Praying God’s Word for Our Children
I’ve had a lot of pivotal moments in my life of faith, and learning how to pray using scripture was a critical one. It wasn’t really a pivotal “moment” in my case, it took a little longer. Although going to church every week throughout my childhood and adolescence was deeply formative, there was about a two-year learning/awakening time during seminary when I started using the word of God to pray. Through the Holy Spirit, I began to experience the living word of God, alive and active, and it changed my life forever. Praying this way has blessed me beyond measure ever since, as I’ve tried to follow Jesus, my Good Shepherd.
In one of the stories in the book, there’s a powerful moment when the main character, encouraged by his mother, begins using the word of God to pray during a family crisis. You’ll have to wait for the book to find out what happens, but it’s pretty spectacular!
For this reason I kneel before you Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of your glorious riches you will strengthen my child{ren} with power through your Spirit in their inner being, so that you, Lord Christ, may dwell in their hearts through faith. And I pray that my child{ren}, would be rooted and established in love, and have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that my child{ren} may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Now to you, O God, because you are able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to your power that is at work within us, to you be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
– Ephesians 3:14-21
–Hebrews 4:12
Using the living and active word of God to pray for our children isn’t anything new. But my prayer is that these simple scripture-crafted prayers help or encourage you as you pray for all the little, medium and grown up people you love. I’ve been praying for kids, teens and their families for the last 30 years at New City Kids, and for my own children for the last 24 years — and could absolutely fill a whole other book with the stories of how God has answered those prayers!
My heart for I Love to Tell the Story is for countless children to come to know Jesus and his love. May it be so, Lord Jesus!