Warrior Prayers: Day 21 "Humility"

"Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." ~Ephesians 4:2

I can hardly believe that our 21 days has come to an end.  WOW!  How the time flew by.  I want to thank all who have followed this blog in an effort to pray for your special needs boys.

I want to encourage you to continue on in prayer for your boys.  I believe that the Lord, the one who created this place and each of our precious boys has a plan for them, and He can heal them and help them to be all HE wants them to be.  I know how hard it is sometimes when we focus on our son’s  “diagnosis” and lose sight of them as “(name of your son)”.  We can become overwhelmed, discouraged and fearful at times when dealing with the needs that they have.  These are works of the enemy that chooses to draw us away from the Living God and get us stuck in the mire of this world and its problems.  Let us rise above it and place our sons in the palm of the Almighty and TRUST in Him for our beautiful sons.

The scripture that started this blog and that gets me through many days is Phil 4:8

"Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, it there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy meditate on these things." 

Bless you dear sister in the Lord!

Denise

Encouragement from Brooke

It's day twenty-one.

The LAST day of your prayer challenge. Are you a mixture of relieved and sad all at the same time? What an accomplishment! (What an amazing amount of work!) If you're finishing today you deserve a pat on the back! Think of all the work that has been done on behalf of your sons! Congrats mom!

You might've noticed that there are actually twenty-two prayers in the Warrior Prayers eBook. I chose humility as our last day's topic because it is such an amazing posture of the heart. Scripture just seems to scream God's favor over those who are humble in heart.

· James 4:10 says that if we're humble before the Lord, He will lift us up.

· 1 Peter 5:6 says that if we humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God He will exalt us.

· Most importantly, in Psalm 149:4 we find that it is the humble who are adorned with salvation.

Do you see that? A humble heart is required for salvation. Just as Jesus humbled Himself unto the cross, we must admit that we're sinners, admit that our own way isn't the right way, and humbly ask for forgiveness before salvation comes.

Do you show humility before your sons? Do you always have to be right? Always have to win? Pray and ask the Lord for specific ways you can show humility today so that when the time comes, your sons will know how to show it too.

Goal for Today:

1.   Commit to praying the ten prayers in the humility chapter during day twenty-one.

2.  Thank the Lord for what He has done and consider continuing on in praying specifically for your son’s.

Humility

May__________humble himself before the Lord, and be exalted (James 4:10).

May__________humble himself, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt him (1 Peter 5:6).

May God give grace to__________as he humbles himself (James 4:6).

If__________who is called by My Name humbles himself, and prays and seeks My Face and turns from his wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive this sin and heal his land (2 Chronicles 7:14).

Lord, lead the humble in what is right, and teach__________Your way (Psalm 25:9).

May__________have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind (1 Peter 3:8).

May__________take God’s yoke upon him, and learn from Him, for He is gentle and lowly in heart, and__________will find rest for his soul (Matthew 11:29).

May the LORD take pleasure in__________, and adorn the humble with salvation (Psalm 149:4).

May__________have all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with others in love (Ephesians 4:2).

May__________be subject to the elders. May he clothe himself with humility toward others, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5).

Warrior Prayers: Day 20 "Heart Change"

"The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks." ~Luke 6:45

The encouragement from Brooke today is so good, and so TRUE!  Bad stuff in the heart? Bad stuff comes out. Good stuff in the heart? Good stuff comes out.  This is why we need to apply scripture when we are living our lives and raising our sons.  We have the instruction manual…it is the B-I-B-L-E. 

However, we need to be in the Word, so that what is coming out of us is good rather than bad.

Do you feel like I do when you have not been in the Word and spent time with the Lord, that you are more irritable?  Do you find yourself reacting to your son’s behavior in a negative way by yelling, or lashing out in anger?  Do you find yourself letting them “get away” with something because you just are too tired to deal with it?  I know that I have. 

