YOUR TURN: The prayers of a child

All verses are taken from the New International Reader’s Version.

What amazing promises are there in God’s Word for those who cry out to Him, who call out to Him in prayer!

Psalm 18:6
When I was in trouble, I called out to the Lord. I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice. My cry for help reached his ears.

Psalm 34:17
Godly people cry out, and the Lord hears them. He saves them from all of their troubles.

Psalm 57:2
I cry out to God Most High. I cry out to God, and he carries out his plan for me.

Psalm 88:13
Lord, I cry out to you for help

Psalm 119:147
I get up before the sun rises. I cry out for help. I’ve put my hope in your word.

My husband and I started crying out to the Lord for our children before we had them, and we continue to lift them up to the Lord, covering them in prayer.  We wanted to make prayer an important part of their lives, so from infancy, we have prayed out loud over them.  We pray at mealtimes and at bedtime.  We encourage prayer throughout the day, and the boys frequently hear me call out to the Lord for help during the day (mostly for patience…).

We started hearing Elias cry out to the Lord just after he turned two.  While he was sitting in time out one evening, we heard, “PLEASE, LORD! PLEASE, LORD! Make me better!” in the middle of his sobs.  Our hearts broke as we heard his call to the Lord, and we thanked the Lord for the encouragement we drew from Elias’s little prayer.

Elias continues to cry out to the Lord – frequently in time out – and his prayers swing from a self-centered 3 year old’s prayer (“Please make Donovan give me back my car!”) to prayers of repentance (“Please make me better so I don’t hit Donovan anymore!”).  His time out prayers still begin with the loud cry, “PLEASE, LORD! PLEASE, LORD!”

I learn so much from his prayers – the simple prayers of a child.  They are simple, but they are exactly what the Lord wants – the cry of his heart.

Psalm 142:5
Lord, I cry out to you. I say, “You are my place of safety. You are everything I need in this life.”

He is everything we need in this life, and He is the only thing that can “make us better.”

Psalm 5:3
Lord, in the morning you hear my voice. In the morning I pray to you. I wait for you in hope.

Psalm 42:8
During the day the Lord sends his love to me. During the night I sing about him. I say a prayer to the God who gives me life.

Amanda shared some of her thoughts on prayer last week – what a beautiful way to pray for your kids!  It’s so important to teach kids to pray Scripture from the beginning, too – it can never be too early for them to learn that God’s Word never returns void!  Memorizing Scripture is a good way to get that started….

… and now it’s your turn… how do you incorporate prayer into your children’s lives?