Feburary/Narch - Transition

Good Morning Parents,
My heart has been heavy the last few weeks by events going on in my life and my friends life. I'd like to start by giving Praises and Thanksgiving to our Heavenly Father for keeping my best friends teenage daughter and 2 of her friends safe in car wreck earlier this week. The SUV they were in actually kept them safe as the vehicle flipped over on it's side. God's hand of protection was on them. My friend's daughter ended up breaking her thumb-we all know that things could have been much worse- and I pray for complete and totatl healing without any long term problems. My 2 teenage daughters were also in a much smaller wreck ~ 2 weeks ago. When you are able to look back at situations as a "Christian" you are able to see how things could have been had God's protection had not been there. I'm so very thankful for God's healing and protection over our children.

As we end up Feburary of our prayer calander we begin to head into our new area to cover our children -destiny and talents. I know when I mention the word destiny people look at me weird as if it was a voodoo word of the spirit world so I looked up the meaning in the good ole Webster's dictionary.

Destiny -1. something to which a person or thing is destined. 2. a predetermined course of events often held to an irresistible power or agency.

Destine- 1. to decree beforehand. 2. to designate, assign, or dedicate in advance, or set apart for a specific purpose or place.

Talent-1. any of several ancient units of weight. 2. a characteristic feature, aptitude, or disposition of a person or animal. 3. the natural endowments of a person. 4. a special often creative or artistic aptitude.
The syn- gift.

I wanted to take time to get the meanings of these words down so we as parents are clear as to exactly what we are praying for. My desire for my children is that they would discover their "destiny" or their purpose or place in this life. I desire that God would bless their "natural endowments" so that He can use them to further His kingdom.

As already mentioned, I have two teenage daughters. One is in 8th grade getting ready to go to high school. She has been looking at what type of dipolma she wants and what type of classess she'd like to take. The form she filled out is her "4 year plan". I know any choice she tenatively makes now can be changed over the next 4 years. But my point is that at 14 she is having to start to think about her future and I want part of that thought process to be "What does God want me to do? What has He set me apart for?" My oldest daughter is a junior and thinking about career choices, colleges, scholorsips, and summer jobs. I don't want her making those choices on her own. Both girls are having to think about their futures. How much more as parents should we be covering those choices in advance in prayer and asking for God's direction. I believe the vers that tells us to train a child in the way he should go is to really direct them in the purpose God created them for. I will cover that more later. I really believe that we need to cover these areas of their life even if they are newborns. You can't start too early.

A parent's heart - Shannon

Feburary 26th
"Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Psalms 27:14 (NIV)

Awesome Lord, I know sometimes we have to wait for Your healing to take place. Give me strength to be strong and to wait for Your timing to provide healing to my child(ren).

Feburary 27th
"And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him." Luke 2:40 (NIV)

Dear God, I pray that my child(ren) would grow to be strong in their physical bodies and in Your wisdom and that Your grace would be upon him/her all the days of his/her life.

Feburary 28th
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power." Ephesians 6:10 (NIV)

Lord, above all I pray that my child(ren) would be strong in you and your mighty power as according to Your Word.

March 1st
"But you aren not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are a royal priests, a holy nation, God's very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for He called you out of the darkness into His wonderful light..." 1 Peter 2:9 (NLT)

God, Thank You for choosing my child(ren). I pray that he/she would show others Your goodness. Thank You for calling him/her out of darkness. May he/she always know that he/she belongs to You.

March 2nd
"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him." 1 Corinthians 2:9 (NLT)

Heavenly Father, Thank You for the plans that You have made for my child. I(ren). I pray that Your call on his/her life would be sealed and complete as he/she grows up. I pray that he/she would not be limited in their imagination of his/her abilities.

March 3rd
"So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away." 2 Peter 1:10 (NLT) **Read verses 3-15 My Bible has labeled this section "Make your calling and Election Sure" awesome.

Mighty God, I pray that my child(ren) would always understand the value of hard work. I pray that he/she would never fall away from Your protection and Grace. May others come to see You in the way my child(ren) work.

March 4th
"Give a bonus to leaders who do a good job, especially the ones who work hard at preaching and teaching. Scripture tells us, 'Don't muzzle a working ox' and 'A worker deserves his pay.' " 1 Timothy 5:17-18 (Message)

Dear Heavenly Father, I pray that my child(ren) would recieve bonuses for working hard. I pray that he/she would always receive the pay that he/she deserves. I pray that You would help me to instill in them a good work ethic.

I hope you parents are as excited about these verses as I am. Continue to journal where your children are right now in their destiny and see where God takes them over this year. I'd love to hear from you and what God is showing you through this journey. Please share this blog with your freinds.

May God richly bless you as you cover your children in prayer. May your eyes and ears be opened to God's direction. May He reveal treasures/secrets to you about your child(ren)'s destiny and talents.

A parent's heart- Shannon