It was the first road trip we had taken since summer had ended. We were driving the church van, and the steering started to shake. I pulled to the side of the road, and the eighth grader up front stepped out to see if we’d blown a tire. He quickly informed me the rear passenger tire was spewing air, and then climbed back into the van so we could find a good spot to change the tire. So began a two-hour tire change where nothing went right.

With a group of nine teenagers and three adults, two hours on the side of the road to change a single tire is difficult, and there are plenty of sources for frustration. Then, at one of the bleakest points for me as the leader, I heard a chorus of cell phone text alerts, including my own. It was the daily prayer.

About a month before the trip, I invited the kids to sign up for a daily prayer text group. I would schedule texts through the SendHub text service to be sent each morning before school started, and on Saturdays and Sundays around 9:30 or 10 a.m. I had the very distinct privilege that November morning of seeing the text reminder in action.

The setup was simple. Once I created an account and discovered messages could be scheduled for a specific day and time, I invited the kids to sign up by texting the unique number associated with my account. Then, I created a calendar with recurring themes each week: Mondays repeat each week—”a burden for their school to come to know Christ.” Thursdays would play off the lesson the previous night. Fridays would focus on praying for a friend or family member.

What was the daily prayer that Saturday when I was at the height of frustration with a stubborn lug nut? “Thank God for something He has done in your life.” How humbling.

I love knowing I have a group of kids who are reminded daily to pray for their school, their friends and family, and focusing on God’s goodness. The daily prayer has been one of the least time-consuming, highest yielding efforts yet…even when changing a tire.