Dangerous Prayer

"Now I lay me down to sleep..."

"Keep my children safe..."

"Please, God, protect my child from harm..."

"Don't let him suffer, Lord."

"Keep him healthy..."

"God is great, God is good..."

I can fully admit that as a mommy of little ones, I sometimes pray out of fear. Here's a little peek into what you may hear as a fly on the wall in my "prayer closet" when I am praying out of fear:

            "Oh, God, please don't let Rylie go down that path of destruction."

           "God, please protect Caleb from the world as he goes on the school bus today."

           "God, please keep all four of my kids healthy and free from pain."

           

It's not that these prayers are "wrong" per se. But they aren't bold.  They aren't fearless.  They aren't said with faith. They aren't dangerous.

If it were up to me, I would keep my little ones wrapped in a thick layer of bubble wrap and kept from anyone who could harm them.  But is that really protecting them or is it hindering them? With each child, I dedicated them to God in front of our church and promised to help rear them in a godly way. We got all dressed up. We got a cute children's Bible from the children's pastor. We got nice pictures and went to a nice lunch. Nice.  But the biggest mistake us mommies make is taking for granted the seriousness of what a dedication REALLY is. It isn't just a cute tradition.  It is a serious commitment where we say, "Okay, God. I'm giving this little person to you and trusting that You will use me as an instrument in helping him find his way. But ultimately, he belongs to You."  Yikes. For a control freak like me, that is scary.  Sometimes I think we use God like Siri and ask him to help us along the way when we think we need him instead of just trusting that He is fully in control. Then we get annoyed at God just like we do with Siri when we don't get the answer we were looking for. Ugh. It's tough.

Well, here are four things our prayers MUST BE in order to move into a new level of faith and trust for ourselves and for our kids:

1. Our prayers must be BOLD.
In Acts 4, Peter and John are let out of jail after being persecuted. When they get back to their village, they could have easily asked God for protection or even justice, and that would have been understandable.  Instead, we read in Acts 4:29- Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.  The word boldness here in Greek means cheerful courage.  When was the last time you prayed a prayer of boldness over your children? God loves when we turn up the risk and pray for His perfect plan rather than our neat and comfortable plan. Stop being wimpy and acting as if our kids can't be used as mighty instruments for His kingdom.

2. Our prayers must be OUT LOUD.
It is important that we pray in our quiet time with the Lord, but it is equally important that we pray aloud for our children to hear. Praying aloud can strengthen and encourage our children who are listening.  In John 11, we read that Jesus thanks his Father for hearing him.  He says, "I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."  Our words are so important.  If we pray out fear, our children will develop those same habits.  One of the greatest lessons I have learned to model for my children is to pray for people as soon as I hear about a need.  Instead of saying, "I'll be praying for you," I like to say, "Let's pray for that right now." This shows my children that it is not odd or awkward to pray for people in the moment. Have them pray for each other and for you, too. 

3. Our prayers must be full of PRAISE and THANKSGIVING.
My pastor taught me that the Lord's prayer is something we can really model our prayer life after.  We should always begin our prayer time in praise.  Thank Him for all that He has done.  Thank Him even in the midst of hardship.  Thank Him for his mercies.  Thank Him for your children.  Praise Him for your strong willed daughter ;)  Modeling this for our children can show that even when times are tough, we can still praise our loving Father.  His mercies are new every morning! When we only pray when we need something, this sets up bad habits for our kids.

4. Our prayers must be EXPECTING.
When praying for a need, especially for healing, I have recently learned to pray with expectation and with authority.  Don't say, "God, if it is your will, then please heal her."  Of COURSE it is God's will to heal.  Pray with boldness.  Speak healing over that sore back.  In Jesus' name pray boldly for healing in that loved one's body.  There wasn't a single person that Jesus came across that he didn't heal.  Why would it be different today?  Our faith is so conditional in America.  The miracles and wonders are so scarce because we don't expect it to happen.  We need to change that.  Imagine if we actually believed God could heal your friend who is blind or heal that family member of cancer.  Well, why not?  Start expecting Him to move! 

My prayer for each person reading this is that they would sense an urgency in praying bold prayers with expectancy.  May you speak boldness over your children's lives. May you truly hand them over to God trusting that they will be world changers because of their trust in Jesus.

Dangerous Mornings.

Hurry up.
Let's go.
Get your shoes on.
You pooped again?
Is that throw up?  
Go potty.


Does your day ever start this way?  I find myself waking up in the morning and praying that I won't yell at my kids.  Sometimes THAT is my goal! 

Just. Don't. Yell. 

