A Mother’s Prayers
Do you remember the early days of motherhood? Not the exhausted, desperate, trying-to-understand-your-baby days, but the first time you truly realized the blessings of motherhood. Perhaps it was as you watched your baby sleep, you recognized the gift you had been given. Maybe it was her first slobbery kiss on your cheek, his first steps into your waiting arms, or the first time you heard “mama” from tiny lips. Maybe it didn’t hit you until later in your journey—a milestone birthday, the much sought after driver’s license, a first date, graduation, or some other achievement. But all mothers eventually get it.
I am shaping a life—a soul—the future.
Being a mother is a great joy—but also a heavy responsibility. And that’s why this Mother’s Day, I wanted to give the gift of prayer to each of our readers. I asked several mothers to share with me a specific way they pray for their children, and now I am sharing those with you. I love the diversity, yet consistent focus of Scripture, of these prayers. Whether you are wiping noses and changing diapers or in the throes of Little League and piano lessons, whether navigating the challenges of teen the years or figuring out your relationship with young adult children, or even if you are an empty nester, these prayers will give you tangible ways to impact the lives of your children and grandchildren.
The need to pray for our children is obvious. Satan would love nothing better than to tear apart families, which are the foundation of society and the greenhouse of knowing God and the Bible. He loves to deceive our children, to lure them with the pleasantries of the world, to confuse them and cause them to doubt God. We must teach our children to be on guard, and we must beg God to protect them, for we are all-too familiar with the consequences of sin.
So while you are enjoying your day, hopefully being spoiled in the way you love best, take a few moments to read these prayers. Write them into your journal. Consider the Scripture passages that are mentioned. Make a commitment to pray fervently for your children this year and for the rest of their lives.
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Claudia Barba:
Long before I was ready, one at a time my children left home. They looked and acted (mostly) like adults, but I knew, as only a mother can know, that they weren’t finished yet, not nearly ready to be let loose in the world. But it was time.
Over the years, I had watched my role shift from controller of all details to coach on the sidelines. Now I was becoming a consultant—someone who steps in only when invited. I fretted over the change. But decades of my new role stretched out before me, so for their sakes and mine, I needed to adjust quickly and learn to rest in this: I wasn’t turning them loose but turning them over—to Someone Who loves them even more than I do.
Now, my influence in my adult children’s lives comes not from hovering, and certainly not from interfering, but from interceding. While they were growing up in our home, my prayers had been mostly occupied with the urgencies of their lives (homework, recitals, summer jobs, final exams, wedding plans). Of course, I still send up many arrow prayers for the details of their lives, but now I purposefully and steadily focus my prayers on their faith and character. I know that as they become the kind of people God wants them to be, the urgencies of their lives will work out for their good and His glory.
Over the years, I have gradually shaped God’s promises and instructions into scripture-prayers for my children. They are a blend of my words and His, my deepest desires for them written in His vocabulary. Though I have done lots of adding, subtracting, and editing as their circumstances have changed, the format has stayed the same. In my prayer journal, beside a picture of each one, is a list of personalized prayers like these:
Mold ______ into a man who loves You supremely, whose heart and soul are devoted to You (Deut. 6:5). Help him to rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and continue steadfastly in prayer (Rom. 12:12). Correct him whenever he leans on his own understanding rather than Your wisdom (Prov. 3:5-6).
Let ______ treasure Your words more than anything else she reads and studies (Job 23:12). Let Your Word make her heart joyful (Psa. 119:11). Help her speak, teach, and write in Your name and for Your glory alone (Col. 3:17). Keep her heart pure, her conscience clear, and her faith sincere (1 Tim. 1:5).
When______ faces work conflicts, show him how to be both wise and harmless (Matt. 10:16). Enable him to be so diligent in his work that he can stand before kings (Prov. 22:29). Let him see his salary as one of the ways You, the Giver of all good gifts (James 1:17), lavishly supply His needs. Encourage him to generously share with others (2 Cor. 9:8).
Help ______ to be longsuffering with her children and to bear with them in love (Eph. 4:2). Give her energy and stamina for her daily tasks and strength in equal measure to her days (Deut. 33:25).
Don’t allow ______ to yield his body as an instrument of unrighteousness to sin but instead yield it as an instrument of righteousness (Rom. 6:13). Let him take the way of escape from every temptation (1 Cor. 10:13).