I think if you have a child with emotional and cognitive issues, you can get so exhausted or you just are at the end of your rope and nothing seems to work.  At these times, may I suggest that you find more time to be in the Word, pray and tell the Lord how you feel, and ask Him to take control of the situation and give you the wisdom and strength to deal with it and get through it.  I know the Lord will be with you, and He will guide you.

It is important that we spend time in the Word together with our sons, and when they do sin, that we take them back to the Word and teach them why it is wrong, and help the apply the scripture to their life.  Even very little ones can understand. 

There are many resources from Doorposts and another one by a fellow Mom I know that put together the “Childs Training Bible”.  You can see it in an earlier post on my  blog. http://3dreflections.blogspot.com/2011/03/parenting-resource.html

My pre-teen told me today “Mom, that is what teenagers do”.  I quickly told him “No, that is not what a teenager who is following Christ does”.  I gave him some examples of teenagers that he described and other teenagers who followed Christ.  I will be looking to the Word on the topic we are dealing with to help him to understand what is right. Then I will pray that the Holy Spirit will water that seed and my son will understand and choose the right path. 

Blessings to you dear sister in the Lord as you move along on your journey to raise up godly men! 

Encouragement from Brooke
The most foundational thing we can ask God for in the lives of our sons is heart change. The Word says that what's in the heart eventually comes out. Bad stuff in the heart? Bad stuff comes out. Good stuff in the heart? Good stuff comes out.

I heard an illustration of this concept once from a pastor friend. He held up a Styrofoam cup with a little water inside and proceeded to ram his hand against the cup so that the water splattered everywhere. Then he asked this question:

"Why did water come out of the cup?"

So what do you think? Did the water come out of the cup because he rammed his hand up against it? Certainly a possible answer. But consider this: could it be that the water came out of the cup because there was water IN the cup?

Think about it … if the cup had been empty when he rammed it, nothing would have come out.

And so it is with our hearts. Life has a funny way of ramming up against us. People pull out in front of you when you're in a hurry.  The neighbor's dog won't stop yapping through the night when all you need is a few hours of sleep.  Your children pick the day after your favorite relative dies to be little horrors … somehow sensing that mom is frazzled.

Stuff happens.

We get hit. Probably every day. But our response to the hits comes from what's in our cup...or hearts. Bad stuff in the heart? Bad stuff comes out. Good stuff in the heart? Good stuff comes out.


Goal for Today:

1.     Commit to praying the ten prayers in thon Honesty in “The Power of Forgiveness” chapter during day twenty.

2.    Consider this? What comes out of your heart when you get hit? Our response matters to God and it matters to the people watching and learning from us along the way.

Honesty

May__________speak the truth, giving honest evidence, and not be a false witness uttering deceit (Proverbs 12:17).

May__________have nothing to do with a false charge and not put an innocent or honest person to death (Exodus 23:7).

May__________live such a good life among the pagans that, though they accuse him of doing wrong, they may see his good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us (1 Peter 2:12).

May__________repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all (Romans 12:17).

May__________'s conduct be holy and righteous and blameless toward other believers (1 Thessalonians 2:10).

We pray to God that__________may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that he may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed (2 Corinthians 13:7).

May__________be trustworthy with a little, so he can also be trusted with much (Luke 16:10).

May__________be hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined (Titus 1:8).

May__________renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and live a self-controlled, upright, and godly life in the present age (Titus 2:12).

May__________'s lips be free from deceit (Psalm 17:1).

Warrior Prayers: Day 19 "Salvation"

"Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." ~Romans 10:9

The other day I heard my son singing as he was coloring in the school room. I stopped to listen to the words.  To my surprise he was singing Laura Story's song This is the day it sounded like this: "this is the day of my salvation, I will rejoice in God my Savior".  As I heard this, I just said to the Lord, "please make this true and bring him to You Lord." 

