Praying for Others

Since becoming a mom, I find myself reflecting on my own childhood often.  Some memories stand in time as a single moment, like when my sister Angela and I drove to Oshkosh, WI together to spend a day at a Christian music festival after she got her drivers license.   Other memories exist because we have photos of them happening.  A literal snap shot that takes me right back to all of the wide-brimmed hats that sat on top of my messy hair each summer.

My favorite memories are the ones that came from something that happened so frequently that I feel like I'm living it all over again each time I think of it.  Like the warm milk that frequently accompanied our dinner  thanks to the sibling who set the milk out when he or she set the table for dinner 30-45 minutes before we ever sat down to eat.  Gross.  Or my dad taking us on family boat rides so that we could swim at our favorite sandbar weekend after weekend all summer long.  Or the Barbies my sister Anna and I played together in the basement while everyone else watched the Packers play.   I have so many memories of my mom standing in the kitchen making dinner that I can still see her moving between the butcher block and the stove top in my minds eye.  I also have vivid memories of coming downstairs in the morning and finding my mom on the couch in our family room with her Bible open across her lap and her eyes closed.  On the weekends we would find my dad in the same position in the dim light of the living room.  They had a never-ending list of things, people and circumstances that they faithfully prayed for on a daily basis.  Since my mom stayed home with us, we would interrupt her prayer time with our noisy footsteps and questions about breakfast and what was on the docket for the day more times than I care to count.  Instead of being frustrated that we interrupted her when she was clearly in the middle of something important, she would open her eyes and greet us with a song:

Good Morning! Good Morning! 

I'm so glad that you're awake! 

Good Morning! Good Morning! 

I'm so glad that you're awake! 

I now sing this very song to Nicole after rescuing her from her crib in the morning but it's not the only legacy that I hope to carry on.  I am striving every day to pray for the people in my life with the same tenacity and faith that my parents pray with.  

My parents prayed for every single detail of my life growing up.  From Doctors visits to my future spouse, they always had something on their hearts and minds to pray for.  As soon as I was old enough to understand the power behind this commitment, my days felt more peaceful and it was easier to see and acknowledge God in my day to day life.  I will never know how many 100's of hours my parents have spent praying for me over the years but I am I certain that who I am today is a direct result of their faithful commitment to intercede on my behalf.  

I gave my mom a quick phone call and asked her if her and my dad had some guidelines to help us pray for others with more intentionality.  Here's what she had to share: 

1. God is not a gossip.  If you know something about someone, you are supposed to use that information to pray for them.  

2. As you pray for others your life will change.  Simply by spending time with God praying on behalf of others, God will begin to change your life as well.  

3. Don't forget to praise.  When God answers your prayers, praise Him for it! 

How can I be praying for you this week? 

With love, 

Erica