When ______ interacts with unbelievers, give her courage to speak the gospel boldly, as she ought to speak (Eph. 6:20). Keep her faithful to church (Heb. 10:25), worshiping in spirit and truth (John 4:24), and serving with a fervent spirit (Rom. 12:11).
Show ______ how to love his wife as You love Your church (Eph. 5:25) and to nurture and correct his children so they will be his delight (Prov. 29:17).
When people disappoint ______, remind her that You are all she needs. (Prov. 29:25)—enough provision (Phil. 4:19), enough love (Jer. 31:3), enough guidance (Psa. 32:8), and enough security (Prov. 18:10). Help her remember that she is never forsaken and never alone (Heb. 13:5).
I used to pray all the prayers every day. But as the years have passed, our family has grown, and the pages in my prayer journal have multiplied. I have added more lists and more pictures, and now each of my children (plus their spouses and children) has an individual weekly pray-day. I keep my eyes open so I can look at their pictures as I talk to the Lord about them. My empty nest has been remodeled into a prayer closet.
These are big prayers. Because they deal with the spirit, the answers are mostly invisible, and I know that in my lifetime I will not see them fully answered. But I am content to believe that as I plead with Him, God will gradually accomplish the good work that only He can do.
I can’t think of any better legacy to leave my children than the love of a mom who did not try to manage their lives but instead faithfully petitioned her Father to parent her offspring.
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Ginny Logan:
“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” (Luke 6:45)
As my children have gotten older, my prayers have shifted to focus on their hearts. I pray that their hearts will be filled with a desire to know God and love Him. I also pray that they will be receptive and humble to receive what He wants to teach them.
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Jodi Shrader:
First, praise God for the gift of your children’s lives to you and to others. Thank God for giving them to you! Name specific ways God has blessed you through their words and works—past, present, and future—and how God is going to continue using them.
Second, claim God’s promises for them.
Third, do not pray about their problems with them unless THEY ask you to do so. But do pray privately about their struggles, attitudes, and situations.
Fourth, and most importantly, pray God’s peace and presence will be felt by them. “The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: the Lord make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: the Lord lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.” (Num. 6:24-26) End with a name of God that they need at that time (El-Shaddai, El-Roi, El-Elyon, etc.).
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June Backhaus:
I pray:
that God becomes more real to them as they continue their walk with Him.
that they bask in His love.
that they stay faithful to Him no matter what happens.
that they learn to trust Him with their lives for all of their lives.
that when they do sin, they seek to make things right with God and others immediately and that they know they are completely forgiven and feel forgiven.
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Melody Bjur:
Years ago I started praying for my kids. In my prayer journal, I prayed for something different every day in their lives.
Monday I pray for their spiritual lives, their spiritual growth, their thoughts, and that they will yield themselves to the Lord.
Tuesday I pray for them as sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, and their relationships with each other within our family.
Wednesday I pray for their relationships with others. I ask God to send them good Christian friends and teach them to not look down on others.
Thursday I pray that they might take joy in school and for specific needs (One might need to improve in math, and another might need to be faithful to practice the piano).
Friday I pray for their health, that they might take care of themselves and exercise discipline.
Saturday I pray for their protection physically and that God would keep them from Satan’s darts spiritually, protecting them from wrong thinking, bad attitudes, and the world’s influences. I also pray for their future spouses.
Sunday I pray for their relationship with the church, for little ones to behave in the services, and for them to be a blessing to others.
That’s how I prayed for my children for years. Now I am praying more Scriptures for them. I still pray those same things, but I am trying to use certain Scriptures. For example, Ephesians 3:16-19, that they would understand God’s love more or Colossians 1, that they would walk worthy of the Lord.
I believe the mother’s greatest work is to pray for her kids because we can and should teach our children right, but in the end, they make their own decisions. Sometimes it’s not what we want—or even what we pray for—so we just keep praying for God to bring them back to Himself and to continue working in their lives. Now that most of my children are out [of the house], prayer is the way that I can best influence them.
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Paula Ehmann:
Precious Children,
My prayer for you is Paul’s prayer to the Ephesians: That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
Jesus loves you so much!!
Love,
Mom
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Jenny Johnson:
I pray for my children in all of the traditional ways: physically, spiritually, mentally, emotionally and relationally; but as a single mom with no father in their lives at all, I am also very intentional to pray for those adults who come in contact with my children on a daily basis; specifically, I pray for the men who are influencing my children. That these men—teachers, principals, soccer coaches, pastors—would show godly love, gentleness, kindness, self control, and that they would fill in the gaps that I am not equipped to fill as a mom. I also make it a point to mention to these men that I am praying that their interaction with my children would prove a positive influence and positive role model. Even if they are not Christians, this generally makes them feel honored to know that their influence matters so much.
