6 Ways To Help Kids Pray Through A Tough Decision

“Mom, I don’t want to go back to public school next semester.”

Shuddering silence.

“Are you sure this is what you want to do?” I asked.

“Ya, I’m sure.”

Have you ever had one of those moments as a mom when the words that come out next have a major impact on your child’s life?

“Ok, I trust your decision,” I found myself saying.

This was the conversation I had with my 17 year old daughter, Hannah during Christmas break. We knew she had been praying about whether she wanted to continue going to the new public school she was attending and we also knew the struggles she was feeling. It was a tough transition from her old high school she loved, to homeschooling on the mission field, to moving to a new city, a new high school, a new everything.

We watched our teenager have really good days, and really hard days returning back home to the states. Heck, I was having good and bad days, too. It’s difficult to watch your child face uncertainties and even more difficult knowing how to help them pray through a tough decision. I wanted to validate her feelings, but I also wanted to point her to her Savior.

It was important for us to allow her to make the important decision about her education and also let her live well with the choices. We challenged her to “pray through” and take the time to allow God to guide her (not us).

The best book I have ever read about praying through is The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson.

I read it often and use it often and share it often.

The parable of the persistent widow shows us what praying hard looks like: knocking until your knuckles are raw, crying out until your voice is lost, pleading until your tears run dry. Praying hard is praying through.

And if you pray through, God will come through. But it will be God’s will, God’s way.

Here are 6 Ways to Help Kids Pray Through Tough Decisions:

1. Pray together. Remember, modeling what a Christ follower does, speaks much louder then our words.
2. Be Real. Sharing our deepest, most intimate requests can be scary and intimidating. It’s a heart to heart with your best friend and Savior.
3. Don’t give up on dreams, miracles, and promises. Even though God knows, He still likes it when we are specific in our prayers.
4. Pray with holy confidence. We serve a BIG God. He loves prayers that are way beyond our abilities.
5. Circle your big prayers and don’t stop until they are answered. Praying together like the little widow lady in Luke 18: 1-8 will open mighty doors for family miracles to happen.
6. Teach our kids to live with an expectant faith. Hebrews 11:1.

Parents are prophets to their children. -Mark Batterson

Every single day I have the incredible opportunity to pray through for my children. We need to be praying parents! It doesn’t matter what we face, we can face it together with prayer. The power of prayer is supernatural. There is a brand new book by Mark Batterson, Praying Circles Around the Lives of Your Children. Check it out here.

I found these MomLife prayer tags here.

After praying through, Hannah made the big decision to finish her education homeschooling. She was able to make her decision with confidence and we watched any self-doubt shrink away. She jumped big! I love this quote from Batterson, “After you have prayed hard, you need to swallow hard and take a flying leap of faith. That’s how you circle the miracle.”

How is your prayer life teaching your kids to pray big? What are some other ways we can help our kids pray through a tough decision? Let me know in the comments.