Momsense

Prayers of Petition

One of the ways that we can pray is to bring a petition before the Lord, our Judge, who Judges between us and the accuser.

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

2 Timothy 2:1 “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people.” (NIV)

There are many verses in the Bible that speak about petitions.

Hannah petitioned the Lord for a child and the Lord heard her. (1 Samuel 1:17-27) “The Lord has granted me my petition that I have made to Him.”

A petition is written request, complaint or representation given to a judge to determine the outcome of the matter.

Here is an extract from my new book Victorious, Fully Prepared:

“Petitions are specific requests and should be based on the truth of the Word. There is a lot of petitioning going on in our nation about many of the policies and laws that are under review or changes that the government wants to implement. What do they quote most often when petitioning? … The Constitution. As believers, the Bible is our Constitution. It is a Constitution that has been set in heaven and will not change. So, when we quote scripture, we are quoting our Constitutional Rights as believers and the heavenly court will always rule in favour of the Constitution. For example, when petitioning for healing, we can quote the verses about healing such as Isaiah 53:5d “… by His stripes we are healed,” it is your constitutional right as a child of God.”

Every petition will be unique to the situation or persons for whom it has been written. You will need to search the Word and ask the Lord to give you a revelation word (rhema word) for your specific request for which you are petitioning. It is important to back up your petition with the Word, which is our Spiritual Constitution.

1 John 5:14-15 “And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him.” (His will is the promises in His Word, written for us).

Petitions are powerful declarations of your faith. If you can, get someone to stand in agreement with you it makes it even more powerful (One can put a thousand to flight, two can put ten thousand to flight – Deuteronomy 32:30).

Psalm 20:5 “May we shout for joy over your salvation, and in the name of our God set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions!”  (ESV)

How to write a Prayer Petition:

1. Begin with a declaration of who our God is and under whose authority you stand.
2. State the legal ground upon which you stand. (We have a Covenant with God through the Blood of Jesus and therefore the Covenantal Promises are ours.
3. State your specific request.
4. Sign the petition.
5. Declare that the petition is sealed with the Blood of Jesus, the Lamb!
6. Always date your petitions.

There are various examples of Prayers of Petition available from people who have ministered on the courts of heaven. Here are some of them that you can look up: Robert Henderson; Lynn Hardy; Kanaan Ministries; Kenneth Copeland.

I leave you with these words that Eli said to Hannah:  

“Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.”

Julaine

What to pray when your child faces difficulties in life

There are three things for which we can pray:

• Strength
• Hope, and
• Clarity

Continue reading to find out more…

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It is not easy to stand on the side lines while our children go through difficulties or face difficult situations, but it is important to guide them and more important to pray for them.

As a parent, all we want to do is to rescue our children, to prevent terrible things from happening to them. We tend to worry first rather than trust God. The media is bombarded with terrible atrocities and things that affect people and lives, the more horror filled, the better. It is hard to release our children into a world that is so evil and trust that they will turn out okay. Yet, we cannot control it. And we definitely cannot help them by worrying and reacting in fear-filled ways to try and prevent them from ever suffering.

Hard times build character. I am not talking about violence and tragedies, I am talking about friendships, time-management, people skills, responsibility, honour, trust. Our children need to learn to negotiate life step by step while they live with us. They need to learn integrity. They need to learn discernment of character. They need to become individuals who know who they are, are confident in their identity in Christ and can walk with heads high to face the world head on. It is what we should mirror.

For those whose children have already “flown the nest”, I see how parents worry about their children. The same prayers that you prayed for them when they were at home apply to them when they leave home. Especially the following three prayers…

There are three things for which we can pray:

• Strength
• Hope, and
• Clarity

1. Pray for yourself and your children for STRENGTH:

Isaiah 40:31 “But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint

Father, today I pray for strength. Strength for me to be strong for my child, to push back the worry, fear, anxiety or despair I am feeling. Help me to wait on You to fill my heart with  faith that You work all things together for good for my child (Romans 8:28).

Help me to reign in my thoughts so that when my mind wanders to negative scenarios, I will stop those thoughts and ask You to fill me with Your heart and Your thoughts for my child.

I pray for my child, Lord. Please give him/her the strength to handle this trial and the faith to endure it. May my child also come to You for the strength they need to overcome. To walk in Your strength and not his/her own strength. Help them to feel Your presence. As he/she faces this hardship may they face it with confidence in You. In  Jesus’ name, Amen.

2. Pray for yourself and your child for HOPE:

Hebrews 6:19 “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” 

Father, when my child struggles through relationships or situations and when my child is broken by circumstances in life, it makes me feel sad. I  desperately want to fix him/her or fix the situation. I know that I cannot do that, and it is hard to see them hurting and have no control over the circumstances. Lord help me to remember that this is not the end of the story, it is just part of the story of my child’s life. I place my hope in You to fulfil Your promises concerning my child.

