4 Powerful Tips on How to Be A Bold Prayer Warrior for Your Children

When God made me a mom, I was clueless about the power of prayer. I had no idea that He was going to teach me how to pray without ceasing and equip me to be a prayer warrior. Are you wondering how to be a bold prayer warrior for your children?

Here’s how God worked in my life and how these four powerful tips changed me from a spiritual wimp to becoming a prayer warrior for my children.

I had prayed to be a more than just a good mom, I prayed to be the best mom ever. Then the delivery day came and I felt helpless. This new love of my life rendered me speechless and everything within me turned to Jell-O.

How could something so perfect land in my arms? 

How in the world am I not going to mess this child up? 

What’s next?

I was convinced our daughter was in peril because I was a rookie mom, and I felt like a spiritual wimp. It terrified me. I knew I didn’t have it my own strength to figure out motherhood. 

So with stammering lips and a racing mind, I cuddled our sweet little daughter and whispered the three words that would echo throughout the corridors of my life.  I prayed, “God, help me.” 

He would.

The Lord turned me into a bold prayer warrior by teaching me how to pray without ceasing especially at my weakest moments.

1) Prayer is not a wish list to God.

As a young mom, my prayer life was pathetically lame at best. 

Sometimes I felt as though God was a spiritual Santa Claus. He was kind hearted old fellow who would grant me my wants and desires, right?  If I had been good enough, He would answer with blessings, and when I was bad…well, I got a lump of coal in my spiritual stocking. 

He was a kind and loving God and yet He felt so distant and harsh. My prayer routine was nothing more than simply giving Him my own list of things I needed and granting Him permission to do something about it. Like a spoiled child waiting for Christmas to come, I would demand God answer my way or I would pout.

God heard those small prayers and used them to mature me. He gave me a desire to read the Bible and talk with Him about what I read. I asked Him questions and wrestled with His answers. 

I realized I was not dealing with Saint Nick, but the All powerful, All knowing, Ever present, living God of the Universe. He was the Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer of mankind who was jealous to see me spiritually flourish.

I was helpless as a new mom, but I learned God was in control, and I was not. As my prayer muscles grew, I found I could trust Him not only with my needs, but I could leave the outcomes up to Him. Trusting Him with the soul of our newborn and babies that were yet to come was His goal. I learned to spiritually grow up and honor Him as my Lord on my knees in prayer.

He was making me a bold prayer warrior but it was going to take time.

2) Prayer is a lifeline of surrender.

Life went along fairly predictably with adding two beautiful boys to the family and all of its crazy normal milestones. 

I had no idea that sixteen years of spiritual growth in my prayer life would prepare me for this moment. I was staring into the screen of an MRI image of our youngest son’s spine. 

There is was, the sinister bright white glow of our new journey through years of chronic scoliosis with complications. What was this ominous lump encapsulated inside his spinal cord? Cancer, or worse? What was causing his migraines? Was he going to be paralyzed?

What is happening, God? Are you seeing this God?

God, where are you? 

I knew I needed bold prayers and nerves of steel, but it felt overwhelming. The glow from his MRI image burned in my brain, and an uncertain future made me weak. My stammering lips, and racing mind caused me to fall down hard on my knees. Again my heart frantically groaned three words that kept me sane. “God, help me.”

He did.

The Sovereign God who heard the anguished cry of a mama’s heart, helped me face this giant head on. He helped me surrender my son to His plan. Through all of the the blood work, IV’s,MRI’s, x-rays, bracing, therapy, multiple specialist, and numerous Children’s hospitals, God was there. I had Him to turn to.

I found God was right beside me in my waiting and questioning. Waiting for results, waiting for recovery, and waiting on Him to heal. When the words couldn’t come out, when worship was the only way for my heart to see the light, and when the fear of the unknown was choking me, I had a lifeline. He was teaching me to pray without ceasing.

He heard. 

He knew. 

He never left me down, not once. 

It wasn’t about whether my prayers were perfect or if  they even made sense. He understood me because I am His and He never leaves His kids. My prayer lifeline was surrendering everything into His capable hands. This prayer warrior had armor and was learning to stand in battle.

3) Prayer is releasing and embracing.

Pressing through the teen years and beyond, I set a new world record for prayers of protection over my kids! 

From heartaches, heartbreaks, driver’s licenses, and drama I gained momentum with each experience. They were growing into their own relationship with God and my prayer life was growing as well. It was more than surrendering our kids, it was releasing them. 

