Connect and Yield to God
Many of us have participated in rousing renditions of “Come, Lord Jesus, Be Our Guest” before meals. These sweet, childlike prayers are wonderful (albeit repetitive and sometimes boring). But if we’re being honest, praying outside of mealtimes doesn’t come naturally to us. Our schedules demand a faster pace than a prayerful spirit can match; our wiggly kids don’t sit still for long; and did we mention that prayer is hard work?
In his book on prayer, Tim Keller encourages us that the most important things we do are usually the hardest and, therefore, that prayer must be one of the most important. As we give our time and energy to address the God of the universe, we participate in an eternally significant act, one that has ripple effects we can’t always see. Through moments of prayer, however brief and messy, we teach our kids the value of devotion to Jesus, of staying connected to him, and yielding to him. We also demonstrate how the gospel meets us in everyday scenarios—both at mealtimes and outside of them.
The following are five ways you can pray with your kids during the day (that aren’t dinnertime):
1. Ask God’s blessing over the day.
Many of us wake up and our feet hit the floor running. It takes intentionality to pause upon waking and recognize God’s sovereignty. He allows our lungs to breathe and hearts to beat. We are not our own, Scripture reminds us, but we belong to him—our bodies, our families, our time, and every other gift, including this very day. Unless God’s Spirit continues giving us life and breath, we perish. Unless he provides for our daily bread, we perish. And he’s also the one who keeps sustaining our faith.
Organized alphabetically, Teach Me to Pray offers a rich collection of prayers to help children navigate a wide range of emotions, explore significant life and church topics from a biblical perspective, and deepen their connection with God.
So, we start our day by asking God for his blessing. We acknowledge his power and might, his goodness and glory, and we submit ourselves to him. We see examples of blessings all over Scripture, from the Aaronic blessing in the Old Testament (Num. 6:22–27), to David’s prayers for blessing in the Psalms (Pss.1, 32, 84, and 112 as some examples), to Paul’s epistles that bless the church with “grace and peace.”
You can pray right when your kids wake up, or you might hold hands with your family members before sending everyone off to school and work. You can take a blessing straight from Scripture and adapt it for your family, or you might use a repeated liturgical blessing like the one our family says: “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, thank you for this day. / Bless us as we serve you, as we learn and work and play. Amen!”1
2. Seek God’s help in needy moments.
Kids are experts at expressing their needs (and wants). There’s no pretense, no games played. They approach their parents with raw emotions and without fear. Perhaps this is why Jesus says the kingdom of heaven belongs to those who become like little children. Yet, truthfully, it’s much easier for me to get annoyed with my kids about their desires and needs than to turn them into opportunities for prayer. This is another way we can teach our kids to pray.
If your son has a problem with another kid at school, pray with him about it, seeking God’s help and strength. If your daughter feels discouraged about her slow progress at piano or reading or volleyball, take it to the Lord in prayer. If your twin toddlers are fighting over a toy, pray a simple prayer over them for kindness and love. And when (not if) you’re tempted to explode in impatience and anger, call out to Jesus in front of your kids.
It’s so easy to want to fix our kids’ problems (or make them go away), but every need that reveals our dependence on Jesus awakens us to his mercy. We need him. No need is too small for him. And he alone upholds the whole universe and cares for us. So teach your kids the beauty of childlike faith by modeling prayer in needy moments.
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3. Receive God’s forgiveness when you sin.
What happens after someone in your family sins? You could brush things aside and move on or issue a quick apology between parties. But leaning into these moments will lead us to experience the gospel of grace in a profound way. No parent necessarily wants or seeks conflict—we would much rather have peace and love reigning in our homes—but when sin increases, grace truly does abound all the more (Rom. 5:20). And Jesus makes his goodness known to people who desperately need his grace.
One prayer I’ve been led to pray is, “Lord, help me see hard moments in parenting not as interruptions but as opportunities for your grace to be at work.” Through this lens, I learn to yield my will for comfort and ease to God’s will for our family’s sanctification. Now, instead of seeing my kid’s selfish response as a problem, it can become a possibility for growth. Instead of beating myself up for rashly spoken words, I can bring my guilt to Jesus. Every sinful choice we make can lead us into repentant prayer and renewed thanks for the gospel.
Through humility and practice, we can become experts at saying “I’m sorry” and “I forgive you.” We can grow in reconciling with one another as we first bring our sin before God’s throne for his cleansing pardon. By God’s Spirit and through prayer, our homes can become havens of forgiveness—and that is a beautiful place to dwell.
Teach your kids the beauty of childlike faith by modeling prayer in needy moments.
4. Pursue God’s revelation in his word.
You can also pray with your kids as you read Scripture together. “Open my eyes,” David writes, “that I may behold wondrous things out of your law” (Ps. 119:18). Apart from the Holy Spirit enlightening our eyes, we cannot see spiritual truth. We are helpless to understand what’s in our Bibles unless God reveals himself there.
As we pray for God’s help and teaching in his word, we model a lifelong prayer habit for our kids—something that matters for their personal devotional time, their engagement in Scripture alongside others (even their future kids), and their grasp of God’s presence in worship services.
Family worship doesn’t have to be hard or scary. This can very simply involve sitting down together, praying for God’s help, reading a short section of his word, and talking about it. This simple pattern, practiced over days, months, and years, makes an impact that we as parents may never fully comprehend, but we can trust God’s promise that his word always does his work (Isa. 55:10–11). And this is worth praying for.
5. Recount God’s faithfulness before you sleep.
One of Israel’s songs reads, “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night” (Ps. 92:1–2). Recounting God’s faithfulness to sustain us, provide for us, and answer our prayers has a faith-strengthening effect. So we can end our days tucking our sweet ones into bed as we remember God’s goodness to us all.
Try asking your kids to name three things they are thankful for each night. Then, try it yourself. This practice has forced me to slow down and consider the day, how God’s hand was at work, and how much he answered our morning prayer for blessing. Even on the hardest of days, because of Jesus, we have manifold reasons to praise God. You can even use a Scripture to guide your thanksgiving (like Psalm 103 or Psalm 96).
However you choose to pray with your kids, remember the unmatched privilege of communing with the living God. We bring our hearts and voices to a real person who knows us, cares for us, and has given everything to rescue us. And remember: however hard prayer might be, because of who we’re talking to, it will be extremely important and entirely worth it.
Notes:
- Adapted from Justin Whitmel Earley’s Habits of the Household.
Kristen Wetherell is the author of Teach Me to Pray: Praying God’s Word from A to Z.