I pray for my child to know hope as their anchor, that all is not lost, but that there is hope. May Jeremiah 29:11 always be in their hearts – God has a plan, He has a future and He has a hope for them.

I pray that Your light will shine brightly in this time of darkness and seeming hopelessness to guide me and my child toward You.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

3. Pray for yourself and your child for CLARITY:

1 Corinthians 14:33 “For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.”  

Father, help me to that recognise chaos and confusion does not come from You. Help me to reign in my emotions. Help me to respond, not react. May Your peace flow through me bringing calmness and clarity of mind to help my child whether in word or deed to negotiate this time of trouble. Let my words and actions be wisely executed. Help me to think before I speak and to pray before I make a move. You are not the author of confusion because confusion comes from the enemy. Help me and my child see Your truth clearly in this situation, trust Your timing, and find rest in the peace from You that surpasses all understanding. 

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

P.U.S.H

PRAY UNTIL SOMETHING HAPPENS

Over the past few years, I have learned and seen evidence of the value of prayer.  Not just praying whatever comes to mind – off the top of my head prayers as my emotions dictate to me, but prayers that come from a deeper place and for a deeper purpose.

The Word of God and prayer are the weapons we possess to wage spiritual warfare, according to Ephesians 6:17-18.  

The first key is to back up your prayers with the Word:

The Word of God is also the sharpest sword there is – even sharper than your angry tongue or cold shoulder when you are offended by someone’s actions or attitude.

Hebrews 4:12  (NKJV)

^“For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

The second key is to P.U.S.H. through:

P ray

U ntil

S omething

H appens

I have learned the value of praying the same prayers repeatedly on a daily basis – rote prayers were what they are called in the traditional churches.  The modern church has a message that prayers are just conversations that we have with God.  Put in context, I do agree with this, when I pour my heart out to God, then yes, I chat with God.

However, let us not throw the baby out with the bath water, because rote prayers are just as important and even more so when you are involved in spiritual warfare.

I have received healing, seen breakthrough in finances, and yes, also seen God move in my child’s life as I have taken God’s word and prayed the situations our family faces.

I have specific prayers that I have printed out and pray them until I sense a breakthrough in my life.  I hold on to the hem of Jesus’ garden until I have my answer.

Tenacious, bold and faith-filled prayers take time to become a conviction in our hearts.  Find the prayers that resonate with your heart for your child(ren), print them and don’t stop praying them until you see a change and you feel the release in your heart.

Here is an example of one of the prayers I pray over my family each morning – from Kellie Copeland’s book – Protecting Your Family in Dangerous Times):

Father, I thank You for Your covenant promise of protection. Right now I call upon the covenant I have with You and plead the blood of Jesus over my husband ___________, my children (name them) and myself.

Angels, I charge you to watch over my family and me to protect us, for we are walking in the footsteps of Jesus. Go before us, behind us, beside us and all the way around us. Keep us from calamity, evil and misfortune.

No evil will befall my family in the Name of Jesus! No weapon formed against them will prosper, and every lying tongue that rises up against them I do condemn, for this is my heritage as a servant of the Lord.

I thank You Father, that great is the peace of my children. Their righteousness is of You. They don’t walk in their own righteousness, but in Your righteousness by the blood of Jesus. I thank You for that, Lord. They will not get off track in life, none of their steps shall slide (Psalm 37:31) for Your Holy Spirit will guide them every step of the way.

Father, Your Word says that we, Your sheep, know Your voice. It says You will show us things to come. It says the voice of Your Spirit will come to us and say, “This is the way; walk in it.” I stand on these promises, Lord, and ask that You teach us to hear Your voice. Help us recognize when You are speaking to us, and we will obey.

Now I stand in Your holy of holies and open my spirit to receive the wisdom You have afforded me. I put myself in a position to hear and receive instruction from You. I enter the secret place of the Most High by the blood of the Lamb, and I purpose to live my life in Your presence.

I thank You that You are faithful to your Word, Father. I thank You that what You say is certain and sure. When You say You will deliver us, we can rely on that promise. So right now I receive Your supernatural protection and deliverance for my family and me in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Ten things to pray for your child

It is so easy to direct our children, most children, when they are young. At some point as a parent, this changes. Every parent reaches a place where they realise that they cannot control everything, that they are not responsible for their children’s happiness and that they need to step back. I know that we want our children to succeed, but they also are individuals who need to make choices and then deal with the consequences of those decisions. Rather than throwing up our hands in defeat, this is our opportunity to get down on our knees and seeks God’s help and wisdom. He is after all the One who created each person. He loves each child way more than we do, after all, our children are on loan to us from God.

