Prayers for My Girl: Honesty

Day 5 of prayers for my Girl.

Honesty and transparency are very important to me. The first time Marie lied, I felt like I was a complete failure as a parent and her life was headed straight down a nasty path. Not only do I hate lying, the ugliness it causes makes me irrational, obviously. So once I calmed down from that, I remembered that while Satan is the Father of Lies, Jesus is the Victor! So I started praying. And praying. And disciplining. And praying. And I will continue to do so.

Honesty

Father, help Marie to be honest; a woman of integrity whose yes is yes and whose no is no (Matthew 5:37). May she always be quick to confess so that she can experience Your grace and mercy (Proverbs 28:13). Remind her that the truth will always set her free, and that Truth is found in Your Word. Give her passion for Your Truth. Sanctify her in Your Truth because You are Truth (John 8).

Morning, noon, and night I cry out in my distress, and the Lord hears my voice. Psalm 55:17

Day 4: Witness
Day 3: Purity
Day 2: Attitude
Day 1: Friendships

Prayers for My Girl: Witness

Day 4 of prayers for my girl.

There is only one good thing we can do on earth that we cannot do in heaven. Have you ever thought about that? It never occurred to me until my freshmen year of college when the author, Mark Cahill, came to IWU and talked about his book, One Thing You Can't Do in Heaven. 

The one thing we cannot do is witness. We cannot lead others to the Lord. Everyone in heaven will already be in heaven! So what greater purpose do we have on this earth than to be a light in this ever darkening world??

Let me be real with you here… I fail fail fail at this. FAIL. But that doesn't mean I get to quit. And it's most definitely not going to stop me from praying that Marie is a shining light for her Savior.

I promise Jack was having as much fun as his sister, ha!

Witness

Thank You, Jesus, for pulling my girl out of the darkness and being the light that leads to life! (John 8:14). Let Your light shine so brightly through Marie that people cannot help but see You (Matthew 5:16). Be so very real in her life that she needs to talk about You. May she never for even a moment be ashamed of the Good News. Help her to love others too much to keep from sharing with them the peace, the freedom, the joy that comes from knowing You! Lord, make her dangerous for Your purpose. So, when You usher her home, You can say to her, "Well done, good and faithful servant." (Matthew 25:23).

Rejoice in hope. Be patient in tribulation. Be constant in prayer. Romans 12:12

Day 3: Purity
Day 2: Attitude
Day 1: Friendships

Prayers for My Girl: Purity

Day 3 of Prayers for My Girl.

This subject of purity scares the living daylights out of me. We live out in the country without TV. We are very sheltered. So stepping out into the world is like a blow to the gut. It's ugly out there! That's expected, of course, as things will only get worse until Jesus comes in on His white horse. But the ugly doesn't stop at the church doors. We Believers have let impurity creep in and take over. Not only behind closed doors and in secret, but even outwardly choosing to join in with what the world has decided is acceptable. I feel so defeated sometimes because I can't imagine how my kids will survive this world and stay pure. On different levels, neither Derek nor I stayed pure.

But THANKS BE TO GOD! He gives us the victory over sin and death through Jesus! 1 Corinthians 15:57.

And I believe -with everything that I have- in miracles. Let's move mountains with our prayers!

Purity

Father, by Your mercy, give her the strength to offer her body as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to You (Romans 12:1). Guard her heart as it is the wellspring of life (Proverbs 4:23). I pray that she will always remember that her body is a gift to her husband. Please make that truth real in her life so she clings to it- guarding her heart, her mind, her emotions until the time You have for her and her husband to become one. I pray the same for the man you have for her. May his love for You and for Marie, even before he knows her, compel him to flee temptation and live with integrity and purity. And Lord, if there is failure in their lives, give them great victory in You! (1 Corinthians 15:57). Please bless Marie with a marriage overflowing with passion, faithfulness, and unwavering love. But no matter what, may her happiness only ever be tied to You. (John 15:11)

Rise during the night and cry out. Pour out your hearts like water to the Lord. Lift up your hands to Him in prayer, pleading for your children. Lamentations 2:19

Day 2: Attitude
Day 1: Friendships

Prayers for My Girl: Attitude

Day 2 of my week of focused prayer for my Girl.

This is a prayer directly from a passage that I have circled for Marie. God laid this passage on my heart for her. The thing is, I desperately need this prayer, too. Create in us grateful hearts, Oh God!

Her Attitude

Oh Lord, fill her with joy. Help her to be considerate. Overcome her worry and lead her to pray. Create in her a grateful heart. I pray that she will experience Your peace as You guard her heart and mind. Focus her thoughts on what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and worthy of praise. (Philippians 4:4-8)

Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Colossians 4:2

Day 1: Friendships

Prayers for My Girl: Friendships

In light of the month of thanksgiving, I've decided to spend focused time praying circles around 4 of my greatest blessings: my babes.

I pray for them every single day and have all sorts of prayers for each of them written on my War Room wall, but deciding to really hone in on one kid has already pushed me to pray more often throughout the day.

This week I am focusing on my Goob. I want to share these prayers, and the verses God has used to bring them about, to encourage you in your prayers for any girls in your life.

Marie Love

Her Friendships

Lord, thank You for the gift of friendship. Thank You for blessing Marie with friends. You have gifted her with friends who love You and uplift her. Please bless these friendships and grow them (1 John 1:7). Make them as iron that sharpens iron (Proverbs 27:17). I pray that they will be unified by Your love, in Your Spirit, for Your purpose (Philippians 2:2). Thank You also for the friends who challenge her faith, who provide opportunity to deal with conflict. Help her to be cautious in choosing her friends (Proverbs 12:26) as "bad company corrupts good morals" (1 Corinthians 15:33). And, Lord, may You be her greatest Friend of all.

As Mark Batterson says in his book, The Circle Maker, "God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God."

So let us come boldly before the throne of our gracious God (Hebrews 4:16) and watch what He will do!