Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

20 coMpAssIon:

“Lord, please clothe my
children with the virtue of compassion” (Colossians 3:12)

I really long for Evylee, Kenzlee and Nate to realize that they have been chosen by God to serve as His ambassadors on this earth, and as His ambassadors, it is our role to be compassionate with every person that God has created. This is another day that I pray this prayer for my life, as well. Lord, remind me to be compassionate even when I don’t understand situations before me.

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

19 HuMIlIty:

“God, please cultivate in my children
the ability to show true humility toward all” (Titus 3:2)

Cultivate. I know this word well. My full-time paying job (that I am so thankful to have) is all about cultivation, and cultivation takes a lot of effort, a lot of investment, a lot of thought, a lot of time, a lot of taking notes, a lot of paying attention. That is my prayer to God, and we serve a faithful God who does all of these things for His children. Let us give our children to God in faith that they will show humility to ALL of those that surround them. 

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

18 perseverAnce:

“Lord, teach my children perseverance in all they do, and help them
especially to run their race with
perseverance” (Hebrews 12:1)

Let us pray specifically that our children will run the race without allowing obstructions in their paths, without giving up or giving in to sin and the ways of the world. Let us pray that our children will be surrounded with people that will run the race with them . . . boldly. 

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

17 Joy:

“May my children be filled with the joy
given by the Holy Spirit” (1 Thessalonians
1:6)

Doesn’t it just melt your heart when your children are happy? And, doesn’t it bless your heart to know that their happiness comes from their joy in the Lord?

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

16peAce:

“Father, let my children make every effort
to do what leads to peace’” (Romans
14:19)

As I pray for Evylee, Kenzlee and Nate this morning, I must also pray for myself, that I be willing to deny myself to serve God and others because truly serving God and others leads to peace. 

Some versions say “let us pursue” in place of “make every effort”. “Let us pursue” means to constantly go after something. So, this is going to be a daily decision, a daily effort, a daily act to seek peace in our actions and our interactions with others.

And in some versions, in place of “peace”, Paul wrote “edify” which means to constantly build up. That is my desire, the prayer of heart for my children and myself to be those lights that are constantly building up one another. I am surrounded by so many amazing people who constantly do this for me, and I want to be that blessing, as well.

As we walk into the weekend, let’s have a moment of application:

We see that a close walk with our God is largely a matter of where our focus is. If we are focused on ourselves and seeking to satisfy our own desires, we will stray from God because we aren’t watching where we’re going. But if our focus is on Him, then we will be following in His footsteps, and serving God and fellow Christians becomes our constant objective. Is it time for another focus check?

As I pray for my children to grow in peace, to be encouragers in their spheres of influence . . . DAILY, I also pray that they will stay focused on their Father all the days of their lives.

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

15 GenerosIty:

“Grant that my children
may be generous and willing to share, laying up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for eternity”
(1 Timothy 6:18-19)

My husband really has a gift of generosity. I am so thankful that he has taught me over the years how to be more generous with a willing spirit. There were times in my life that I would be generous because that was the Christ-like thing to do, but it wasn’t Christ-like when my heart wasn’t being generous. Since we have been married, though, I have learned from him to have a heart for generosity. I am so thankful that our children have an amazing Daddy to teach them about generosity daily.

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

14 KIndness:

“Lord, may my children
‘always try to be kind to each other and to everyone
else’” (Ephesians 4:32).

It is truly the prayer of my heart daily for Evylee, Kenzlee and Nate to be kind to ALL children no matter their color, their size, their home, their family, their clothes, their hair, their abilities!

And this is another one of those days that I need this prayer for myself just as much as I need to pray in faith for them.

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

13 purIty:

“Create in them a pure heart, O God, and let their purity of heart
be shown in their actions” (Psalm 51:10)

Purity. Purity means a lot. A pure mind, a pure heart and pure body. As parents, we have a responsibility to monitor what our children put into their minds. As parents, we must teach kindness. As parents, we must instill in our children the desire to value their bodies at a young age. Grabbing a hold of our kiddos minds, hearts and bodies at a young age is vital.

I made a commitment to sexual purity in middle school and from that moment, I knew I would keep that commitment to myself, my future husband and God. (I also knew I didn’t want to endure the wrath of my parents.) That is one of those commitments that I truly value and pray with great expectancy for the same commitment to be fulfilled by Evylee, Kenzlee and Nate.

All of this to say that a commitment of purity is essential even when our children are young.

Purity for me is probably harder now as an adult. My mind and heart are so tempted each day, and I fail each day with moments of gossip, negativity, poor attitude, etc. As I pray today for my children, I will also be praying for me!

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

12courAGe:

“May my children always be strong
and courageous in their character and in their actions”
(Deuteronomy 31:6)

I think it is important that we create an environment for our children that teaches them to walk boldly in the Word of God. We want children who will stand up in their faith amongst their spheres of influence. And, it is important that we teach them by living a life of contentment in the arms of our Savior. There is no reason for us to ever live in fear because God has already gone before us, He has already won our battles!!

Praise the Lord!!

Proverbs 31 Wife – 31 Days of Praying for our Children

11
FAItHFulness:

“Let love and faithfulness
never leave my children,
but bind these twin virtues
around their necks and write
them on the tablet of their
hearts” (Proverbs 3:3)

Other translations say “mercy and truth” in place of “love and faithfulness” – so, let me define the phrases even more (I like to understand what I’m really praying over my kiddos).

Mercy & Christ-Centered Love – shutting out all forms of selfishness and hate. I have recently been working hard on this selfishness thing with the girls. So many times, I will ask, “who had the toy first?”, but does it really matter if Evylee or Kenzlee had the toy first? Do I really want them dashing for the toy simply in an effort to get it before the other? No, I need to be concerned about the motives of their hearts, so I have been trying to talk with them during these moments about being kind and loving with a desire to share, and amazingly, it has worked quite a few times! One of the girls will tell the other that she can have the toy and this is definitely one of those times that I give lots of praise in return!