some of his thoughts about the Bible and its value to all people:

By conveying the Bible to people thus circumstanced, we certainly do them a most interesting kindness. We thereby enable them to learn that man was originally created and placed in a state of happiness, but, becoming disobedient, was subjected to the degradation and evils which his posterity have since experienced. The Bible will also inform them that our gracious Creator has provided for us a Redeemer, in whom all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; that this Redeemer has made atonement “for the sins of the whole world…”

WEEKLY QUIZ

QUESTION 1

Read John Jay’s words about the Bible again. Which statement best explains how he felt about God’s Word?

  1. We shouldn’t share the Bible with people because it would be unkind.
  2. We should share the Bible with people so they know how very lost they are and how bad their lives are!
  3. When we provide the Scriptures for others, they come to know how much God, their Creator cares for them--then they can know that God has provided a way to eternal life for them through His Son, our Redeemer.

QUESTION 2

Read John Jay’s words again, and think about what he said the Bible can do. Then decide which statement best describes John Jay’s view of the value of Scripture.

  1. John Jay said that the Bible is good for Americans, because it helps Americans know that they are God’s favorite people.
  2. John Jay believed that all nations have sinned before God so all nations need the Bible.
  3. John Jay said that God wants to bless all nations of the earth--that means every single one of His people, no matter where they live or how they live. And he knew that the Bible carries this message in a way that nothing else can!

QUESTION 3

Why is it important to pray for the members of the Supreme Court this week?

  1. We should ray for the members of the Court because the Scriptures command us to pray for our leaders and those in authority.
  2. We should pray for the members of the Court because their decisions affect everyone in the country.
  3. We should pray for the members of the Supreme Court because they have been through a lot of changes in the past year and a half.

QUESTION 4

Why are there nine justices on the Supreme Court?

  1. Nine was a favorite number of the Founding Fathers, so they decided it would be a good number for the Court.
  2. There were only nine chairs in the courtroom
  3. Actually, there weren’t nine justices when the Court began. But it is a good number to have so that there is never a tie vote.

QUESTION 5

What is the role of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?

  1. The Chief Justice gets the best spot on the bench.
  2. The Chief Justice organizes the Court and acts as its administrator.
  3. The Chief Justice gets one more vote than everyone else, so he or she can break a tie if needed.

QUESTION 6

True or False The Supreme Court was created as a way to balance out the power of the presidency and the Congress.

  1. True
  2. False

Portrait of John Jay courtesy of the State Department.

Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers. It is to be regretted, but so I believe the fact to be, that except the Bible there is not a true history in the world. Whatever may be the virtue, discernment, and industry of the writers, I am persuaded that truth and error (though in different degrees) will imperceptibly become and remain mixed and blended until they shall be separated forever by the great and last refining fire.
John Jay, Founding Father and first Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court

John Jay was convinced that God’s Word was a wonderful resource and blessing for every person on earth. Can you think of a Bible verse that talks about how excellent the Scriptures are? Hover here to read.

Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Did you ever wonder how some of our Founding Fathers lived? John Jay couldn’t wait to enjoy his homestead in New York’s Westchester County once he retired. He built a beautiful home that was enjoyed by him and his family for centuries.

John Jay’s living room probably looked something like this. Photo courtesy of the John Jay Homestead.

John Jay started building this home in 1799 after a long and rewarding career in politics. The home was finally finished in 1801 and has 24 rooms. He lived in this home until 1829 when he passed away. After Justice Jay’s death, many generations of his family continued to live in the home. This photo was taken in 1961. The home has now been restored to its original beauty and decorated in the style of the Colonial period. It serves as a New York State Park and Museum.

A WORD TO PPT KIDS

Isn’t it neat to think about the great way that God led our Founding Fathers when they were thinking up the ways that our government would work? The idea of a court system that would balance out the elected representatives (Congress) and the Head of State (the President), was a good one, and it has served our nation well.

You can see from today’s update that the Supreme Court is a very important part of our government. That’s why it is so important that all praying Americans--especially kids--pray for the members of the Supreme Court--their influence is on the same level as the Congress and the President! It’s important that we have godly judges--people whose faith is strong and who will honor God’s Word. As the members of the Court head back, be sure that you are keeping them in your prayers, asking God to give them wisdom, help them hear His voice, and to work together as they shape the decisions of the highest court in our land.

And while you are at it, remember to thank God for the great, gifted and godly leaders He has called into leadership throughout the history of America—especially people like Chief Justice John Jay.

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