I don't think I have ever felt extreme rage or extreme grace in a span of 5 minutes as when I became mom of a toddler. With four little ones under 6 years old, it can be a constant roller coaster ride if I allow it.  Not the fun, exhilarating kind of ride, but the kind that jerks you back and forth and leaves your neck pulled, your back out, your hair a tangled mess, and in need of a barf bag!   

How can I change this? How can I make my mornings the kind that are exhilarating, joyful, and stress free?  Is that even possible?  Do I need to wait until it's an empty nest?
Well, I think I have it figured out.  Trust me, I still mess up. (see point #5) But I realized it has nothing to do with my kids.  It has everything to do with me and my approach to the day. It is time to take back my mornings and start the day out dangerously. Free of stress and full of joy!

Here are my tips for stress-free mornings with four little ones to get out of the door by 8am:  

1.  Do as much as you can the night before.
As soon as the kids get home, we make lunches for the next day.  Now, I have to admit- I despise making lunches.  But that's where my parter-in-crime dangerous dad comes in! He makes lunches while I prep for dinner.  Lunches get made, outfits for the next day get picked out. (I let them help pick and we discuss the weather and what would be appropriate. Good teaching moments!) I even make my breakfast for the next day and pack it with my lunch sometimes. All of this happens as quickly and efficiently as possible so that we can enjoy the kids for the few hours before bedtime.  


                              2. Wake up earlier.  
If you're anything like me, you probably stopped reading by now. Wake up earlier? Yea, right.  Trust me, if anyone loves their sleep, it's me! But I find that if I wake up 30 minutes earlier than anyone else, I can have my "me" time. I can spend time with God in prayer and reading; I can take a shower without little ones trying to break in. For the love of God, I can pee in peace! I can pick out an outfit without someone puking on it. I can drink my coffee while doing my make-up. I. can. breathe.  I know this isn't a new thought or idea, but it really does work.  If I am ready before my kids wake up, I can fully focus on them and can help set their days up for joy and success. 

3. Put on your armor.
This is probably the most important tip from me and for me.  I have to be aware of what I will be facing each day as a dangerous mom.  I have to put on my full armor of God so that I am prepared and ready to face whatever comes against me.  If I don't consciously put on my helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, shield of faith, shoes of peace, sword of spirit, etc. then I am going to start the day off in my own strength. (See Ephesians 6:10-18) If I don't start out this way, I will allow the enemy to sneak his way in with those little lies. You're going to yell at them today. You're not a good mom. They are going to make you late. I need to give God priority in the morning.  Pray. Listen. Be still. It is amazing how smoothly my morning can go if I give it to God first thing.

4. Enjoy them.
If you follow steps 1-3, then you will be able to fully enjoy the moments with your children. I find that when I am ready and able to think clearly, I notice little things like the tower my little Asher built, the drawing my little Rylie worked hard on, the independence that Caleb exhibited when he made the bed by himself, and the way Josiah pulled himself up for the first time in his crib. They will not be little forever.  They won't need me in the mornings for too much longer.  I don't want to miss this. I want to press the pause button. Have this approach EVERY morning, and see how much more enjoyable it can be.

5. Forgive yourself.

Lysa Terkeurst, one of my favorite mama authors, says "Bad moments don't make us bad mamas."  That is so true.  I tend to feel so much guilt when I mess up by yelling. I see the look in my little one's eyes and I know I've crushed her spirit.  I have ruined his morning. They will never forget my moment of yelling. Those thoughts couldn't be further from the truth.  As long as we forgive ourselves and ask our little ones for forgiveness, then it can be wonderful teaching moments.  Breathe. Walk away. Gather your emotions. Ask your little ones for forgiveness. Then, pray together.  We don't have it all together, but we have to give ourselves a little more grace. 

Dangerous

Why dangerous mom? What is so dangerous about me? I don't own a weapon; I don't know martial arts; I can't even do a real push-up. What makes me so dangerous? Well, if you're a mom, you know it takes a whole lot more than keeping your head above water to be good at this mom thing. It takes effort, stamina, and extra help from above. I'm dangerous because I am a bold woman of God. I'm dangerous because I have power in Christ. I'm dangerous because I know who I am and I know who I am not.

Journey with me as I post different ways to live out the powerful call God has placed on our lives as moms. We are not meant to live in fear for our childrens' lives. We are not meant to sit back and pray out of fear either.  We are meant to live dangerously- for our husbands, for our kids, for our churches, for our God. Let's be dangerous together as we tackle some real-life issues, hardships, successes and failures. We are called to step out of the shore into the waves!