“Our prayers may be awkward. Our attempts may be feeble. But since the power of prayer is in the one who hears it and not the one who says it, our prayers do make a difference.”

Max Lucado

When my daughter was 2 years old, she went into anaphylactic shock from eating a food that we didn’t know she was allergic to.

It was a terrifying, painful reminder of how life can change in a blink.

By God’s grace the EpiPen worked, but that night changed me. It was my third major parenting scare, one that left me shaken for days and ready to bargain with God.

I didn’t like how different my faith looked before a scare versus after a scare. It felt wrong. Why did it take an emergency to bring me to my knees? Why did I regret the way I forgot God on normal days and clung to Him in a crisis?

Deep down, I knew I depended on Him for every breath in my lungs, yet I felt self-sufficient until a crisis hit. Seeing my child in danger and feeling helpless to save her made it crystal-clear that I have far less control than I believe.

C.S. Lewis once said, “I pray because I can’t help myself. I pray because I’m helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time — waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God — it changes me.”

The purpose of prayer isn’t to manipulate God or treat Him like a magic genie, but to deepen our relationship with Him. Through trials and triumphs, we can draw closer and lean on Him for wisdom, comfort, direction, peace, courage, strength and protection.

Raising children ushers in a panoply of stress. There is no guarantee that a child thriving at 8 a.m. will still be thriving by 8 p.m., and for those of us who crave certainty, this can be paralyzing.

Thankfully, we have a God who holds the world (and our children) in His hand. He knows this job is too big for us to handle alone. He hears our prayers, and He promises that our prayers don’t return void. He works all things together for good for those who love Him.

Even if you’re new to faith, even if you’re walking just one step ahead of your child, you can be a powerful prayer warrior for your child. You can equip your child spiritually and point them to the source of all peace.

Here are a few prayers you can pray:

► Pray for them to be a light — and for God’s armor to protect them.

► Pray for a heart like Jesus.

► Pray for physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual protection, especially against the enemy.

► Pray for health.

► Pray for the strength to help your child do what they need to do.

► Pray for the heart of a warrior.

► Pray for the Holy Spirit to be with them and in them.

► Pray for great friends and strong, healthy relationships.

► Pray for light to find light, especially as friend groups shift.

► Pray for unhealthy relationships to only last for a season.

► Pray for their future spouse (if marriage is in God’s will).

► Pray for conviction from the Holy Spirit.

► Pray for an open heart, willing to be transformed by the love of Christ.

► Pray that challenges and adversities make them to cling to God, not reject Him.

► Pray for a grateful spirit.

► Pray they stand in awe of God’s sovereignty, majesty, goodness and creative genius.

► Pray for their guardian angel to protect them, at all hours and in all seasons.

► Pray for spiritual discernment and a keen radar for truth.

► Pray for doors to close if an opportunity isn’t from God.

► Pray for a heightened awareness of God’s mercy and abundant grace.

► Pray they stand on God’s promises and past faithfulness.

► Pray they get caught so small mistakes don’t become big mistakes.

► Pray for humility, strength, stamina, a strong work ethic, courage, resilience, confidence, wisdom, clarity, fortitude, patience, perseverance, peace and self-control.

► Pray for protection when using technology.

► Pray for God to bless any choice that honors and pleases Him.

► Pray they become a good steward of their pain, sharing their testimony to help others.

► Pray for wisdom, clarity and peace in seasons of waiting.

► Pray for patience with God’s plan.

► Pray for the courage to stand alone.

► Pray they fearlessly live up to their God-given potential.

► Pray they see themselves through God’s eyes and run toward His unconditional love.

Psalm 127:4 says that children are like arrows in the hands of a warrior. As parents, we shape our arrows and send them into the future. We decide where to aim. For Christians, the goal is to launch Christ followers, children who know their purpose and will impact the future for Him.

We can’t control, predict or fix every challenge our children face, but we can pray to One who loves them more than we do and never leaves them. We can let God use our toughest seasons as parents to grow our faith and turn us into prayer warriors. Most importantly, we can equip the generation behind us by praying they outdo us — diving deeper into their faith and eventually launching arrows that fly even further into the future than ours once did.

God answers prayers, but He can’t answer prayers that we don’t pray. These are dark and complex times shaping our children, and they need our help fighting physical and spiritual battles. Our work as parents matters, and our prayers have lifelong impact. While we may not get quick answers or even see resolution in our lifetime, we can be certain that God listens, responds and works quietly behind the scenes, using both our children — and our prayers — in ways that outlive our limited time on earth.

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