While my family situation is not God’s ideal, I also pray for God to fill in the gaps left by an absent father, that as their Heavenly Father, He would use my childrens’ experience to mold my sons into good fathers and influence my daughters to choose good men.
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Stephanie Smith:
When I was a younger mother, I had two conversations with older and wiser women that have shaped the way I pray for my family. The first lady I spoke with has never been a mother, but her instruction clearly applied. Dr. Nell Collins, the founder of Hope in Crisis ministries, taught me to pray God’s Word back to Him. God tells us that “if we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us.” Since God’s Word reveals God’s will, then when we pray the Word of God, we can be sure that God will hear and answer.
The second conversation was with a mom just ten or maybe fifteen years older than me. She encouraged me by saying that she prayed for her daughters and their future spouses to always fear the Lord. If a person truly “fears the Lord,” that means she will love and respect Him and do all that she can to please Him. Godly fear—reverence—is the foundation for all other Christian growth and service.
So, taking those two things together, I found a special verse that I pray nearly every day for my children and future grandchildren. God is speaking to Moses and expressing His own desire for His chosen people, Israel. If this is what God wanted for them, then it is what I want for my children.
“O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always, that it might be will with them, and with their children for ever!” (Deut. 5:29)
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Joy Ramler has shared a list of Scriptures that she prays for her children:
Colossians 1:9-12 “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with might, according to His glorious power, unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.”
Colossians 3:12-16 “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”
Ephesians 3:16-19 “That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.”
Ephesians 1:17-19 “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power."
II Peter 3:18 “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.”
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Sue Smith:
When I think of things I learned being a mother of five, there are two things that really stand out. The first is, I believe, one of the most important things you can do for your children—love their Daddy! Not only is it Biblical to love our husbands, but it also instills a knowledge in our children of security, of Christ’s love, and of the chain of authority as taught in Scripture—God, family, church.
Secondly, it may sound trite to say, but PRAY for your children! It seems like every mother should know that, right? But knowing it and doing it are two separate things. Of course, we need to pray for their salvation first and foremost! What a tragedy it would be if we couldn’t take our children to heaven with us for all eternity! So definitely, we need to pray that the Holy Spirit will deal with their hearts to show them their need for salvation as early as possible! Along with that we should share Biblical truths and ideals with them everyday, so they will want to belong to Christ.
But after they are saved, I realized the most important thing I would pray for my children is that they would learn to read God’s Word and find truths in it themselves. It is necessary and important to teach them God’s Word, but oh, how wonderful it is when we can actually see how God’s Word is speaking to them personally. This only comes as a result of the Holy Spirit working in their lives, and that is what I prayed for each of my children. I wanted God’s Word to come alive in their hearts, because I knew if they learned God’s truths for themselves, He would direct them thoughout their lives. Of course, that’s only possible if they choose to obey His Word. So that was part of that prayer.
Also, I prayed that they would want to serve the Lord with all their hearts! Their attitude towards God and what is really important in life has much to do with their desire to serve Him! And only as they discover in Scripture how wonderful their God is will they want to serve Him. Many parents instill the importance of making money, career, etc., as the most important thing in life. Thankfully, God answers prayer, and all five of our children have given their hearts to the Lord, have learned the importance of Scripture, and are seeking to serve Him in their lives.
This is all because of God’s amazing grace!
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June Kimmel:
When our girls were little, I asked my pastor what I could do to help them grow up with a heart to love and serve God. His simple answer made a deep impression: “Teach your children to love God for Who He is and not for what He does.”
I’m not sure I grasped the meaning of his wise words at first, but throughout the years, they resonated true. Devastating events and circumstances can leave us overwhelmed and wondering why God allows such things. I began to pray that my children would grow to know and love God through a love for His Word. If they understood who God is, I knew they would trust Him for what He does. I prayed that God would use His Word and my walk with Him to show my children that He is real and worthy of our complete trust.
Now that my daughters and son are adults with families of their own, I pray for their children and them to continue to grow in their knowledge of God and His matchless grace (2 Peter 3:18). My prayer is that they will intimately know that God is faithful, powerful, wise, and all-knowing. I pray they live confidently, resting in Him alone!
“And they that know Thy name will put their trust in thee: for Thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek Thee.” (Psalm 9:10)