Good Prayers

 February 1, 2022

For the past twenty-three years, Linda and I have had the privilege of our grandchildren overnighting with us the middle two Fridays of each month. In a conversation last night with our eldest grandchild, we talked about the constancy of those overnighters.  Meema’s Friday night homemade mac and cheese, and Saturday morning pancakes continue to be staples of these weekends which are also filled with games, laughter, and serious conversations about life. Our conversation with Alex concluded with Linda and I praying for her the prayers we have prayed for these twenty-three years.

Linda’s prayer is taken from Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians as recorded in 3:17-19. She prays a phrase, followed by the kids inserting the next phrase, in a responsive litany that they have memorized. If they forget other Scriptures, these words are burned into their souls so deeply that I believe it would be impossible to escape their impact.

My prayer isn’t responsive, but is taken from Hebrews 13, as follows:

“Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” —Hebrews 13:20-21 

Recently, when we prayed with the kids, I ended with a different prayer from Scripture, the benediction found in Jude 24-25:

“Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.” —Jude 1:24-25

The kids were almost in shock, and on their own, began reciting their benediction prayer. Again recently, when I preached for pastor Joe in Sinclairville, I closed the service with my usual benediction from Hebrews. Nathan leaned over to Linda and said, “I think we ought to go to bed now.”

We cannot know the impact these prayers will have, but I have to believe Isaiah’s words:

“For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, 

Line upon line, line upon line, 

Here a little, there a little.” —Isaiah 28:10 

Christian character doesn’t happen overnight. It is built as Isaiah said, little by little, as Biblical truth is laid down, line upon line. We have tried to do that, and trust that these prayers will continue to be so ingrained in them that the faithfulness and love of Christ will be their rock and fortress when the storms of life descend upon them in hellish fury. 

Linda’s prayer goes like this: 

“I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your heart, living within you as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love, and may you know and understand as all God’s children should, how high, how wide, how long, and how deep God’s love for you really is. This love is so great that you’ll never understand it nor fully experience it, but someday you will be filled up with God himself.

“And I pray that you will be as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside, and that you will always be kind, and gentle, and good, and bold. We love you, Jesus.”

You can’t go wrong continually praying Scripture, for “precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, Line upon line, line upon line, Here a little, there a little.”