7 Prayers That Work

It's never too soon to pray for your kids' future spouses. I've been praying for my kids' spouses since the day my kids were born, hoping and longing for three girls to grow up loved and protected and conformed into the image of Christ. It's never too late to pray for that. All of us are growing and changing, no matter how old we are. The majesty of Scripture is that it is always revealing new truth to the people who seek truth, no matter how many times they've read it. Seek truth for yourself, then encourage your kids and their spouses to seek truth. We learn by watching others live right. Your job as a parent of adults is to live right and model righteous decisions. Your job as a child is to watch adults who live right and follow their example, which means that you are also making righteous decisions. Don't give up on people growing more like Christ. Don't give up on your kids, on your kids' girlfriends or boyfriends, or on your

In 2 Timothy, Paul writes his last letter to Timothy, his spiritual son. They long for each other's company. Paul knows he is going to be soon martyred by the cruel Roman emperor, Nero. He knows he might never see Timothy again. He knows that Timothy, as a Christian pastor, is afraid. (Who wouldn't be?) In the prayer below, I've taken Paul's final encouragements to Timothy and modeled them into a prayer that all parents can pray over their children.  Dear God, Jehovah, You are powerful and mighty. Nothing can stand against you. You love my child even more than I do, so I am giving you my most earnest request. Thank you for my child's sincere faith. Guard it and develop it. Thank you for the opportunity you have given me as his parent to pour into him. Help me to never be discouraged or dismayed by results. You are alive and working in his life. I pray for my child to be drawn to your Word--to saturate himself in it. Holy Spirit, draw him to yourself. Mak

Lord Jesus, You are great and mighty. You use ordinary people to accomplish your incredible work. I'm not sure why. But thank you for the opportunity to go to a mission field this next week to meet people you love and died for, to share the gospel you created, to live like you for a few short days-- Giving myself to something greater than me. Thinking of other people's needs instead of mine own. Talking about what really matters--You. Feeling uncomfortable in order to make someone else feel like they belong. This is your mission. And you call us to it every day. And Saturday, I'm going to answer it. (Click here to read "Why I leave my heart in other countries.") Oh, why don't I answer it every day, all day? Why don't I ache for the people of the world who don't know you and actually disrupt my life to reach them? I ask for your blessing and protection over my trip, yes. But mostly, I'm thinking I just want more of you.

Jehovah-Rapha,  the God who Heals, I ask for your blessing and healing over my friend who's sick. Disease is such a hard thing to understand. (Click here for "Prayer for a sick child.") I know you're a Healer and the Great Physician, so you don't delight in our pain and illness. I know you use it to draw people to yourself. Use my friend's illness. Use my friend's family. Use the trauma and grief associated with sickness, diagnoses, and fear for the future. Use it all. Make us witnesses of faith that you heal, that you love, and that you protect. You have plans for all of us. Your way is perfect. Help me to trust you for myself and for my friends, in sickness and in health. But Lord, please, take away this disease and bring glory to yourself through a life that's healed. Please heal because you are the Healer. Please comfort because you are the Comforter. Please sustain because you are our only hope. (Click here for &q

Today I started teaching a poetry unit to my 9th and 10th grade students. As part of my argument that they do, in fact, read or listen to poetry every day, I played a song for them. I'll play a new one each day of the unit, and they will read along and identify the literary devices present in the song. They will analyze  literature and hopefully analyze themselves.  And they will tap their feet and sing along quietly. Here is the first song. And here is my prayer to go with it.  Lord God, How easy it is to lose my soul to this world! I scare myself when I realize how easily I am duped, how easily I am distracted, how easily I am deceived into thinking something here can actually satisfy me. This world can offer me nothing, but I obsess over success and happiness like they can. Holy Spirit, protect my soul. Guard my heart. Strengthen my will. Remind my mind that you are everything, and this world can offer me nothing. Lord Jesus, thank you for saving me

Lord, I'm so thirsty. I need more of You. I know that's my problem. I'm thirsty for You. Instead, I tell myself that one drink--one verse, one prayer-- adds enough to my day's experience. It's enough for a thirsty soul. Instead of drinking deeply, I ask You for quick fixes-- instant success, acceptance, comfort, recognition, security, love-- from everything and everyone around me, including You. That's the water I think I need. (Click here to listen to the powerful worship song "Living Water" by Gateway.) Yet I'm deeply parched. Instead of drinking deeply from the well of Living Water (You), I pray little prayers instead: Help me get through the day. Show me what to do. Take away this anxiety. Protect my family. Solve this problem. Meet my needs. Those are little requests-- little drinks of water that will never parch my thirst for You. They will not sustain or fill me. They will not give me Living Water.

Lord Jesus, Make me a blessing today. I have to have a difficult conversation with someone. Pour me out. Help me reflect your love, grace, and holiness. You are my beginning and my end. Be my middle today. Be my everything so I can transfer your everything to someone else who needs it. Which is all of us. I love you. I need you. I want to be like you. Amen. 'New Wine' from our new album "There Is More" HILLSONG UNITED 36,688,620 views • Apr 6, 2018 VERSE 1: In the crushing In the pressing You are making new wine In the soil I now surrender You are breaking new ground PRE-CHORUS: So I yield to You and to Your careful hand When I trust You I don’t need to understand CHORUS: Make me Your vessel Make me an offering Make me whatever You want me to be I came here with nothing But all You have given me Jesus bring new wine out of me VERSE 2: In the crushing In the pressing You are making new wine In the soil I now surrender You are breaking new g