In Part 1, we introduced 7 wonderful mothers and grandmothers who have over 670 years of experience in praying for their children and grandchildren.
Today, we will hear more about their principles and practices of prayer through a series of questions. Below are two of the questions which we posed to each mother:
When did you first realize the importance of praying for your children/grandchildren?
- Kathy – Inspired by a friend in high school, Carolyn (Christian) Still, who was praying for her future children.
- Linita – As a young married couple, we sought to establish our home on the foundation of Jesus Christ. My husband would often quote Psalm 127 and focus intently on verses 3-5: “Behold, children are a gift, (heritage, blessing) from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.” We sincerely consider each of our children “a gift” and for us to be able to raise 5 out of the 7 children–2 are already with the Lord–is a true blessing from the Lord.
- Monica – I think I first realized the importance of praying for our children/grandchildren was as a child. I had great godly grandparents on my dad’s side that I would always hear and see them praying for their own grown children and their grandchildren. Even though they are gone now that example still lives on through my parents. I have been lucky to have great examples of praying parents, not only in my family but also with Zeke’s family.
- Jamie – Even before our oldest was born, I understood the importance of prayer for my kids. I remember having a book that someone gave to me when I was pregnant that had month by month information about our growing baby, areas to journal, as well as ways to pray for him.
- Julie – I started praying for my children before they were conceived. For my grandchildren it was when I heard that their mama and daddy were having a baby.
- Kayla– I recognized the importance of prayer for children when my husband and I miscarried our first baby. We were newly married and thought we had more control over when we wanted children than we really did. Walking through our first loss God really showed us that he is the creator or life and death. He will determine the children we have and the order he sees fit for our family. It takes a lot of pressure off to just release and let God have control. The gender, the age difference, the order, he’s got it all figured out for us and knows exactly what is best. We just have to trust him in and through the process even when times may be uncertain or difficult.
Do you have a regular scheduled time or system in which you pray for your children/grandchildren?
- Joyce – I do include my children and grandchildren in my scheduled prayer times. However, I am OFTEN awakened in the night times to pray for certain ones of the 7, which the Lord lays on my soul. Those are the earnest prayers of a grandmother for protection and provision for them. I have prayed specific prayers for each child but in general I have prayed for each one’s salvation, protection as each goes through his daily routine, wisdom for each one to make Godly choices, for a generous and humble spirit for each one, for their purity of heart, and for all of them to be obedient to parents and ultimately to the Lord in their walk with Him.
- Kathy – On Tuesdays I pray for revival in Albuquerque. I also pray for my kids and grandkids very hard on that day. When I pray with my youngest child before bed almost every night, we pray for “all 19 of us,” that we will be safe, healthy, and Godly. Often, we pray that God would be honored in our thoughts, our actions, and our words. We also pray for many other issues at night together. Recently a friend in India gave each of us an unreached, unengaged people group to pray for. I pray for the issues that my kids are struggling with. I also lift up my kids’ future spouses and pray that God would protect them from evil and help them to be Godly. We also pray that when our kids sin, they will be caught. I pray that my kids would absolutely hunger and thirst for righteousness. That they would hate sin.
- Monica – Most of the time I start off my day praying for my children and grandchildren.
- Linita – Becoming grandparents has just added to the prayer list and has also brought to mind the perspective of “legacy” as we watch our children establish their own households on the foundation of Jesus Christ.
- Jamie – In my journal, I like to keep a list of requests that I pray for each day of the week. So, while I pray for the kids throughout the week, there is one day a week that I really focus on praying for one specific child. In the past I’ve also used a monthly calendar where each day is a different request that I prayed for all of my children… for example one day pray for their friendships, another day pray for the health, another day pray for the walk with the Lord, etc. Each item also had a scripture along with it. A very dear friend of mine, who is a bit older than me and just became a grandma this year, shared with me that she would pray for her family members while ironing clothes. As she ironed her son’s clothes, she would pray for him, as she ironed her daughter’s clothes, she prayed for her, etc.
- Julie – I have a scheduled time during the morning that I pray for my children and grandchildren. But I also find myself praying for them at other times throughout the day.
- Kayla– This is an area I definitely need to work on but, my goal and my desire is to pray for my children in the mornings before they wake up. I think so much of our day gets started off on the right or wrong foot by what and how much we release to God. If I wake up thinking I have control of the day things just don’t go as smoothly as when I wake up with open hands and ask the Lord to guide our day and to help my children wake up with joy and thankfulness in their hearts. I also love praying with my children at night and letting them hear the character qualities I see in them and affirming those each out loud. This is also a time when we can talk and ask the Lord to help us in areas we may need help in. I love the opportunity to ask my children who and what they would like to pray for as well.
Our Harvesting Home readers and I would love to hear from you as well. If you have a particular insight or practice that would be helpful to others, please share in the comments below!
Stay tuned for Part 3 on Wednesday, and the conclusion on Friday with an encouraging word to all of us to whom some of these daily disciplines do not come easy! We will make a 31 Days of Praying For Your Children printable available to our Harvesting Home subscribers.
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