Praying for Your Kids

  Some people have the same daily routine which they execute with precision. That’s not me. Every day is different. It’s not that I lack discipline, I have an excess of flavor. And if you’re like me, it won’t surprise you to learn that I do not have a regular time of prayer and I used to be wracked with guilt because of the daily devotional industry.   I understand and cherish the power of prayer. As a family we have fostered a couple dozen precious kids over the past decade, releasing most of them to a life without us as their forever family. Prayer defaults to the last remaining earthly act I can do for them as their dad. It’s power encourages me and it’s simplicity humbles me. I have disciplined myself to pray when I’m thinking about them, mostly thinking about how much I miss them. I don’t have specific prayers but instead simply pray that I will see them in eternity.   There is something to be said about setting aside a daily time that gives you the required space to meditate and pray for the situations and people that usually do not come to mind. For me, those are the situations and people that are in my everyday vision. And they are the relationships which are most important to me. It’s my wife, it’s my kids, it’s my friends and co-workers. Prayer is an easy default when thinking about something we are powerless over, the unwinnable situation, the immovable obstacle, the incurable disease. When I think about my wife and the kids who are in my home, their goals and struggles, there is something I can do to help to shape their outcomes. I am an engaged participant. Prayer has become a passive response in contrast to my American just-do-it mentality. And I know how wrong I am.   I could spend more time praying for my family. I can pray for so much more than what my earthly fatherly love can provide. The discipline I need isn’t the ability to wake up early or stay up late, it’s the discipline of my mind to release to God the most important parts of my life. Prayer is a mindset, a focus, an open conversation, a tether to the almighty, to your eternal father. We are dedicating the next 31 days to the discipline of aligning the hopes, struggles, and dreams we have for our kids with our heavenly father.   Won’t you join me?   Starting on March 1st we will be revisiting 31 Days of Prayer for your Children!