Praying for Your Children (Part 6)

Today, I want to interact on the final segment of prayer for my family. If you have been reading this blog, you will recall the previous five prayer points are as follows:

F = Faithful and fruitful

A = Active in sharing Christ and anointed as they do

M = Morally pure and mates that are godly

I = Insulated from the world, flesh, and devil, and 
                 integrity of heart

L = Listeners, learners, leaders, and lovers

When I come to the letter “Y” during my intercession for my children, I focus on two specific areas that are critical to spiritual success. They are:

• Yield rights and expectations (Proverbs 13:12).
• Yield the members of our bodies as slaves to righteousness, leading to sanctification (Romans 6:19).

Feelings of hurt are the way God designed for us to be reminded that we are proud. That sounds like a strong statement. However, if anyone had justified reasons to have feelings of hurt, Jesus would, and Paul might be a close second after maturing some spiritually. At Philippi, Paul was beaten unjustly and thrown into jail. Yet Scripture indicates his immediate response was absent of disappointment and hurt. In fact, he responded by singing with joy to the Lord. Go figure. How could he? Is it possible that Paul learned to live perpetually with an attitude of “anything better than hell is more than I deserve”? Since this is a theological truth that applies to all of us, then having that attitude is living in light of reality. If we lived that way, we would always be grateful for whatever happens to us that is less severe than hell. No blown expectations that way! And since Hebrews 12:15-16 considers bitterness to be a root cause that fuels sexual impurity, it is only prudent to pray for our children to yield their personal expectations. Yielding our bodily members as instruments to righteous is something most of us don’t even think about. Yet Paul says it leads to a sanctified life. Not sinless perfection. Sanctification is a process, and the moment we think we are sanctified, we need a fresh reminder that humility is a part of being sanctified. Periodically, I will go through the practical process of naming parts of my body and surrendering them to the Lord afresh. I yield my eyes, my tongue, my ears, my feet, and my hands. And especially my mind, since as a man thinks, so is he. I pray the same for my children. In summary, this method of prayer is only that . . . a method. My friend Sammy Tippit has a whole weekend ministry entitled “Praying for Your Family.” I highly recommend it. Just visit www.SammyTippit.org. I’m sure you can easily find it on his home page. Before we conclude, don’t forget the value of not only praying for your children, but praying with them, regardless of their age. This morning, just before my youngest son, Nathan, was getting ready to speak to the youth group at his church, I called to pray with him. I would like to do that every Sunday morning, as he prepares to minister. Praying for them and with them regularly and at strategic times, even when they are adults, will keep our hearts knit together with them. I would value hearing how you have learned to pray for your family. What have you found helpful? How has God answered your prayers? Even more importantly, how are you growing in this area? Finally, I would love to join you in praying for specific requests. Please feel free to e-mail me at BPaulus@LifeAction.org.

“I have no greater joy than to know that my children walk in truth” (3 John, verse 4).

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