Suzy of Empty Nest Blessed shared her 6 favorite scripture verses she uses for praying for her adult children and she shares why it is important to pray for them.
I really enjoyed that post because I, too, find it very important to pray for my adult children. Here are my favorite verses for doing that and how I do it.
I love to use the YouVersion app on my iPhone. When I come across a scripture in my daily reading that strikes me as one that I could pray for my children I copy it into a note and I highlight it in blue. (That way when I come across it again later I know it is a prayer scripture!) Then I go into the pasted scripture and I add the name of the child I am praying for. Let me demonstrate the way I pray these prayers using one of my children.
Colossians 1:9-10
“I ask God to give Tommy complete knowledge of His will and to give Tommy spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way Tommy will live will always honor and please the Lord, and his life will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, Tommy will grow as he learns to know God better and better.” (New Living Translation)
Psalms 141:4
“Don’t let Tommy drift toward evil or take part in acts of wickedness. Don’t let him share in the delicacies of those who do wrong.” (New Living Translation)
James 4:7-10
“So let God work his will in Tommy. May he yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. May he say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. May he quit dabbling in sin and purify his inner life. May he quit playing the field; let him hit bottom, and cry his eyes out. The fun and games are over. Let him get serious, really serious and get down on his knees before the Master; it’s the only way he’ll get on his feet.” (The Message)
2 Timothy 2:22-26
May Tommy run away from infantile indulgence. May he run after mature righteousness – faith, love, peace – joining those who are in honest and serious prayer before God. May he refuse to get involved in inane discussions (yes God!!); they always end up in fights. May Tommy not be argumentative, but a gentle listener and a teacher who keeps cool, working firmly but patiently with those who refuse to obey. You never know when God might sober Tommy up with a change of heart and a turning to the truth, enabling him to escape the Devil’s trap, where people are caught and held captive, forced to run his errands.” (The Message)
Sometimes the prayer is for one child in particular. Sometimes it’s for all three of my children. Here is how I modify it for all of them:
John 17:9, 15
“I pray for my kids. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. … My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.” (New International Version)
Daniel 6:4
“This would be my prayer for my children. I pray that they would be completely trustworthy and with blameless character that no one could find anything against them.”
My friend Carrie had a lovely post yesterday and we agreed to pray for each other’s adult children. Do you pray for your adult children? Do you have a certain way you do it? I’d love to hear!
Now go read Suzy’s post! I think you’ll be blessed by it!
What a neat idea! I hadn’t thought of doing that before but I’m going to try incorporating that into my Bible journaling. Thank you for sharing.
Oh I’m so glad you found that helpful!
Aw, sweet Sheila, thank you for linking to my post in yours! I love your verses and am going to add them to my list. What an encouragement to see a mom as committed to praying for her kids as I am. Many blessings to you! I’ve followed you on Bloglovin and will be reading all of your posts in the future! Thanks again, xoxo Suzy
Technically you found me first! You started following me on IG and I followed you back! I was intrigued by your blog’s name and realized we are in very similar stages of life – one that I was afraid of when my kids were younger but that I’m embracing more and more now as one by one the birdies leave the nest! I look forward to getting to know you better through your blog and social media!
I have been doing Miracle Morning. And during the first quiet hour in the morning, I am doing affirmations, visualizations while sitting in silence. Devotionals, reading, writing and exercise. I have been writing morning prayers for my family. So glad to come across this post and your prayers and favorite scripture.
Good for you! Way to take care of yourself!