The One School Supply I’m Missing

I spent 3 days last week in training conferences learning new methods and ideas, receiving encouragement and instruction on innovative ways to educate my children next year.  And I returned home with a pile of books and curriculum.  Shiny new tools and strengthened resolve to do this job well.

We homeschool around here and while you might choose another method of education, I promise we’re not all that different.  You might be grabbing that school supply list and stocking up on markers and binders, but really it’s much the same.  Hopes for a new year, a few anxieties, some new tools, a new schedule, a new pair of shoes and we’re off.

When I returned home from those meetings I spread my pile of books and curriculum all over the dining room table.  Hundreds of dollars and big hopes for a new year lay in front of me.  And I began to think of the time that goes into all of this school prep – for you and me both.  The scouting out supply sales here and there.  The shopping for shoes online or in stores, figuring out who wears what size now and what they will need for the upcoming year.  The conventions for homeschooling moms and teachers.  The registrations and paperwork, meet and greets.  It’s kind of a big ordeal.

And I stood there wondering….what if we spent as much time praying for our children as we did shopping for them?  What if we prayed as much as we planned?  What if we prayed a little more than we worried?

Honestly, I think it’s the one school supply I’m missing.

 

Sure, I pray for my kids, but am I really intentional about it?

Am I intentional in thinking about their needs, beyond decent pencils, for the upcoming school year? Am I committied to faithfully covering them in prayer? Relationships, obedience, honesty, humility, courage, wisdom, friendships, teachers, respect, confidence, diligence, perseverance, leadership – this is kind of a big deal, friends.

And the truth is, no.  Far too often I care more about academics, new shoes and good art supplies than I do about faithfully praying for my children.  I’m a little haphazard.  I throw hail Mary’s and get on my knees when things get messy or I mumble a quick prayer here and there, but I think parenting brave requires us to play a little more offense than defense.

So I began to wonder, what if I committed to intentionally and faithfully praying for my children every single day for the next month?  What if I decided to take the next school year on boldly and bravely and become a woman who, not only teaches her kids to do hard things, but champions her children in prayer, a woman who fights on her knees, who devotes her time and her heart to talking to God consistently on behalf of her children.

I want to be that woman.  I want to be like Hannah and Mary and pour out heart felt prayers for my children, straight to God.  I want to choose to pray more than I worry, pray more than I plan, pray more than I talk about or think about the next school year.

“We tend to use prayer as a last resort, but God wants it to be our first line of defense. We pray when there’s nothing else we can do, but God wants us to pray before we do anything at all.”  Oswald Chambers

So here is my plan.  I’m committing to 30 Days of Praying for my People.  I’m setting the goal of praying for my children each and every day.  I’m committing to being intentional, to being faithful and to working toward creating a habit of covering my kids in prayer, purposefully and daily.

And guess what?  I’d love for you to join me!  We do challenges to eat whole foods and challenges to tighten up our abs.  How about a challenge that will impact the next school year, a challenge that will influence the next generation, a challenge that might very well have eternal impact and change our hearts at the very same time?

 

It doesn’t matter if your kids are starting preschool, elementary school, high school, or college.  They need your prayer.  It doesn’t matter if you are a mother or father, grandmother, aunt or family friend – you are perfectly positioned to impact a child’s life through faithful prayer.  What a simple yet powerful opportunity we have!

If you are seeking to make praying for your people a habit, they don’t even have to be in school because your newborn babies and your grown up children need your prayer every bit as much.

So how about it?  There is power in community and power in accountability.  We need each other to be encouraged.  So tell a friend and invite your neighbor.  Let’s take on this school year in a bold and brave new fashion, committing to pray faithfully for the children we love.  Let’s Pray For Our People!

Are you in? 

Click here to sign up!

I’ll send prayer prompts and scriptures I’m working through for the month.  I’ll send encouragements and reminders, because that is what friends do.  But really, this all you.  This is a commitment you are making to do this school year different.  This is a commitment to put first things first and spend the next 30 days praying for your people.  I hope you’ll join me!

If you are as eager as I am to get started then head over and listen to this podcast by Heidi St. John.  I promise you’ll be encouraged.  And if you want a little more homework read through 1 Samuel chapters 1-3.  Read about a mom who pleads her case with God, a mom who offer a blessing over her child, a child who learn to listen for God – so much good stuff.  And it all began with a prayer.  

Watch your e-mail and we’ll dive into this together!