Praying for Our Children and Grandchildren

Praying for Our Children and Grandchildren

     Every day—every single day—my parents prayed for me. Do you have any idea how comforting that is? If you have or had parents like that, then you know.

     I actually didn’t realize this until I was grown, but when I did I was flooded with gratitude. That awareness triggered great feelings of love to well up in my heart—love for them and the receiving of love from them. Only God knows of the bad things I have escaped because of their prayer covering.

     During the last couple years of their lives, when dementia invaded their minds, I came to realize that their daily petitions had probably ceased. Though saddened by that thought, I was confident their prayers still echoed in the heavens and were easily recalled by our Heavenly Father. 

     Have you prayed for your children (and grandchildren) today?

Here are six reasons we should pray daily for the children in our lives:

1. It’s our responsibility. Most likely no one else on the planet will be praying for our child every day. If you’re a grandparent or concerned adult, although you don’t have the responsibilities of parenting, you can still pray for the children you love. 

2. Jesus set the example in praying for children (Matt. 19:13). We have no greater example in all matters.

3. We need to set an example for children. Our children need to know that prayer is important to us and that we pray for them daily. Our own example is our chief teaching tool as we instruct children in spiritual matters.

4. We want our children to have an understanding of their need for salvation and that Jesus is the only way.  Even young children can comprehend this at a level that makes sense to them. The Holy Spirit knows how to work in each young spirit.

Growing up in an evangelical church, I knew at a young age, I needed salvation found only in Jesus. At age nine, I’d been pondering this for months. I remember mentally listing my sins. Then one Sunday I decided it was time. I walked forward and gave my hand to Pastor Rushing and my heart to Jesus.

5. There’s a war going on and the lives and souls of our children are the spoils. In the spiritual realm, warfare is taking place between God’s angels and Satan’s demons. Rest assured, Satan is real and wants our children. Jesus warned that he desires to “steal, kill, and destroy” anyone he can (John 10:10a). That includes you, me, and the children we love.

We can pray with confidence, knowing our Heavenly Father wants our children too. Jesus continued, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10b NKJV). Our children need to know these things.

6. Pray for wisdom in parenting. The role as parent is our most important job. Doing it well pays great dividends. We’d be hard-pressed to be great parents without divine wisdom and intervention. Consistency is key and that takes effort. Help from above is necessary. 

Regarding His statutes, God spoke through Moses: “You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of the heavens above the earth.” (Deut. 11:19-21 NKJV). 

Parenting is a daily responsibility that requires daily invoking the help and power from our Creator. God loves our kids and wants the best for our them. Only with God’s help can we do our very best to “train up a child in the way he should go” (Prov. 22:6 NKJV).

     Here are seven important things to pray for our children:

1.  Pray that, at a young age, they will realize their need to have a relationship with Jesus and will believe in and receive Him as Savior and Lord. If your children are already older it’s not too late. Still pray they will accept this Great Salvation (Hebrews 2:3-4).

2.  Pray they will develop a keen sense of right and wrong, based on biblical principles and a Christian worldview.

3.  Pray they will love God’s Word and yearn for its daily encouragement and instruction.

4.  Pray they will hunger and thirst for righteousness which will be reflected in their behavior and their thought life.

5.  Pray they will develop a strong prayer life that leads them into intimate fellowship with their Creator.

6.  Pray they will be tuned in to the Holy Spirit’s voice leading them day by day. This will help them avoid such things as being unequally yoked in relationships, especially marriage (2 Corinthians 6:14).

7.  Pray God’s Word over your children. As you read and study your Bible, when you come across a passage you would desire for your kids, pray those words over them. Even speak it out loud. When I do this, I sometimes write the name of a certain child or grandchild next to the verse.

     SO—we need to pray! We need to pray big time—every day—for our children and for ourselves as parents—grandparents—mentors.  
 
      I’ve seen the results of allowing children to figure out spiritual matters for themselves and it’s often not a pretty sight. When we sow to the wind, we may reap the whirlwind (Hosea 8:7a). It’s true that sometimes they find their way to God without parental involvement. Nonetheless, from what I’ve observed, the results of sewing to the wind regarding a child’s spiritual upbringing has reaped the whirlwind indeed.

