Praying for your children

Here are 31 biblical virtues or characteristics you can pray for your kids.  You could print this out and place it by your calendar.  This is a simple way to pray in a specific way each day of the month for your child (and for yourself).  If your child is older, these would be great memory verses, too!

Pray for... Bible reference

1.  Salvation Romans 10:9--If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

2.  Growth Luke 2:52--Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men.

Hebrews 6:1--Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity.

3.  Faith Hebrews 11:6--Without faith it is impossible to please God.

4.  Purity I Timothy 5:22--...keep yourself pure.

5.  Honesty 1 Corinthians 13:6--Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

6.  Gratitude 1 Thessalonians 5:18--Give thanks in all circumstances...

7.  Humility 1 Peter 5:5--...clothe yourselves with humility toward one another because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

8.  Trusting God Proverbs 3:5--Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  

9.  Obedience Numbers 15:40--Remember to obey all my commands.

10. Self-control Titus 2:11-12--For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.  It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.

11.  Self-esteem Ephesians 2:10--For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared for us in advance to do.

12.  Encouragement 1 Thessalonians 5:11--Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

13.  Confidence Proverbs 3:26--The LORD will be your confidence.

14.  Kindness 1 Thessalonians 5:15--Always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.

15.  Gentleness Philippians 4:5--Let your gentleness be evident to all...

16.  Identity Galatians 3:29--If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

17.  Perseverance Philippians 3:13-14--Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

18.  Prayer 1 Thessalonians 5:17--Pray continually.

19.  Compassion Zechariah 7:9--Show mercy and compassion to one another.

20.  Generosity 2 Corinthians 9:7--God loves a cheerful giver.

21.  Peace-loving 1 Corinthans 7:15--God has called us to live in peace.

22.  Respect 1 Peter 2:17--Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.

23.  Hope Hebrews 6:19--We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.

24.  Joy 1 Thessalonians 5:16--Be joyful always.

25.  Boldness 2 Timothy 1:7--For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

26.  Service 1 Peter 4:10--Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others...

27.  Love Hebrews 10:24--Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

28.  Holiness 1 Peter 1:16--Be holy because I am holy.

29.  Witnessing Proverbs 11:30--The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.

30.  Good example 1 Timothy 4:12--Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.

31.   Readiness Colossians 4:5--Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.  Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt so that you may know how to answer everyone.

I challenge you to pray over these things in the upcoming month.  Be lifted!  And lift your children up in prayer.

Prayers of babes

My three-year-old is into praying.  He is grateful to God for things I don't think of.  My ten-year-old tends to get irritated when the little one prays too long.  She can have the attitude that God doesn't care about "goofy" things like toys and other things a little boy might pray about.  I am a firm believer that God is grinning when my little guy prays.  Nothing is too long or tedious for God...not when it comes to gratitude!  Here's an example of what I'm describing:

"Thank you God for my bed.  Thank you God for my Star Wars plate.  Thank you for sister, for brother, for Mom, and Dad.  Thank you for Grandma Mary.  Thank you for Grandpa Ike.  Thank you for the grandma that gives us cookies.  Thank you for my Star Wars book.  Thank you for Lego Batman.  Thank you for our new characters on Lego Batman.  Thank you for fruit snacks.  Thank you for my pillow.  Thank you for our basketballs.  Bless our bodies.  Amen."

This is fairly typical these days.  Some days are funnier some days are more serious.  Most prayers are actually longer.  Recently he added a new one:

"Thank you God for God.  And thank you for the other God.  I can't think of his name, but the other God..."

I had to prompt him but he was talking about JESUS!  How sweet!  How often do we thank God for himself?  How often do we distinguish between Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit when we are saying thanks?  I don't typically thank God for these things.  I am learning to thank God for everything, fruit snacks included!  And my ten-year-old is learning that God is pleased when we say "thank you."  It's not just about saying the prayers, it's about our grateful hearts and attitudes.  

I encourage you to write down the prayers that come out the mouths of your babes.  Years from now you can be blessed all over again.

Be lifted!

Matthew 19:14

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

Busy Mom's Guide to Prayer

I appreciated the care Sue took in posting on Wednesday about her frustrations. I'm sure many of you could relate to one or more of her concerns and challenges.

Meditating on Scripture and praying are 2 very important things we can do for our spiritual and physical health. With two little kids and lots to do, I have found one resource very helpful to guide my prayers. It's called The Busy Mom's Guide to Prayer by Lisa Whelchel. I highly recommend it! For each day, it has a prayer prompt for:

1. Praise
2. For Yourself
3. For Your Husband
4. For Your Children
5. For Personal Influences
6. Reaching Beyond

She provides Scriptures to pray so you know you're praying about God's will. I've found it helpful to "maximize" my prayer time. Ten minutes with this journal in hand is time well spent with God.

So if you're frustrated with your job or losing weight this week, why don't you take your needs to God in prayer right now? And maybe pick up Lisa Whelchel's book for yourself.

"I will sing of the loving kindness of the Lord forever. To all
generations I will make known Your faithfulness with my mouth." Psalm 89:1