I think many people believe that children/adults with special needs don't have the mental capacity to understand about repentance and salvation.  However, I know that the Lord doesn't make mistakes and He can save anyone who will come to Him.  As I raise my boys, even through cognitive challenges, I have seen them soft to the Lord and they do understand that repenting of sin and turning to Jesus is the most important thing in their life. 

I encourage you to not buy into the lie that the world has for anyone who has special needs or challenges and wants to set them aside because they don't have the ability to understand the Word of the Lord or salvation.  This is not true. God can reach them.  What are we teaching them?  What are they around all day?  Do we read the word and sing worship sons that proclaim who the Lord is and what he has done?  I believe they will understand no matter what their cognitive level.  Blessings as you pray for your son's today!

Encouragement from Brooke

There is NOTHING my heart yearns for more than my sons' salvations. To quote from the eBook:

"Day after day you will parent, intentionally seeking the heart of your son. But until the King of kings and Lord of lords turns his heart of stone to a heart of flesh, your son's actions will be

motivated by what is pleasing to him, rather than what is pleasing to the Lord." p. 15

Everything hinges on this. Oh, we can pray for protection, good friends and influences and positive, fruit-bearing experiences for our sons along the way. But until their hearts submit to Jesus they will continue to choose themselves and their own way.

Elyse Fitzpatrick, in her book entitled, Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus, says “There is no easy way to say it, but it must be said: parents and churches are not passing on a robust Christian faith and an accompanying commitment to the church.”

Take a moment today to look long and hard at your parenting. Is it Gospel-centered, or have you allowed the world's “stinking thinking” to creep into your home?

Goal for today:

1.       Commit to praying the ten prayers in the salvation chapter during day nineteen.

2.      Pray hard today for your son's salvation. There is nothing so important as this.

Salvation

May __________ confess with his mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in his heart that God raised Him from the dead, and be saved (Romans 10:9).

May__________be saved by grace through faith. Not of his own doing; but the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8).

May__________believe in the God who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of His own purpose and grace, which He gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began (2 Timothy 1:9).

May__________fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will work for him today (Exodus 14:13).

May the LORD be__________'s light and his salvation; whom shall he fear? May the LORD be the stronghold of his life; of whom shall he be afraid? (Psalm 27:1).

May__________take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17).

May__________work out his own salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12).

May__________be guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Peter 1:5).

Lord, make Your face shine on__________; save him in Your steadfast love (Psalm 31:16).

Lord, save__________to the uttermost as he draws near to God through Christ (Hebrews 7:25).

Warrior Prayers: Day 18 "Anger"

"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice."

~Ephesians 4:31

This scripture has been posted above the sink in my kitchen for almost 2 years now.  Sad, I would say, that I still struggle with a lack of self-control at times with those who are closest to me.  I can excuse it as hormones, I can blame it on others, but those are all excuses.  Just as I have heard myself tell my son “you can control yourself, you are the only one who can.”  Ouch!  Yes, we have the power, by the Holy Spirit to "let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from us, along with all malice."  So, do we choose to do this? Or will we give in to the enemy’s schemes and let him destroy us by causing us to feed the root of bitterness and anger that has worked its way deep down inside of us. 

I do not say these words because I have been successful at thwarting the enemy and his tricks, but out of the grief I have experience by allowing this anger to fester and destroy my relationships, my emotions, and even harm my health.  As I pray these prayers for my sons, I pray them for myself also, because it is my heart’s desire, to put off the anger and put on mercy and love for my own sake and for the sake of my beautiful boys! 

Encouragement from Brooke

So much of the Christian life is a choice. Every day (multiple times a day) we’re presented with a choice to choose God or choose ourselves. Anger is a perfect example.

You can just feel it coming, can’t you? Anger is an almost total body experience. Muscles get tight. Temples throb. Jaw clenches. Explosion feels imminent … wooing us into believing we have no choice but to react.

But it’s not true.

We almost always have a choice when it comes to anger. We can choose to embrace it and sin. Or choose to put it away, and instead choose kindness, self-control, compassion, and love.

