A Praying Grandmother

[This was written quite some time ago. It was neat to read how some of the prayers have been answered since then. And grandchildren added. More on my prayer list. More joy in my life.]

My friend, Trish Berg, author of Rattled, Surviving Your Baby’s First Year Without Losing Your Cool (Multnomah Books, 2008), says in her book that the only place she often finds to do her devotional reading and praying is the bathroom. She’s the busy mom of four young children including a teenager now. I can relate to that. It seemed with five kids at home, there was never any private time for me to set aside for spending some time with God. Now there is just me and hubby. Guess what? There still doesn’t seem to be uninterrupted time.

With this new phase of life comes a new perspective on prayer time. While my children were growing up, I was growing up along with them. I learned how much better life could be if sprinkled with prayer. Now as a grandmother, I realize that I can be one of the greatest helps to my grandchildren if I am more dedicated to remembering them and their parents in prayer.

Those young moms and dads are juggling their time between jobs, parenting, and lots of other distractions that often keep their prayer times minimal. Maybe it is a little leftover guilt on my part but I’m thinking that a praying grandmother just might help to make life a little easier, a littler richer, a little more peaceful, joyous, enriched if I spend time remembering my children and grandchildren each day in prayer.

Here’s a couple of suggestions to help you find that time to ask God for his blessings on your family:

·       Pick your best time of the day. Are you sharper in the morning, afternoon, or evening? I do best with prayer time in the morning. Right after breakfast when I’ve had my cup of coffee and am finally awake.

·       Remember that you don’t need to relegate prayer to only once a day and at the same time every day. If you experience a personal relationship with Jesus, you know that you can talk with Him any time, any place.

·       Try praying in the laundry room as you’re putting in a load of clothes. Or maybe while you are doing the dishes. I don’t think God minds you multi-tasking. We talk with each other as we do chores. Why not with God as well?

·       Include your grandchildren in some prayer time when they visit with you. As they grow older they will learn to appreciate that they have a grandmother who prays for them.

What to pray for? That depends upon the individual needs of each. For grandkids, certainly health, growth both spiritually and physically and those little milestones in their lives that become bigger as the years go by. Right now I’m praying for Annalise to catch on to her potty training and Tyler to make good choices during his school days in the first grade. Caleb needs protection from being too curious and Danielle could use a little more confidence. Kotomi could use help with learning patience and TJ with learning two languages (Japanese and English) and their little baby sister, Emiko, well, she needs God’s touch as she grows. Then there is the little one developing that needs prayer for a healthy entrance into this world.  

Pray that moms and dads will have patience, will make time to be good parents, will be kind and will be good guides for their children in this world. You know your children and you know where they may need extra prayer as parents. And even if you aren’t sure, God knows. Just ask him to supply their needs. And know that with those prayers, you are making a difference in all of their lives.