This is our opportunity to get down on our knees and seek God’s help and wisdom.

Here are some things you can pray for your child from when they are little all the way through to adults:

1. For their faith and relationship with the Lord: We can teach our children about the Lord, take them to church, read the Bible, and only watch Christian movies and programmes, we can even mirror faith,  but at some point, everyone must embrace a relationship with God for themselves. We can pray for our children’s salvation.

2 Peter 3:9  “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

2. Pray for their character:  There is a popular quote in Christian circles, “God is more interested in your character than in your comfort.” It really is true. Just think of the teenager who can think of nothing better than spending every day lounging  around all day, doing nothing in particular (maybe on their phone, playing games or watching movies). We are meant to train our children up in the way they should go, which means chores are good for them, learning responsibility is good for them, reaching out to others is good for them, doing things they don’t feel like doing because it is important is good for them. We are meant to prepare our children for adulthood, so that they will become well-adjusted independent individuals, able to make wise choices. Pray that they will embrace a life of integrity and goodness, even in childhood. Romans 5:3-5 ^“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

Note: Don’t just pray for them, be pro-active in leading them along the right path to developing a good character morally, ethically, and spiritually.

3. Pray for their safety. We can ask for God’s hand of protection on our children—physical, emotional, and spiritual.

Psalm 4:8 “I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.” 

Proverbs 18:10 “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.” Pray that they will run to the Lord and teach them how to do this by modelling it to them in your conversation and family prayer time.

Psalm 91is a powerful Psalm to pray over your children.

4. Pray for their joy and Godly contentment:  Money and success can bring happiness for a period, while it lasts. However, unless we learn to be content in all circumstances. Real joy is a spiritual gift and is found in our perspective of life, rather than the situations or circumstances we find ourselves in.

Philippians 4:11 “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.

1 Timothy 6:6 “But godliness with contentment is great gain.”

5. Pray for their desire for the things that matter: Everyone asks the questions “who am I?” and “why am I …” and “what am I …”. Knowing who we are and knowing that we have a purpose is important because it was placed in us by the very God who created the universe. He created man and then gave man a purpose – “be fruitful and multiply … have dominion over”. It’s hard to articulate to younger children and some older children too, why the things of the world are fleeting, and that eternal things are those you can build a meaningful life around. Pray for God to show you how to live this idea daily in front of them and for them to be able to understand it. Matthew 5:16 “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

6. Pray for  their purity: For children, the battle for purity is largely a battle for their minds. Satan’s battlefield is the mind and with the technological advancements of our time,  keeping the multitude of negative influences and ideas that are shouted at them daily by the media at bay is not easy. If you have older children who may have even left home, you can also pray for them for this is the will of the Lord, that we should live pure lives.

Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

7. For their health: If your children are healthy and strong, this may be something you only pray when your child is ill or injures themselves. If your child has serious health challenges, then this is the prayer that you will pray most of all. In Isaiah 53:5 says, “by His stripes we are healed”. Health is not just for our physical bodies, but complete wholeness for our spirit, soul, and body. 3 John 2 “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” Psalm 103:2-3 says, “Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all His benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases…”

8. Pray for their friendships: It is easy to choose our children’s friendship circle for them when they are young, but as they enter school and develop friendships  beyond our sphere of influence, we have less say and more to pray about. Good friends are an important part of a child’s social and emotional development and can play a major role in shaping their views. Friendships are also important for adult children, and they can influence our children either for good or not. Pray for your children’s choices in friendship – healthy friendships that will point them to the Lord.

Proverbs 12:26 “The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.”

9. Pray for their future: The years go by quickly from fingerpainting and making mud cakes, to the adolescent years and then suddenly our children are out there working and making a life for themselves. We can pray now for their preparation for what lies ahead and God’s blessing.

Jeremiah 29:11 “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”

10. Pray for their future spouse: Nancy Jergins wrote, “It may sound crazy to pray about something that’s twenty years in the future, but out there, somewhere, is another child who may one day bring all of their baggage, good and bad, into your child’s life.” And, I have to agree with her. God, the perfect matchmaker wants to provide the right spouse for your child, and that they would enjoy a healthy marriage rooted in a strong common faith.

There is a beautiful story in Genesis 24 about Abraham sending his servant to find a wife for Isaac. I believe Abraham was at home praying and his servant sat at the well and prayed “… let her be the on You have appointed for Your servant Isaac.” God chose Rebekah for Isaac, not Abraham, nor his servant. You can pray that God’s kingdom come, and His will be done in a marriage partner for your child.

James 5:16 “…Pray for each other…The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”