Sunday, January 16, 2011

Sunday Best - Do Your Children Pray?


There Is No Greater Joy
  
I remember staring at a placard  years ago, while in a Christian bookstore. It read, "There is no greater joy than to know my children walk with the Lord." 
 
This was before I had children, but the sign interested me enough to pick it up, and I wondered at the words. I bought it, tucking it away along with the hope in my heart, that one day I would be a mother. On the way out of the store, I thought how wonderful it would be if my children shared my faith with me, how nice if they grew up with something bigger than just me as a parent. I knew I would find gratitude in that, but the joyful part, I had no point of reference. Still, the words on the plaque had grabbed ahold of me, and I couldn't let go.

Time has now found me now the mother of three boys.
 
Our mornings are always the same:  to have breakfast, get dressed and washed up, and then we all walk to the front room window, the one that faces the sunrise, and we kneel to pray. One of our three sons will take his turn pulling out a biblical verse card that I have printed out in my own handwriting,  making the words mentally accessible to them. I've chosen simple verses, and underneath, I have written a small example of why this verse is one I feel important for them to know.

They have never squawked at this routine, they have never refused to nor questioned why we do this every morning. After they each pick up their breakfast dishes, we automatically head to the front room, where we bend down on our knees, and we begin our prayer. When we finish, I hug each of them, and whisper, "God bless you in your day."

We all do this without thinking, it's as natural as brushing our teeth and making the bed. It is our morning preparation for the day. It doesn't matter if we are late, have run out of time, or are not in a good mood. We kneel together, and pray, everyday.

Last summer, I had to have minor surgery done. I was sleeping downstairs on the sofa during this time, to avoid going up and down to our bedroom upstairs. One morning, right after the surgery, as I was laying sleepily on the sofa, our 3 boys came down, had breakfast, got washed up, and began to prepare for their day.  I wanted to get up and remind them to pray, but I was groggy from the pain medication I had taken the night before. I kept wanting to say something, but I felt too weary. I watched them through half closed lids, and slowly began to fall back asleep.  I could hear my oldest son tell his two brothers to pick up the dishes, and get ready for the day. Then, I saw three shadows, one following the next, in a line, walking, headed to the large front room window. I saw them all stand in front of the window, stop together, then they knelt down. 


The oldest reached for the box of verses, and handed the verse card to the middlest, who then read the passage slowly enough for the youngest to understand. At the end, I heard them pray for "mama's healing."

They finished, brushed off their knees as they stood up, and began with their day. 


What I had just seen them do, on their own, without a reminder from me, left me speechless. Tears spilled out of my eyes and my heart felt it could burst with the blessing of my children. 

My children had grown to have prayer be a part of their life. A rock solid foundation, that got them through any doubt or fear. Prayer was not an obligation to them, prayer was communication. Prayer wasn't something that their mother and father made them do, prayer was something that had grown into a natural, effortless part of their life.

I smiled, my heart singing as the words from the placard I had seen so many years ago  came in a rush to my mind, "There is NO greater joy than to know my children walk with the Lord."
_______________________________ 

37 comments:

  1. That made tears come to my eyes!! You're prepping some pretty awesome young men to take on a hairy world.

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  2. That made me tear up, too. That is awesome. I may start doing that with my daughter. I grew up in a "prayers at bedtime" family and that's what I've been doing, but your morning prayer idea is really wonderful.

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  3. It truly IS beautiful. Yesterday we found out that my sister in law was miscarrying. My middle daughter, who is 5, hugged her, took her face in her little hands and whispered, "Your baby is with God. And God is always with us. So your baby will always be with us." Joyful. So incredibly joyful.

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  4. smiles...yeah those moments are amazing...so sweet too that they prayed for you...big smiles.

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  5. What a beautiful moment you were blessed to witness. As they grow, it is the neatest thing to see them truly make their faith their own.

    Lovely post.

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  6. The faith they have today will carry them through all the days ahead.

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  7. Oh my goodness. This is BEAUTIFUL! You have done well at passing the torch, momma. Something I strive for.

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  8. What a wonderful morning routine you have with your boys. And what a great mom you are for introducing faith into their lives:)

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  9. This is very sweet and your boys sound very amazing.

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  10. Wonderful writing, I can just feel the joy and pride you have for your children.

    We have our son kneel and pray everynight before bed. We have him list off his family and friends to watch over and also watch him as he sleeps. Watching him cross himself and start his prayers makes my heart swell. Listening to him pray for the dogs, Santa, and Grandpa Bud in Heaven makes me feel so blessed.

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  11. Wow. Incredibly beautiful and touching. Love that you didn't need to remind them. Sometimes our kids surprise us, don't they? You are a wonderful mother!

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  12. YES!

    My children do indeed pray, and I do not hesitate to ask them to pray over me when I need it. The reason for this is twofold:
    + I want them to know that they can ask for what they need --from their friends, their family, their God-- when they need it and there is no shame in acknowledging a need.
    + They have immense faith, and I know that faith is answered, so of course I would ask people of faith to invest that faith for me should I need it. It's just a bonus that those persons of faith call me 'mom'.

    This entry made me so dang happy.

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  13. What a wonder post, and what fine boys you've got going, they will make someone fine husbands.

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  14. You may end up with two comments from me. Blogger and I just had a little run-in, and it would not take my comment...

    What I was trying to say is that you may win for making me cry the most often. When your posts aren't making me laugh so hard I wet my pants, they're making me sniffle. You're killing me, woman! ;-)

    Sweet, sweet post. Your boys are a testament to your faith.

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  15. Oh, so amazing. You brought tears to my eyes.

