There are many types of prayer. And we want to teach our kids to pray all of them. 1 Timothy 3:1 calls for prayers of petitions, intercessions, and thanksgiving. Prayers of confession are a good start: Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working (James 5:16). Psalm 139:23-24 pleads: Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!
James 1 teaches petition and intercession: “And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.” He is not a super saint. James wants us to pray like this!
Then come prayers of thanksgiving and praise. Praise forces me to acknowledge who He really is, who I am to Him, what He is capable of, and what He has done for me personally.
Also, teach your kids by praying out-loud. There is a reason prayer is spoken. Our words are powerful. God spoke our world into being. He created a world affected by words. Proverbs 18:21 says, “The power of life and death is in the tongue.” Don’t pass by that verse lightly. It’s not a thing you can choose to believe or not. Every word you say drives toward life or death. What words do you want to speak? We have been designed by God to communicate with Him by words.
But I think God knew that sometimes, we just don’t know what to say. We need to model it to our kids, and we need to model it ourselves. David did not have my problem. He was a gifted poet who lived to praise God and earned the title “a man after God’s own heart.” He left to us the beauty of his words of praise. Pray those Psalms with your kids. What could that look like? By way of imperfect example, here is my very personal prayer response to Psalm 103:
1 Praise the Lord, my soul all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Father, I praise you from the deepest part of my soul, I praise you with my spirit, my mind, my will, my emotions, and my body (with my hands folded or on my knees, whatever posture commands your body to get in line with your spirit, praising God).
2 Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—
Father, forgive when I forget all the things you have done for me: for protection in driving this week. For bringing my child to repentance over her unkindness without me having to say anything, for my husband getting all the laundry folded and put away.
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
Thank you, Father, that your acceptance of me is not based on my performance, that my sins, especially becoming fearful over more intense pain today, are forgiven! What’s more, I have been given assurance from your Word that I am healed of this pain. I praise you!
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
Fear is indeed such a difficult pit to climb out of! Thank you that you have saved me. But let you have not let me sit and destroy myself with fear; you have called me to a higher place, because of and through your deep mercy.
5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Lord, you have answered so many prayers that seems impossible, loved ones coming to Christ, granting my kids so much favor; it brings me joy. I am so grateful – and, in faith I look forward to so much more of that, because I have the confidence that you will keep answering my prayers! Thank you, Jesus! Hallelujah!
Sometimes our prayers are a groan; things are going so poorly we don’t know what to pray for. That is the time for a lament. Try Psalm 22. “Lament does not deny faith in God, but actually expresses faith – you don’t voice frustration, confusion, or pain to someone who isn’t there… Lament and gratitude are mirror concepts that highlight the same fundamental truth: we depend on a God who rescues us.” Kelly M. Kapic, You Were Never Meant to Do it All.
What would you think if you went for coffee to a friend’s house and you witnessed their child fall at their feet and beg for a slice of bread? You would probably think there is something wrong in that parent-child relationship. This is clearly not a loving father. Our relationship with our children is simply a living picture of how God feels about us. The supplication part of our prayer is simply this – God WILL give us what we need. Present our request to Him and have confidence in what God’s Word says. There are THOUSANDS of promises in the Bible. Which one do you claim? Now thank God for What he has done. We are God’s precious children, so go ask your Dad!.
To train your children to pray is to train yourself to pray. Your children’s prayer life will track your prayer life. Prayer requires lots and lots of practice, confessing, praising, thanking, lamenting, requesting. Pray until it becomes second nature to turn to Jesus with every problem. Pray about everything you see in your kids, everything they bring up to you, pray in front of them, pray with them. My sweet little girl is my sister in Christ. Someday, in heaven, that will be our relationship. I get a head start to make her my prayer and praise partner! It is good for our relationship and for each of our relationship with God the Father.
So the next problem that throws your kid, a little one or a grown one, share this with them: In Numbers 13 we find a story that we are familiar with. Moses send 12 spies to the Promised Land to scope it out. They are amazed by the sights! But, there are giants in the land! The giants so intimidated the people that they refused to take another step, No thought is given for God who parted of the Red Sea, destroyed the Egyptian army, and made miraculous food in the wilderness. I call it utter absurdity until I see it in my own life. They should have brought the dilemma straight to God and stood on his promise to bring them back to the Promised Land.
Caleb and Joshua try to bring them back to the reality of God’s work on their behalf in Numbers 14:8 – 9 (KJV), saying: “The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, ‘a land which flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the LORD nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear them.”
In other words, don’t fear the issue, problem, or symptom – we will eat it for lunch! We will devour it! That issue doesn’t have God’s protection – I do, I am His! He is with me, so DO NOT FEAR!
Whatever the issue is, find God’s promise about it, give it to Him in prayer and it is your bread! Feed on the victory to build your faith. Literally, eat it for lunch with your kids. I recommend writing it on a graham cracker with food markers or frosting and dramatically gobbling it down with you kids. Laughter is good medicine!
