The previous posts in this series (Part 1, Part 2) focused on how to pray for your child with special needs. In this final post in the series, we’ll explore ways parents can pray for themselves.
Pray for the Fruits of the Spirit
Remember the list of fruits of the Spirit and character traits listed in Part 1 of this series? You know, the ones to pray for your kids? Well, you can pray for God to multiply those same fruits and character traits in your own life. Your prayer could go something like this:
God, I don’t know how to find joy in my child’s illness. Please show me how to be joyful in the midst of trials. Put joy in my days and teach me to recognize it. Grant me a joyful spirit that will encourage and comfort my child.
You can also pray about your marriage, job, financial needs, health, and anything else. God loves it when you acknowledge your dependence upon him and come to him with your petitions.
Enlist a Prayer Team
One of the best things you can do is start a prayer team. Ask friends and family members if they would commit to praying for you and your child on a regular basis. Once a month, send an email of specific prayer requests for them to pray over. If creating the monthly prayer letter is too much for you, ask someone on the team to write it for you. You call once a month to share the requests, and your scribe can take it from there. The scribe can also print out the email and snail mail it to members of the prayer team who don’t have email.
After the first month, you can send praise reports about answered prayers along with the new prayer requests. You and your prayer team members will be encouraged as you see God answer your petitions.
Keep a Prayer Journal
Along the same lines, you might want to keep a prayer journal. You can list the things your praying about by the day or week and check them off as God gives his answers. Once again, answered prayers are a mighty encouragement and source of hope.
If you have other ideas about how to pray for yourself, please leave a comment. I’d love to hear from you.
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Wonderful, Lynette. Sometimes the concreteness of a prayer journal and the ability to run your finger down a list of prayers and check off the ones God has answered is a great encouragement.
Hang in there, Lynette. God is answering your prayers for Jocey. He may not be quite ready to disclose his methods to you, but they are good.
i really like the idea of a prayer journal! my child at this moment has come so far physically, but we are now dealing with mental health issues…we have had hundreds of prayers answered and wish i had kept a list just to even encourage myself as some days seem so bleak and it would be good to remind myself of how God’s hand IS in our lives! think i’m going to start today!
a lot of your other ideas remind me of Mom’s In Touch, a mother’s prayer group for their children (an awesome worldwide christian ministry) that i was actively involved with thru junior high for my kids, when i went back to work i couldn’t continue, but what a great reminder to put my child’s name in the verses!
thanks for blessing me today jolene!
lynette