Praising God Our Shepherd
:: Father, we praise you for being a perfect Shepherd who provides extravagantly, protects fiercely, and gives rest to our tired bodies and minds. Your love refreshes our souls and you lead us on your perfect paths. Even when we walk through dark days, we don’t have to be afraid because you are with us. Your discipline and Truth bring comfort. You lift us up in front of our enemies and cause our hearts to overflow with joy. Lord, we pray that your goodness and love will follow us all the days of our lives and that we will dwell with you for all eternity. (Psalm 23)
Desire to Know God
Jesus, your word says that holding tight to your instruction brings life; please cause the hearts of our adult kids to crave your Word. Open their eyes to see that nothing in this life will ever satisfy their desires as fully as having a relationship with you. When the rush of life causes them to feel tired and burned out, may they seek you as a resting place for their souls. When they feel confused, may they never lean on their own knowledge, but be prompted to open the Bible and to search for wisdom and direction from you. And just as the early church found strength in meeting together, we ask that our adult kids would also be drawn to a church family where they will be built up, build up others, and receive the comfort of your Holy Spirit. (Proverbs 4:13, Matthew 11:28-30,Proverbs 3:5-6, Acts 9:31)
Healthy Relationships
Heavenly Father, since the beginning of time you have shown joy and sadness, anger and pleasure. And because our kids are created in your image, they also have strong emotions. Through the wisdom of your Holy Spirit, teach our kids how to use emotion in a wise way so they will enjoy healthy relationships in their marriages, friendships, homes, and with coworkers. We pray they will love others with Godly love, and be guarded against selfish ambition so they will value the interests of others above their own. In marriage, may they fight for one another with one spirit and one mind. And if they ever feel hopeless or helpless, remind them that all things are possible with you. (Genesis 1:27, 1 John 4:7, Philippians 2:1-4, Matthew 19:26)
Experience God’s Power
Lord, move in the hearts of our kids so powerfully that their hearts cry out to you, firmly believing that you are the one and only God. When the people of Israel walked away from you to worship other gods, you sent the prophet Elijah to wake them up. But their hearts were hard, so Elijah had two altars built; one for God, one for Baal. “The god who answers by fire; he is God.” The people called on Baal from morning until night but no fire came. Elijah drenched his altar with water and called out, “Answer me, Lord, so these people will know that you are God.” At once, fire consumed his altar. The people fell on their faces to worship you as the one true God. May your fire consume the hearts of our kids so they will also know -without a doubt- that you are God. Crush any rebellion or indecision and powerfully bind their hearts to yours. (1 Kings 18:16–39)
Financial Peace
Lord, make our adult kids as wise as the ants; working hard to provide for themselves and their families even though they have no commander. We believe that you are able to bless our kids abundantly, giving them everything they need to prosper, and we claim that truth right now. We claim that truth on behalf of our kids right now. When they do prosper, guard them against greed and the temptation to seek happiness from material possessions and overwhelm their hearts with the desire to give generously. In marriage, we pray that our kids will have honest lips with regard to their finances; that they will value truth and transparency, and make decisions as a united team. (Proverbs 6:6-8, 2 Corinthians 9:8, Luke 12:15, Proverbs 16:13)
Live with Hope & Purpose
Creator of the universe, you designed each of our adult kids according to your perfect plan; they have a good purpose even when they don’t believe it. When your people were thrown out of Jerusalem, they struggled to find hope but Jeremiah told them to build homes, plant gardens, get married, and have babies…to seek peace and prosperity and to never be deceived by false prophets. He reminded them that God was with them – even in exile – and would stay with them until his good promise was fulfilled. When our kids lose their way, we pray that they find new hope and purpose in their wilderness by seeking you with all their hearts. Bring them out of captivity and into the refreshing hope that they are loved…they have purpose…and they are valuable to the God of heaven and earth. (Psalm 139:13-15, Jeremiah 29:1-14)
Wisdom for Parenting
Perfect Father, thank you for our grandchildren and for any who haven’t been born yet. Convict our hearts to accept our responsibility as grandparents with sober minds; to obey your command to watch ourselves closely so that we will be Godly examples. We pray that our grandkids will learn to show respect because they witness it in their homes. And we pray they will be kind because kindness is a priority in their home. When our grandkids are disobedient or disrespectful, give their parents the wisdom to set clear boundaries; to let their ‘yes be yes’ and their ‘no be no.’ Finally God, we pray that our adult kids will talk about you in their home, when they ride in the car, when they go to bed, and when they get up; so our grandkids will learn to love you, to walk in obedience, and to hold tight to you every day. (Deuteronomy 4:9, Matthew 5:37, Deuteronomy 11:19-22)
Emotional & Physical Health
Jesus, be merciful to our adult kids and flood their minds, bodies, and souls with your living Spirit. Cause them to treat their bodies as living sacrifices; never conforming to anything that will cause physical or emotional harm. May they discern what is good by renewing their minds with scripture and spending time talking with you in prayer, so they will have the grit to persevere when they face hard times. We want so much for our kids to receive the crown of life that you promise to those who love you. Jesus, open their eyes to any pride that is keeping them from experiencing lasting peace and joy, and give us the wisdom to stay out of your way when they are being humbled. Help us to trust that your discipline will lead them to fear you so they will experience abundant life. (Romans 12:1-2, James 1:12, Proverbs 22:4)
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Ephesians 20-21)
KRISTI is the author of the Before books and coloring books for children and the Your Soul To Keep one-year prayer book for parents of adults. She writes to inspire parents and grandparents to shine the joy of Jesus into the lives of their families and to laugh without fear of the future (Proverbs 31:25). She and her husband Tim live in Iowa where they love doing life with their sons and daughters-in-law, six grandbabies, and two very spoiled dogs.