Goal for Today:

1.   Commit to praying the ten prayers in the anger chapter during day eighteen.

2.  Man! It seems like every single thing we’ve prayed for so far starts with what’s in our own hearts! I’m afraid anger is no different. Today, when you’re tempted to sin in anger, ask the Lord to show you the way out (He promises He will) and choose grace and love instead.

Anger

May all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from __________, along with all malice (Ephesians 4:31).

May__________ put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from his mouth (Colossians 3:8).

May__________ give a soft answer, which turns away wrath, and avoid harsh words which stir up anger (Proverbs 15:1).

May__________ not be quick in his spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the bosom of fools (Ecclesiastes 7:9).

May__________ never avenge himself, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19).

May__________ know that God Himself is our peace (Ephesians 2:14).

May__________ make peace, and so have a harvest of righteousness (James 3:18).

And let the peace of Christ rule in __________'s heart, to which indeed he was called in one body. And be thankful (Colossians 3:15).

May the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard __________'s heart and mind in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).

May__________turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it (1 Peter 3:11).

Warrior Prayers: Day 17 "Self-Control"

"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." ~1 Corinthians 10:31

Encouragement from Brooke

What's on the throne of your son's heart? I recently spoke at a small local women’s conference on the topic of finding balance in our physical and spiritual lives. Admittedly, this is an area I’ve struggled with my entire life. I’m an emotional eater, and my weight has fluctuated over the years to prove it.

I used to think that could control it by counting calories, or walking four miles a day (yes, I used to do that). I’ve tried portion control, diet pills and running, but nothing sticks. Know why? Because I love food. I turn to it for comfort, fulfillment and joy. And until I dethrone it from Christ’s rightful place in my heart, I will continue to struggle.

It’s idol-worship, plain and simple (ouch).

Food may not be the area of self-control with which your son struggles. Maybe he has video games, sports, sex, or money on the throne of his heart. The key to overcoming our tendencies toward worshipping something other than Christ is to choose to love Him more than we love our sin. A constant laying down of our desires and picking up of Christ is the only fix.

I wrote an article once on the topic of loving Him more …

It was a hot summer night, and I sat on my bed in a heaping culmination of all I'd been taught. A moment of rare heart understanding as I realized that life with Christ was not about what I could or could not do, but about loving Him more than I loved my sin.

Loving Him more.

Anything that separates me from God is sin and anything good can be made sin if I love it more than I love Him. And now twelve years later I'm still choosing.

I love Him. I love Him less than looking my best. I love Him. I love Him less than yelling at my kids. I love Him. I love Him less than getting even with my husband. I love Him. I love Him less than having a published book. I love Him. I love Him less than time to myself. I love Him. I love Him less than a stomach painfully full of my favorite meal. I love Him. I love Him less than getting my own way.

I love Him.

I love Him less.

Every time I love Him less I love something else more.

But He loves me. He loves me always.

In the moment of choice this knowing of His steadfast, never-ending love is what gives me strength. This knowing of His great sacrifice for me … and for you. This knowing of the lengths He would go to love me more.

More than I deserve.

More than I can comprehend.

More than the power of Hell can stand against.

"My Savior's sacrifice paid for all my sin.

So in my suffering I look to the Cross again.

No need, no want, no trial, no pain can compare to this:

The wrath of God once meant for me, was all spent on Him.

Before the Cross, I humbly bow.

I place my trust in the Savior.

Your finished work captures my gaze.

You bore the wrath, I know the grace."

~Before the Cross (Sovereign Grace Music)

Now the little forever soul sits in front of me for what seems like the 20 millionth time today. And I look at him … and he looks at me. And I wonder, out loud, how he could possibly want to choose discipline over joyful obedience. After days of willful rebellion from two little men, I'm spent and I cannot understand in that moment why ANYONE would choose this chaos--this miser--when simple obedience would change everything. Don't they know the sweetness that would be theirs if they would just obey?