They were meeting God in their own moments and in their own way.  Each one seeing God moving in profound ways and experiencing His calling on their lives through the good, the bad, and the just plain ugly.

In 2017, our first two kids got married and our youngest son graduated from high school all within 3 months of each other.  We had two fixer-uppers to get ready for the new couples, and lists upon endless lists to make sure all three special days went off without a hitch. It was a fun and crazy season as a whirlwind of emotion caused my mama heart to break on the daily.   

Did I love them enough? 

Did I do enough? 

Did I give them what they need to make it in this world? 

Did I show them enough of Jesus? 

Was I enough, Lord? 

Was I valuable enough to have purpose beyond being a mom and embrace the changing season?

I wanted to use my time to honor Him and I felt lost in my new role as a mom-by-love. He walked me through feelings of loneliness and uncertainty so that I could embrace my new found purpose with fervor. The  night before both weddings and the graduation, I bawled like a baby as I once again rested my weary head on my heavenly Father’s chest and sobbed, “God, help me.”  

He did. 

The chapter of hands-on parenting was quickly closing and I felt a bit used up, honestly.  I needed to have Him show me what my new normal would be like with an empty nest. I needed Him to give me what only He could give me. 

Wisdom. 

God knew what it felt like to release His own Son into a hostile world. The Word became flesh and was dwelling in me. I had the sword of God’s Word and He was teaching me how to use it well in prayer.

4) Prayer is interceding.

Fast forward a few years. Saturday April 6, 2019 I stared into the most beautiful, squishy, pink-faced little man I had ever laid my eyes on in almost 24 years. 

I became a grandma. 

My God has been so faithful! I was so smitten with this little boy that I could hardly sleep that night. The miracle of watching my son become a Dad and his beautiful bride become a mama was profound. I scooped up this precious blessing and cradled him in my arms and watched him while he slept. I gently hummed, Great Is Thy Faithfulness.

I’m a little older now. My hair is getting a tinge of grey, and the etched lines on my face speak from a place of wisdom, humility, and confidence in a God who is real.

He turned this spiritually immature girl into a powerful praying mama with each trial, tear, and turmoil.

I learned how to pray through my own suffering, and intercede for my kids in their times of suffering, too.

Would I do it all over again? In a heartbeat.

Would I have done a few things differently? Absolutely.

Our little nest isn’t as empty as it was. More little grands are pitter-pattering around our home and the sweet sounds of child-like laughter and innocent faith are filling it’s walls once again.

Being a praying grammy is one of the deepest privileges God has given me in this new season.

When I look at these precious little people God has entrusted to our kids, I marvel at His handiwork. God is taking me back to the joy of washing handprints off windows, kissing boo-boos, changing diapers, and reading bed-time stories. It’s the same and yet it’s very different. Same tender emotions, different precious faces.

Time has a way of changing so many things and yet keeping them the same.

My prayers have melted from “God, help me be a good mom.” into “God, help them to be wise and godly parents.”

Their life story is His to write and my privilege to pray for.

I know my prayers are heard. A bold prayer warrior’s faithful whispers last far beyond her mortal grave. So with grateful lips and a heart bursting with praise, I will close my eyes, kiss every fuzzy little head God adds to our family, and I whisper, “God, help them.”

 He will.

Believing mom, your God is faithful. He is hearing your battle cries of prayer beside hospital beds, waiting at bus stops, and standing in store lines. He sees the heartache and the pain of raising kids in a broken world. He is present with you as the desperate midnight prayers trickle down your face and soak into your pillow. He sees you cheering your kids on the sidelines and interceding for them on the frontlines.

He sees the endless negative pregnancy tests, and the struggle to become a mom. He knows how it feels to grieve the loss of empty arms which come with a broken world. He also has created babies who are waiting for their forever family and the ones who are yet to be created. Every journey toward motherhood is never easy and each aspect of this adventure requires bold, surrendered prayer. Will you rejoice and pray through the changing seasons as you step from one adventure to the next?

You have your position fixed in Christ as Lord, His armor to stand strong, and the word of God as your defense.Your God is full mercy and grace and nothing is impossible for HIm.

God is able to raise you up in boldness as a prayer warrior, and give your kids a vibrant testimony even in the middle of a mess. Beloved daughter, be bold! Don’t waste one more minute letting the enemy have a foothold in your family. Pray, and pray like you mean it.