Week 8!

Challenge:
I read an article this week about "backwards planning" - the concept is that we should think about our end goals and then plan backwards to figure out how to reach those goals. I certainly understand this concept and have seen it played out from redecorating our house to mastering spiritual disciplines, but I got to thinking about that in regards to parenting. I don't know about you, but sometimes I get so caught up in who I want my children to be that I forget to celebrate who they are now. I was convicted that my end goal for them might be hampering my ability to receive the gifts that the present brings. Do you do this? I don't think is limited to people with small children as we might always envision and dream about the character of our children in future years: college, first job, marriage, as parents of their own, etc.

My challenge this week is to pay attention to my life as it is given to me right now. I will focus on the precious present. I want to partner with God in what He is doing in my children's lives at this very simple stage rather than imagining how He will move mightily in their lives years for now. I can pray for their future, absolutely, but I want to relish in the right now.

Dear God, thank You for the Holy Spirit's conviction and Your amazing grace. Sometimes I struggle, strive, and analyze every conversation with my children in hopes that they will come to know You, but Lord, help me not focus so much on the then that I miss what You are doing now. Help me find the balance of praying for their future and yet focusing on today. May I put into practice Your advice of letting tomorrow worry about itself (Matthew 6:34). Grant me the wisdom to know where You are at work in my children's lives this very day so that I might join You in it. In Jesus name. Amen. 

Prayer:
Precious Lord, thank You for my children. Thank you for their lives which are no accident... in fact, You knew about them and loved them before they were concieved (Jeremiah 1:5). I pray that, like Jesus, my children would grow in wisdom and stature, in favor with God and men (Luke 2:52). May they be men and women who are full of grace and truth (John 1:14). Help them grow in the saving grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ and I pray that they would bring You glory all the days of their lives (2 Peter 3:18). Please help my children welcome Your Gospel message with joy and become a model to all believers (1 Thessalonians 1:6-7). I love You, Lord, and ask these things in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Week 7!

Challenge/For the Love of my Children:

"The one concern of the devil is to keep the saints from prayer. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless works, prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray."  - Jonathan Edwards

When I read that quote earlier this week I was struck with the truth of it. I can often think about how much time and effort I have put into ministering to my children (and to others), but sadly, those actions are not always accompanied with prayer, thus making them self-driven rather than Spirit-driven. I get so preoccupied with the doing that I neglect the praying! This week's challenge will go hand-in-hand with the prayer for our children! My prayer is that I will be a parent of prayer and that my children would be people of prayer. My challenge is to put that prayer into practice. I'll pray more than I will talk. I will brainstorm for creative ideas in how to incorporate prayer for my children so that I'm not only praying for them, but I'm praying with them (as I side note I would love to hear any creative ideas you do in your family!).

Father God, You tell us in Scripture that Your will for us is to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and I am sorry for the times when I fall so short from that standard. Please infuse me with Your Spirit and help me become a parent of prayer.  Help me be more diligent about fasting from food and, like Jesus, willing to miss sleep in order to spend more time with You (Luke 6:12). As I read the Gospels I notice that Jesus never taught His disciples how to preach, but instead, He taught them how to pray. May I follow His lead in teaching my children. May I always be quick to encourage them to always pray and not give up (Luke 18:1). Give me the boldness to pray with my children no matter what the subject matter and help praying together become natural,comfortable, genuine, and a daily activity my children.
Lord, I also pray that my children would be people of prayer. May they look to You and continually seek Your face (1 Chronicles 16:11). May they devote themselves to prayer and always be eager to lift their souls up to You (Colossians 4:2, Psalm 25:1). I ask that You would help them develop such a thriving prayer life that prayer is their first response in everything instead of a last resort. Teach them to pray in the Spirit on all occasions (Ephesians 6:18) knowing that they can always approach Your throne of grace with confidence (Hebrews 4:16). Thank You for hearing our prayers and desiring fellowship with us. I love you, Lord, and pray for all of this in Your Son's Name. Amen.

Week 6!

Challenge:  

Lately I have seen how my young children are cleverly deceptive. My three year old was in my room and as she was walking out I asked her what was in her hand because I suspected she had my phone (which isn't allowed). She puts one hand behind her back and held up her other hand and told me which toy she was holding. Not thinking much of it, I let her go only later realized she had taken my phone. Havana hid it behind her back when I asked her what she was in her hand. Cleverly deceptive. Then, my 19 month old was playing in the dog's water bowl with his favorite toy  ("buddy"). When I scolded him he looked at me, held up his toy and exclaimed, "Buddy water." He was trying to tell me that he wasn't playing in the dog's water bowl, but only his buddy was. Cleverly deceptive. These occurrences have gotten me thinking about my own life. Am I ever cleverly deceptive towards my children?

I doubt any parents sets out to lie to their children, but along the way it is easier to simply dismiss the truth and cover it up with a "white lie." Examples of this in my own life have been answering my child's "what's that?" question with "oh nothing."  Cleverly deceptive. I've also seen it played out with extended family when I tell Havana that we can't watch a show at her grandmother's house and yet her grandma comes along and says "because my DVD player isn't working" to help ease her disappointment. Cleverly deceptive. Jason and I have always said that we never wanted to lie to our children, but in the day to day living it is sometimes easy to answer "I don't know", "Oh nothing", "we don't have fruit snacks right now", or something similar in order to avoid the entire truth for whatever reason (lack of time to explain, trying to avoid a meltdown, etc). So, my challenge this week is to never be cleverly deceptive towards my children. This will require me to think before i speak and to be mindful of my answers which, all too often, are answered while I'm on auto-pilot. I will also prayerfully ask the Lord other areas of my life this might be applicable that I'm not even aware of yet. 

Last week's devotion was on not asking our children to do something we are unwilling to do ourselves and just a few week ago we prayed for our children to be truth tellers. So this week, I want to pray for myself exactly what I prayed for them!

Father God, I know that lying is Satan's native tongue (John 8:44) and I pray that I will live a life that is the complete opposite of his influence. May I always tell the whole truth - even when it is difficult. I pray that I would not give into white lies or partial truths. Instead, enable me to understand that You always want me to be truthful (Exodus 20:16). May I rely on You to give me the strength to continually speak the truth (Ephesians 4:25). Weave the power of being truthful into my soul so that I will be faithful in keeping my tongue from evil and their lips from speaking lies (Psalm 34:13). I pray in the name of Jesus that I will be an honest parent who give You glory in all I say. Amen.

For the Love of My Children: 

Precious Jesus, thank You for friendships. Thank you for those certain people in our lives who love us at all times (Proverbs 17:17). I pray that my children would be blessed with a great support system of God-fearing friends. Please help my child desire deep fellowship with Bible believers... friends who will keep them accountable and help them grow deeper in their faith (Proverbs 27:17). Help my children be intentional about walking with those who are wise in spiritual matters (Proverbs 13:20). While I do pray that my children will be witnesses to their unsaved friends; may they never desire the company of wicked men (Proverbs 24:1) or surround themselves with only those people who turn away from You, the living God (Hebrews 3:12). Please give my children the courage to be Godly friends to those around them.  Grant my children at least one faithful friend whose friendship will be similar to the friendship of David and Jonathan (1 Samuel 20:17).  Lastly, I pray, that my children would know You are the one and only friend who will stick closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24) and that they would love You and have faith in You so to be called a friend of God (James 2:23). Amen.