Back-to-School Prayer

The best way to prepare yourself and your kids for a new school year is to start out on your knees in prayer. Praying for your children is a monumental task, but it makes a difference in their life and in yours. Where do you begin? Take a look at these 10 areas that relate to your child's daily life and put them on your prayer list. Your prayers will make a difference in their life, and you will experience greater wisdom and peace for the parenting challenges you face during this school year.

1. Relationships. Your child interacts daily with teachers, friends, coaches, and family. Pray that your children will be considerate of the people around them. Pray that they will choose words that build up others. Pray that they will choose to surround themselves with people who know and love God. Pray that your children will share their faith and experiences in Christ with others.

2. Positive Peer Pressure. Your child's friends are important companions. They are the ones your child grows and learns with. Friends are the ones they share their emotions with and seek advice from. Pray that your child will be secure in his faith and values and will make right decisions. Pray for your child to be a positive influence on his peers.

3. Dating Relationships. Pray for your child's (teen's) purity, wisdom, and his ability to withstand temptation. Pray for your teen to find a Christian person to date. Pray for your teen to seek wise counsel in addressing difficult decisions in the dating relationship.

4. Wisdom. Your child makes a lot of choices. Choices can be as simple as selecting clothing for school and as complex as deciding which classes to take to prepare for college. Choices can also affect things that determine whether your child lives through the day or ends up in a life-threatening situation. Pray that your child will have the ability to think through and process situations before acting or speaking.

5. Right from Wrong. The best source for your child to determine right from wrong is to lead her to the Bible. Pray that your child will read God's Word and clearly know the difference between right and wrong. Pray for her to have the courage to take a stand for what is right and to act on her beliefs.

6. Protection. Your children are living in a frightening world. You can't protect and shelter him forever. The best thing to do is to take seriously your responsibility to pray for your child's physical, emotional, and spiritual protection daily.

7. Self- Acceptance. Growing up is hard to do. Children need a boost in their self-esteem every day. Pray that your child will develop a good sense of identity. Pray that you will encourage your child through your words and actions daily. Pray for your child to accept both his successes and failures and still know of his worth in Christ's kingdom.

8. Good Role Models. Ask for God to place in your child's life people who will exemplify the Christian life. Children need Christian examples in their lives, in addition to their parents. Pray for other Christian adults to surround your child when you may not be available.

9. Pray James 1:19. Pray: "May (your child's name) be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry."

10. Balance. Today's kids juggle lots of activities at school, church, and home. Pray that your children can choose wisely from all the available demands on their time and be able to balance everything in a reasonable manner.