My New Prayer

"God, raise up my daughter to be the greatest woman of God and my son to be the greatest man of God of their generation.

Lord, enable this precious little girl....

and this amazing little boy....

to have a boring testimony.  Give me the ability to raise them accordingly. Amen."

Beth sent me this today...

I have a simple goal in parenting.

When you read it you’ll probably yawn. You’ll wonder how it fits with a prayer I included in Sun Stand Still that I pray for Elijah and Graham almost every day:

“God, raise up my sons to be the greatest men of God of their generation.”

But it’s my goal for my children nonetheless. And it’s actually just as bold and audacious as my prayer for them.

My goal in parenting is to raise my kids to have a boring testimony. 

In other words, to stay out of trouble and love Jesus all their lives.

Exciting, I know. But actually, it really should be exciting. I know that in the church we usually privilege and promote Christian horror stories where God brings someone back from the edge of doom. They’re compelling. Heart-tugging.

But they’re also heartbreaking. Trust me, the stories that bring an audience to tears brought far more tears to the parents who had to watch their kids live them. You don’t want that pain, for you or your kids. And while God can certainly turn our mistakes into miracles, I think He’d still prefer to turn our obedience into an opportunity. An opportunity to show that He’s not only worth coming back to, but also worth never leaving in the first place.

I still hold to what I said in Sun Stand Still. I don’t want to raise good boys and girls. I want to raise great men and women who will do great things for a great God. I’m not raising my kids to survive the world. I’m raising them to change it.

It’s just that I’d prefer that my kids change the world without having to have the world first change them. A person’s testimony doesn’t have to be spectacularly sinful to be significant.

I hope and pray my kids will have a boring testimony. I hope and pray the same thing for yours too.

We don’t have full control over whether it will happen. They will ultimately make their own choices. But with all of our power as parents, let’s work and live to see our goal realized.

Our kids will thank us. We’ll thank ourselves. And ultimately we’ll all thank God.

12 Prayers for Children

Tuesday at BSF, we received a handout on how to pray for our children.  As a mom, it is both a responsibility and a privilege to pray for Finley.  As soon as I became pregnant, I began earnestly praying for her and even now I am seeing the answers to those prayers and know that I will continue to see these prayers for her answered in the future.

I made a Prayer Ring of 31 Days of Prayers for My Children , but I really like this list of 12 Prayers that BSF provided because I can concentrate and meditate on one prayer each month.  I thought I would post my Monthly Prayer for Finley on the side of my blog so that I would be reminded to pray it throughout the month, but I'm also going to post all 12 Prayers below!

Pray that your child will:

1. Know Jesus Christ as Savior early in life (Psalms 63:1, 71:17, 2 Timothy 3:15)

2. Have a hatred for sin and a fearful respect for his/her own vulnerability to temptation (Psalm 97:10, Matthew 26:41)

3. Be caught and called to account when guilty (Psalm 38:5-6, 17-18, 119:71)

4. Be protected from the evil one in each area of his/her life: spiritual, emotional, and physical (Luke 22:31, John 17:15)

5. Have an attitude of Christian morality and responsibility in all his/her interpersonal relationships (Romans 14:21, I Corinthians 13:4-5, I Timothy 4:12)

6. Respect those in authority over him/her (Romans 13:1)

7. Desire the right kind of friends, be protected from the wrong associations, and be hedged in by God so that he/she does not find his/her way to wrong people or wrong places and that the wrong people do not find their way to him/her (Psalm 91:9-11, Proverbs 1:10-11, 15; Hosea 2:6)

8. Rely on God's direction regarding marriage, being kept from the wrong choice, and being saved for the right marriage partner (Psalm 37:4-5; 2 Corinthians 6:14-17)

9. Choose to remain pure until the time of marriage and that the one he/she is to marry will also remain pure (I Corinthians 6:18-20)

10. Learn to submit totally to God and resist Satan actively in all circumstances (Psalms 119:1, 143:10, James 4:7)

11. Be single-hearted in loving and applying God's Word, using its wisdom rather than the world's standards to make decisions in his/her life (Pslams 19:7, 84:10, 119:10, Romans 12:1-2)

12. Allow God to mature within him/her the character of Christ that will be lived out in a lifetime of service and submission to Him (Psalm 90:12, 17; Luke 2:52; Romans 8:29)

Food and Song: What Could Be Better?

So Devin and I have really been enjoying our less-than-super-packed weekends lately.  For awhile, it seemed like we never had a chance to breathe on the weekend, but the past few have been busy, but not overwhelming.  

This weekend, we made Easter Crescent Rolls aka Resurrection Rolls.  Always on the lookout for a new holiday tradition, I received this idea in an email this week and thought we would give it a try.  Next time, I will wrap the crescent rolls more tightly around the marshmallow, but definitely a keeper.  They were yummy and a fun idea for kids.  You can get the recipe by clicking here.  (I actually like this recipe better than the one I made and will use it next time.)

We also had a chance to finally make the chocolate mug cake recipe that Beth sent me awhile ago.  Devin made us both one while I was getting Finley ready for bed.  The one he made for me turned out better than his.  Mine was wonderful, but his was a little dry.  

As for the song part of this blog, Finley is really into music right now.  And since I AM on a t.v. diet, I wanted to find us some music to enjoy.  I went to Mardel's and bought some children's praise CDs for Finley's Easter basket.  I also remembered that Sarah Mae had recommended Songs for Saplings on her blog so I downloaded the CD this morning and played it while I sorted the laundry and Finley was in her exersaucer.  It was so cute because Finley just stopped her playing and sat there for a really long time listening to the music.

I always knew that being a parent would make me a better person, but I still have to laugh when I see it happening.  For instance, the Songs for Saplings CD is all about scripture memory... something that I have never been good at, but I guarantee I will learn the scriptures on this CD!  Isn't it amazing how God's word is just as beneficial for a 5 1/2 month old as it is for me at 30? 

I was also convicted while reading "Don't Make Me Count To Three" because her motto on obedience is: 

All the Way, Right Away, and With a Happy Heart

I can tell you honestly that I am not a poster child for this motto!  I tend to drag my feet with things whether it is ironing or calling a friend who is going through a rough time, but God expects the same kind of obedience from me that I will require of Finley so I better start practicing! 

Speaking of song... check out this picture of my nephew, Adam, singing in church yesterday!  He's the one in the shark sweater.