      Examples I’ve witnessed have reaped addiction, sexual promiscuity and confusion, prison, mental and emotional insecurities, animosity toward God and parents, spiritual confusion, and all manner of chaos.

      So, let’s pray. Let’s pray every day for our children and grandchildren. Their eternal destiny may depend on it.

     What is your greatest prayer for the children in your life? Tell God, right now. Release it to Him and take heart in knowing He hears. Thank Him and worship Him because He loves, He knows, He cares, and He can work in ways that astound us.

     On my Facebook page, I post a scripture-based prayer for children every day. Each one is a good springboard for our appeal to God on behalf of the children in our lives. I’d be honored for you to check it out. See the prayers on Facebook at this link: https://www.facebook.com/ConnieWohlfordAuthor/.

©Connie Wohlford 2018

Daddy Defender

This little story, about my dad, tells of an occurrence that happened fifty-plus years ago. To me it’s a precious memory. “Happy Father’s Day, Daddy, in Heaven.”

Daddy Defender

 

    I walked into the restaurant to pick up a breakfast order for a group I was meeting with when I spotted my father’s old friend, eating alone at a small table.

     “Hi, Moose. Do you remember me?” I said, as I leaned in toward the small framed old man. 

     I do mean old man. Moose was ninety-seven years old at the time of this encounter. I had not seen him for a couple years and wasn’t sure how his memory was holding up. 

     “Of course, I know you, Connie. I’ll never forget the day you came in the barbershop and told your dad you were going to your horseback riding lesson.”

     I couldn’t hold back the grin as Moose continued on, rehearsing the story with amazing accuracy for a man so advanced in years. I listened intently to this friend, customer, and VFW comrade of my father. Since he had died a year earlier I felt warmly connected to Daddy while in Moose’s presence.

     I left the restaurant with my mind full of memories of Daddy and friends like Moose and of going to VFW picnics and events at the old VFW hall. Mostly, I tried to recall, minute by minute, the incident at Daddy’s barbershop that day. I was always amazed it had left such a lasting impression on Moose.   

  

     The event at the barbershop occurred when I was sixteen or seventeen years old. On this particular day I had stopped by Daddy’s shop after school to report in and tell Daddy I was heading to my horseback riding lesson.

      Daddy smiled and said, “Got your money?”  

      I nodded and he raised his clippers to wave me on.

      As I turned to leave, a customer who was waiting his turn for a haircut, spoke up and haughtily said, “You don’t have to pay money to learn to ride a horse.” 

     Silence fell over Central Barber Shop.

     Hands dropping to his sides, clinching comb and clippers, my father squared his shoulders, inhaled, looked the man in the eye, and with a slightly raised voice stated, “She earned that money herself and can spend it on anything she wants.”

     That simple statement settled the matter. After about half a minute of dead silence, the buzz of the other barbers’ clippers and the low talking of male voices resumed. 

     Glancing at Daddy’s flushed face, I left and prayed he would not have a heart attack over the episode. 

     While driving to the horse farm, I couldn’t help but wonder why the man made the remark. For a moment it made me feel small. 

     But thanks to my father, that was a short moment. With no hesitation, Daddy stepped up and took up for me in the face of ridicule.

     To people reading this, the whole incident may seem so small it’s hardly worth writing about. But to me, even fifty plus years later, I remember Daddy defending me that day. I left his shop holding my head high, knowing my honor had been upheld and that my father loved me enough to speak up even at the risk of losing a customer. 

     Obviously, I’m not the only one the event left an impression on. Through the years, when Moose and my paths would cross he almost always brought it up so we could share the memory together. The unspoken, yet most valuable component of our memory was the man—Rudy Edwards—his friend, my father.                                                   

     Each time the barbershop incident arose, we were lifting up a man we both loved and admired. It’s amazing how such a brief moment in time can travel through decades and remain alive in the hearts of an old WWII vet and a grandmother who was once the teen girl who never had to doubt her father’s love and loyalty. 

©Copyright 2018 Connie Wohlford