Workshop Video Impacting Cities & Communities thru Prayer |
A Community of Prayer Champions, Praying Churches, Prayed-for Communities
What a joy it is to have that precious little grandchild come running into your arms with hugs and kisses. The six-year-old calling to tell you she lost her first tooth or your seven-year-old grandson excited about making his first goal in his soccer game.
In addition to senior discounts, grandchildren are one of the rewards of growing older. Mary H. Waldrip says it well, "Grandchildren are God's way of compensating us for growing old."
I grew up in a Midwest rural community many years ago. I didn't encounter the temptations and pressures my grandchildren are facing today in this media-driven culture. Our society is teetering on the brink of moral and spiritual bankruptcy. I pray for protection from the evil deception in the world around them.
I now have nine grandchildren, ages ranging from sixteen years to thirty-seven years, four are married, and we have five great-granddaughters. As a long-distance grandmother for many years, I was not fully aware of my grandchildren's immediate needs. I prayed that God would bless them, give them good health and protection. Ultimately, I became frustrated and felt something was lacking with my vague and general prayers. I asked God to show me how to become more deliberate in praying for them.
After reading Grandma, I Need Your Prayers by Quin Sherrer and Ruthanne Garlock, and When Mothers Pray by Cheri Fuller, prayers for my grandchildren changed dramatically. The books were full of practical advice, encouraging me to use specific scriptures in praying, motivating me to pray regularly and accurately for their emotional, physical, and spiritual well being.
I want to share some of the practical advice I pursued.
Blessings as a result
I want to share part of a letter from my married granddaughter. It is a confirmation that praying for these precious grandchildren is never a wasted effort. She wrote, "My grandmother's phone calls, cards, and emails were encouraging and made a significant impact on my life throughout my teenage and college years. Her prayers and encouragement have been rock-solid reminders of God's truth. Amidst my crazy and incredibly life-shaping year, her prayers helped me surrender the craziness of my life to God."
My prayers for my grandchildren have strengthened my relationships with them. The Photo Prayer Album has been an excellent tool for me to stay connected to them. Whether they live nearby or far away, praying intentionally for them keeps me in touch. Often my prayers can be more potent than my presence when I let them know I am praying for them.
Best of all, praying God's Word has enabled me to pray with His power, direction, and wisdom. As their grandparent, I can have a significant role in stabilizing and influencing their lives by praying for them during these turbulent years. It has given me fulfillment and satisfaction in praying for them.
The seeds of prayer we plant today will yield a harvest of blessing in the future. My prayer is that you have been challenged to pray strategically and deliberately for your grandchildren. In Isaiah 44:3, God told the Israelites, "I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring and my blessing on your descendants." God still promises to pour out his Spirit and blessings on our descendants. Don't we want that for our grandchildren and future descendants?
The greatest long-lasting gift we can give our grandchildren
is the gift of our time and prayers.
Written by Lillian Penner, Co-Prayer-Director for Christian Grandparenting Network
--->Take the Tour
--->Ask A Question
1 member
3 members
Posted by David Young on December 2, 2019 at 11:25pm
Posted by Jerry McCullah on December 2, 2019 at 2:19pm — 2 Comments
Workshop Video Impacting Cities & Communities thru Prayer |
© 2019 Created by Pray.Network Coordinator.
Powered by
You need to be a member of Pray.Network to add comments!
Join Pray.Network