    Years ago, I met a single mom who was struggling to take care of her boy. Every day when she put her son on the bus, she told him "walk with the Lord and be a blessing". I learned a lot about faith while waiting for the school bus with her every morning. To this day, I make sure to remind my kids to "walk with the Lord and be a blessing" as they start their day.

    Wonderful Mama you are. XO

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  16. This makes my heart happy. so very much. There are a lot of things we grapple with about religion and church-going, but we do lots of praying around here.

    happy sighs....

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  17. Such a wonderful way to start the day. We pray before bed, but never have worked in a morning prayer. So lovely that you've created that ritual for your boys.

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  18. I would like to say, we are not a religious family, but it is very important for me to show my children how to access that spiritual strength.

    I love the moments you are creating with them. Nourishing their souls is a commonly overlooked goal for parents.

    well done, mother empress

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  19. This is beautiful, for you to see what an impact your example of giving thanks and offering prayers has made on your young men. Young men who will one day likely carry this on with their children.

    And on and on. And they did it without your prodding or reminding.

    Beautiful.

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  20. This brings tears to my eyes as well. Your boys are already spirtually men. I strive to do this with my children. I strive to create men as kind and humble as yours.

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  21. Yep, tears in my eyes as well. Those parenting moments that make your heart swell - the ones that show you that the values and beliefs you've been teaching - they're really living them - Awesome.

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  22. I sit here and cry. God is well pleased in how you are raising your children. Bless you.

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  23. This was lovely Alexandra. I don't know where I stand on the issue of faith yet, but this story I would love this...

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  24. I have tears in my eyes...what a beautiful story, Alexandra. You told it so vividly and what moved me most was the image you helped me create in my own mind of your 3 boys kneeling to pray for their mother.

    I wonder if you have read Mary Karr's memoirs? I just finished her most recent one last night ("Lit") in which she talks much about how she came into prayer.

    I did not grow up with any religion really, though as I am getting older I am becoming more and more interested in spirituality. We do pray at the dinner table and interestingly, too, our son will now refuse to start dinner (no matter how hungry he is) until all 3 of us are seated and ready to pray first. It is something natural to children, yes? Perhaps because it gives them peace and comfort.

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  25. I am in awe at this post. I never thought about it being joyful until you shared that story. We, too, have prayer routines, but not quite as rock solid as you. We pray before meals, before bed (not systematically if it's a hectic evening) and on the way somewhere. I often hear their little voices saying, "God thank you we have a great day ..." which can mean the day that passed or the day to come (in their somewhat broken english). But I hope so much that they can have the same conviction as your children when they get older.

    Big hugs

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  26. So many things about that make me smile. Your kids DO get it. What I love most is that you do it together. Before we put the boys to bed we all go into oldests room, and we say our prayers and remember to Thank God for all the things we had in our day. At the end, we pray for friends and family that need help. I love it when my son has someone he wants to pray for, that's how I know he's getting it. Then we read stories and sing songs. Together.

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  27. Oh, Alexandra... this post... moved me to tears. There are times when I think I can't possibly understand the extent of what this really means until I have children of my own but I don't think that always matters. Because I think the lessons you impart as a mother onto your children will stick with them forever. You have done such an amazing job with them and I hope that this teaches you that. I am so looking forward to the day when I can make memories like this with my own family.

    Thanks for sharing this with us :) *HUGS*

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  28. what a beautiful picture you painted for us. good job teaching your children the peace and joy and love of the Lord! we love you!

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  29. I loved it when it was at my place, and I love it just as much over here!

    My daughter is a prayer, and that is such a blessing.

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  30. Alexandra, thank you for sharing your beautiful moments with us. It is clear that you are raising some wonderful young men. I am in awe of how you manage to fit so much into your life.

    You have motivated me to start praying with my children. We are spiritual, and we go to church services and Sunday school every week, but we don't really pray together at home except for mealtime. My kids also say a prayer whenever they see an ambulance speeding by, for the person who needs help. But it is past time to add a daily prayer routine into our lives. Thanks.

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  31. My kids go to a Jewish Day school so we have had all sorts of discussions about this. But what you really made me think of is our Friday night dinner.

    We bless the kids every week and have done so since they were born. Sometimes when they are sick or upset they come and ask for their special blessing.

    It always makes me smile.

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  32. I would cry if my kids picked up their wet towel off the floor without me saying anything. How did you get these kids?
    great story

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  33. what a great post. this is so, so precious. isn't it wonderful to have proof (in a GOOD way) that kids really do follow your example? what a wonderful indicator of your parenting. thank you. i'm truly inspired.

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  34. I am speechless. I couldn't stop thinking and reflecting on how I am bringing up my children after reading this post. You are so amazing. Your children are too.

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  35. Beautiful post. Just beautiful. Here is one of my favorite quotes about prayer from my religion, the Baha'i Faith:

    "In the highest prayer, men pray only for the love of God, not because they fear Him or Hell, or hope for bounty or heaven... When a man falls in love with a human being, it is impossible for him to keep from mentioning the name of his beloved. How much more difficult is it to keep from mentioning the Name of God when has come to love Him... The spiritual man finds no delight in anything save in commemoration of God."

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  36. How did I miss this? I'm so sorry I missed this....but I'm glad I saw it now.

    I struggle with the faith thing, and how to pass along a faith, a spirituality, to my children while still wrestling with this myself.

    Hmmm. You've given me more to think about.

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  37. I too am in tears. This is an issue I struggle with. My husband and I don't attend church and he won't speak of his faith other than to say its personal.
    This ISN'T how I want to raise my children...I want them to know about my faith and find their own. Certainly setting an example is the least I can do.
    Thank you for giving me much food for thought and may you too be blessed, my friend.

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