Praying for Our Children

My friend Mary asked me to speak about praying for our children. I got up early in the morning and my first thought was why did she do that? Why did she ask me? She knows how I fall short. But that is the point, she knows me and she knows I will tell you the truth. It isn't easy being a mom, especially a young mom, and be consistent on your prayer life. It's not easy being a working mom either. Although I don't want to let you off the hook, I just want you to know that nobody does this perfectly. The truth is God honors our struggles. He loves for us to need Him. He loves for us to acknowledge that this thing called motherhood is too big for us. We need Him and we need each other. Remember that above all things.
The Psalms say.....

Psalm 145
NIV

A psalm of praise. Of David.
I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and ever.
Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and ever.

Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
his greatness no one can fathom.
One generation will commend your works to another;
they will tell of your mighty acts.
They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
They will tell of the power of your awesome works,
and I will proclaim your great deeds.
They will celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

The LORD is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.
The LORD is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.
All you have made will praise you, O LORD ;
your saints will extol you.
They will tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might,
so that all men may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures through all generations.

The LORD is faithful to all his promises
and loving toward all he has made.
The LORD upholds all those who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and loving toward all he has made.
The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
The LORD watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD .
Let every creature praise his holy name
for ever and ever.

There are a lot of lessons in Psalm 145 we can obtain guidance in prayer for our kids from.

1. Praise is important and it should be something our children see in us.

When my children were young I used to sing praise songs over them after I prayed for them aloud at bedtime. I can't sing, but I believe it taught them things about God. It showed my love and devotion for Him and I hope it became a foundation of praise. It also caused them to fall asleep, a bonus. My favorite song was:

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, His mercies never come to an end they are new every morning, new every morning, great is thy faithfulness O Lord, great is thy faithfulness.

2. The Lord is patient with us.

The LORD is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.
The LORD is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.

I think we need to know that when things go wrong. Let's say it has been three weeks since we seriously prayed for our children, we should not despair. God knows us. He knows we get busy and are consumed sometimes by life. But He wants us to return to Him in prayer and depend on Him

3. The next thing this Psalm tells us is verses 14 is how He views us when we fail.

The LORD upholds all those who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.

4. The next verse prove my point. He will answer us if we return to Him.

The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
The LORD watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

My first prayer partner and spiritual mentor is named Sharon. She was my neighbor the two years I spent in California when my children were young. She taught me to pray fervently and she modeled it in our prayer times. There is no substitute for crying out to the Lord.

He hears their cry and saves them.

Sharon has prayed many desperate prayers for her children, as I have. Recently, I have seen the fruits of her prayers fulfilled in the life of her oldest daughter for whom she has cried out to God for years. One simple prayer, "Lord, I want my daughter to draw near to You, to know that You are real, to learn to rely on You." Melissa has been through some very difficult times. As we speak Melissa is in Indian on the mission field serving as a nurse for a few weeks in the aftermath of the Tsunami. It is a life changing experience already. That a beautiful young women from California would leave her comfort zone travel across the globe into deplorable conditions to be used by God is an awesome thing to be a part of. I had the privilege of helping to support her financially in her journey. It has been a long journey of faith for my friend. We have a faithful God, so share Him with your children at every bend in the road and remember:

Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
his greatness no one can fathom.
One generation will commend your works to another;
they will tell of your mighty acts.
They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
They will tell of the power of your awesome works,
and I will proclaim your great deeds.
They will celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

This devotional was written several years ago. This month Melissa is on her way to Africa to serve as a nurse. After numerous short term mission trips she felt God call her to serve Him in a more permanent position.