Just CHOOSE to obey? Sigh. There's that word again.

The choice to love Him more begins from the beginning … hearts made to worship Him … choose Him. Hearts that left to themselves will choose our own way every time.

How many times have I chosen my own way when I knew the consequences? How many times have I forfeited the sweet, peaceful blessings of obedience in order to stamp my feet, cross my arms, dig in my stubborn threeyear-old-like heels and have my own way?

And this from a woman who has tasted the goodness of God in the land of the living!

How can I expect my little ones to choose the good all the time when their own mama, a Jesus-follower for over 20 years, still gets it wrong?

Grace.

Grace.

And more grace.

Grace. and choosing to love Him more.

Goal for today:

1.       Commit to praying the ten prayers in the self-control chapter during day seventeen.

Self-Control

May__________know that he is God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in him (1 Corinthians 3:16).

May__________not let sin therefore reign in his mortal body, to make him obey its passions. May he not present his members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present himself to God as one who has been brought from death to life, and his members to God as instruments for righteousness (Romans 6:12-13).

May__________present his body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is his spiritual worship. May he not be conformed to this world, but transformed by the renewal of his mind, that by testing he may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:1-2).

May__________discipline his body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others he himself should be disqualified (1 Corinthians 9:27).

Whether__________eats or drinks, or whatever he does, may he do it all to the glory of God (Ephesians 5:15).

Let not__________'s heart envy sinners, but continue in the fear of the LORD all the day (Proverbs 23:17)

Remove far from__________falsehood and lying; give him neither poverty nor riches; feed him with the food that is needful for him (Proverbs 30:8).

Let the words of__________mouth and the meditation of his heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, his Rock and his Redeemer (Psalm 19:14).

May__________have a tranquil heart that gives life to the flesh (Proverbs 14:30).

May__________be wise in doing right and stay innocent of any wrong (Romans 16:19).

Warrior Prayers: Day 16 "Gentleness"

"But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere." ~James 3:17

Encouragement from Brooke

Aggression in men is commonplace. It may not manifest itself the same way for all of them, but it’s there nonetheless. For the physical boys, it shows up in their need to be on the top of the wrestling pile. For the intellectuals, it shows up in their need to score the highest on the exam or be at the top of the class. Personally, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with aggression. I don’t want to break my sons of their aggressive streak and I’m learning not to be afraid of it. But I do want to teach them how and when to use

it. I’m beginning to think that gentleness is more of an approach to life than a specific characteristic to develop.

Since they were born, we’ve whispered these words into our sons’ ears:

God made men to protect women and care for them. God made you a big brother! Your job is to protect your little brother, not hurt him. There’s a time to play and a time to listen. If you can’t listen, you have to feel (true in so many aspects of life). God wants you to use your strength to protect, not to hurt. Superhero’s don’t look for fights, but they will fight to protect others. It’s OK to want to be the best, but the best people in life are the ones who serve others. A gentle word turns away wrath …

Goal for today:

1.     Commit to praying the ten prayers in the gentleness chapter during day sixteen.

2.    Helping our sons to define and set parameters for their aggression can help develop a worldview of gentleness.

Gentleness

May__________know that a gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit (Proverbs 15:4).

May__________take God’s yoke upon Him, and learn from Him, for He is gentle and lowly in heart, then__________will find rest for his soul (Matthew 11:29).

May__________be completely humble and gentle; patient, bearing with others in love (Ephesians 4:2).

May__________be gentle, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children (1 Thessalonians 2:7).

May__________not be a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money (1 Timothy 3:3).

May__________pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness (1 Timothy 6:11).

May__________correct his opponents with gentleness that God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth (2 Timothy 2:25).

May__________speak evil of no one, avoid quarreling, be gentle, and show perfect courtesy toward all people (Titus 3:2).

May__________have wisdom from above that is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere (James 3:17).

May__________honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks him for a reason for the hope that is in him; yet do it with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15).