10 Ways to Pray for Our Kids & Grandkids by Mary May Larmoyeux |
| Over the decades, I’ve experienced happiness and heartache and witnessed the amazing power of prayer. “He is able” has become a theme of my life. When our now grown children and foster children were younger, there were times when I thought, “Yes, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, but I can’t make this child do anything.” I was right. Through prayer I have witnessed God orchestrate seemingly hopeless situations. Yes, He can move the mountains ... and He can move the hearts of those we love. Here are ten ways that we can pray for our children and grandchildren: 1. Surrender. When Hannah prayed that God would bless her with a son, she promised that she would give him to the Lord (1 Samuel 1:11). Our children are God’s first. He has entrusted us to raise them in homes that lovingly draw them to Himself. Although God’s first children did not obey Him, He did not give up on them. Nor should we give up on our legacy. If what we are doing is not working, we should seek godly counsel and leave our child in God’s capable hands. One of my favorite verses is Luke 1:37: “Nothing is impossible with God.” 2. Praise. It’s easy to praise God when things are going well, but much harder when we have broken hearts and shattered dreams. Psalm 150:2 says, “Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness.” As I praise God for Who He is, I realize that He is able to do anything. He can sovereignly intervene in my loved one’s life. 3. Petition. Ask God to change our loved one’s heart. Ezekiel 37:4-5 says, “ .. ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.” God is the giver of all physical and spiritual life. Only He can soften our child’s heart and draw our child to Himself. May we come to God over and over, petitioning him to breath spiritual life into our child. 4. Be joyful. Nehemiah 8:10 reminds us that our strength is in the joy of the Lord. To me, that means resting in the fact that God does work all for good—for His purposes (Romans 8:28). Regardless of any situation, I can be joyful knowing that God has a plan … a good plan. Psalm 143:8 says, “Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.” When darkness surrounds us because of a child’s decisions, we can choose to trust God’s heart. To paraphrase the words of the psalmist, “Almighty God, may I trust You today, even though I don’t feel like it, because You are love itself, and love never fails. God please guide my thoughts, words, and actions—show me what I should do in this seemingly impossible situation.” I’ve found that singing praise songs, even when I least likely wanted to sing, lifted my soul. It also turned my eyes from despair to hope in our great God. 5. Believe. In our frail humanity, it’s sometimes easier to try to fix a situation than to leave it with God and really believe that He can do anything. The father of the demon-possessed boy (Mark 9:17-26) asked the creator of all if He could help his son. “If you can?” asked Jesus in response to his questions. Then Christ added, “Everything is possible for him who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief!” God knows that it’s hard for us to really believe that nothing is impossible for Him. At times like this, may we ask Him to remove the blinders from our own eyes and help us overcome our unbelief. 6. Remember: We are told in 1 Chronicles 16:12, “Remember the wonders he has done.” As we remember God’s past faithfulness in our lives, we trust Him for tomorrow. I remember when our oldest son was born prematurely more than 30 years ago. When he was less than a day old, the doctor said he would not live through the night. In her professional eyes, living for our son was impossible—but God intervened. The Great Physician showed that nothing is impossible with Him. I remember the Lord using a surgeon’s skilled hand to heal my husband from cancer. Today he is cancer free and the future is bright. I remember God softening my father’s heart to His ways on his deathbed. Now I rejoice, knowing that Dad and I will spend eternity together. As we remember the many Red Seas that God has parted in our lives, we begin to realize that He is always able. Able to do anything … in His way … in His timing. 7. Ask God to remove the veil from our loved ones eyes. Romans 1:28 tells us that sometimes God allows man to have his own way. “He gave them over,” it says, “to a depraved mind to do what ought not to be done.” May we pray that the Lord will divinely orchestrate circumstances in our children’s lives so that they will turn from what displeases God. Ask God—beg Him—to never give them over to a depraved mind. 8. Ask God to give us wise, gentle words. We are told in Proverbs 17:27, “A man of knowledge uses words with restraint and a man of understanding is even tempered.” For me, it’s far too easy for rash words to pour out of my mouth when I’m tired and frustrated. And when that happens, it doesn’t help anything. May we ask God to give us grace-filled words even in the most difficult circumstance. Luke 21:15a says, “For I will give you words and wisdom.” When we wait on God and ask Him to guide our words, He will do it. 9. Pray for a hedge of protection. Satan wants nothing more than to turn our hearts away from God. He’ll use difficult circumstances to whisper in our ears, “See what you get for following God. You can’t trust Him.” Psalm 31:4 says, “Free me from the trap that is set before me.” May we ask God to put a hedge of protection around not only our children, but also our own hearts so that we will not doubt His goodness … His mercy … His love. May we pray for ourselves and our children—that we will recognize the traps of the evil one and not be ensnared by them. 10. Rest. God offers rest in the midst of any life storm. Psalm 91:1-2 says, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.’” When we are tempted to despair, may we step into the presence of the great I Am, and pray: You, Oh, Lord, are my fortress. I surrender to You. I trust You … even now. |
Mary is the author of Help for Busy Moms: Purposeful Living to
Simplify Life and the co-author of The Resurrection Eggs®
Activity Book. She and her husband, Jim, live in Little Rock,
Arkansas, and have two married sons and five grandchildren.
You can contact her at mary@marymaywrites.com.
Simplify Life and the co-author of The Resurrection Eggs®
Activity Book. She and her husband, Jim, live in Little Rock,
Arkansas, and have two married sons and five grandchildren.
You can contact her at mary@marymaywrites.com.
Copyright © 2009 by Mary May Larmoyeux. All rights reserved.
