PRAYING PARENTS
One day we all are going to stand before the judgment seat and answer to the Lord for how we raised our children. And in that moment, none of us will be able to offer excuses or blame anyone else. Therefore, we have to examine ourselves today, asking: Have we brought up our children in the fear and admonition of the Lord? Have we modeled for them a life of love and reverence for God?
I remember playing outside as a boy and hearing my mother pray for me from the third floor of our house. Her example remains vivid in my memory. Later, when Gwen and I were bringing up our children, we did the same, praying for our kids according to God’s Word: “Lord, make our sons as oaks beside the waters of life. And make our daughters as polished stones in your palace. Keep them all from the schemes of the wicked one” (see Isaiah 61:3 and Psalm 144:12)
Every Christian parent has high hopes for his child. I see this regularly in our congregation, as parents bring their children forward to be dedicated to the Lord. Our pastoral staff prays for God’s love and protection over these little ones. Then we anoint them with oil and ask the Holy Ghost to put a wall of fire around them.
But occasionally, I can’t help wondering: How many of those precious children are going to end up in the devil’s clutches—on drugs, into crime—because their mom or dad got careless about the spiritual atmosphere in their home? Will they end up in ruin because their parents were wrapped up in their own problems, never giving them attention or proper discipline?
Maybe you’re a parent who hurts because your grown son or daughter no longer serves the Lord. Or, perhaps you’re heartbroken because your youngster is hooked on drugs or alcohol. You’ve seen your once-tender child grow bitter, hard and lost.
This message is not meant to condemn you. No one can take back his or her past. But I do have a question for you. As you look back on your parenting years, ask yourself: Were you a true guardian over your home? Did you cover your children in prayer daily? Or were you too busy? Did you allow your kids to intimidate you?
That is all in the past now. Yet there remains something you can do: You still have a calling to pray diligently for your child’s salvation. That’s right, you can make up in prayer today what you might have missed in past years. You can still seek God’s face, bathe your loved one in prayer, and call down Holy Ghost conviction on him to bring him to the cross.
I remember playing outside as a boy and hearing my mother pray for me from the third floor of our house. Her example remains vivid in my memory. Later, when Gwen and I were bringing up our children, we did the same, praying for our kids according to God’s Word: “Lord, make our sons as oaks beside the waters of life. And make our daughters as polished stones in your palace. Keep them all from the schemes of the wicked one” (see Isaiah 61:3 and Psalm 144:12)
Every Christian parent has high hopes for his child. I see this regularly in our congregation, as parents bring their children forward to be dedicated to the Lord. Our pastoral staff prays for God’s love and protection over these little ones. Then we anoint them with oil and ask the Holy Ghost to put a wall of fire around them.
But occasionally, I can’t help wondering: How many of those precious children are going to end up in the devil’s clutches—on drugs, into crime—because their mom or dad got careless about the spiritual atmosphere in their home? Will they end up in ruin because their parents were wrapped up in their own problems, never giving them attention or proper discipline?
Maybe you’re a parent who hurts because your grown son or daughter no longer serves the Lord. Or, perhaps you’re heartbroken because your youngster is hooked on drugs or alcohol. You’ve seen your once-tender child grow bitter, hard and lost.
This message is not meant to condemn you. No one can take back his or her past. But I do have a question for you. As you look back on your parenting years, ask yourself: Were you a true guardian over your home? Did you cover your children in prayer daily? Or were you too busy? Did you allow your kids to intimidate you?
That is all in the past now. Yet there remains something you can do: You still have a calling to pray diligently for your child’s salvation. That’s right, you can make up in prayer today what you might have missed in past years. You can still seek God’s face, bathe your loved one in prayer, and call down Holy Ghost conviction on him to bring him to the cross.