Praying for Little Souls

There are some things that children accept without question.  My own children are at the age where they are aghast to learn that there are some folk who don’t believe in God. It confuses them, and they are perplexed by it because, since the day they were born, they have been told that God is real. He is alive. He is at work. He is everywhere at once. He hears their prayers and knows their deepest wishes. He made the stars and the skies and the birds and the trees and he made them too.

They unquestioningly have accepted this and, for that in this moment in time, I am grateful.

But I also know it may not always be so.

Their small lives are relatively very easy.  The major decisions in their lives are made for them. They do not need to earn their keep or calculate their spending. They do not need to fret over where their next meal is coming from, or whether or not they are to do this job, or live in that house, or date that girl or boy.

They go to sleep in safety. Their education is close to our home and free. They have hot and cold running water when they turn on the taps. They are clean and well-fed.

And for these things, I am glad and we are blessed.

But the trials will come. The storms will one day descend and rage.  Life’s uncertainties and anxieties will befall them. Hard decisions will plague their sleep.

None of us are exempt from these things.

Oh, how I wish I could wrap them snug and tight in rolls and rolls of proverbial cotton wool. How I wish I could stand guard at their minds when mean remarks and nasty jibes come their way. How I wish I could fend off every awkward moment, decision, every heartache and heartbreak.

But the truth is, I simply cannot.

I don’t even know what I would really be preparing them for if I tried!

I can’t predict, estimate or guess what their troubles may be or when they may come. I can’t determine their every step. I can’t be sure they will always make the right call or choice.

But mama, grandma, foster carer, youth worker…whatever your role, we can pray for the salvation of these little souls. We can pray that when the winds of life howl threateningly around, they would know that they can cling to the Rock that is higher than they!

As we begin this month praying for children, let’s start by praying for their salvation, that they would have a real relationship with the Living God. Let’s pray that they would know Him personally and intimately, deeply and truly.

With grace and love

Helen x