10 WAYS TO EQUIP YOUR CHILDREN WITH FAITH, HOPE, & LOVE BY PRAYING

I pray this article will bless you and the children and teens you teach by helping all of you discover more faith, hope, and love in ways to pray to our Creator God. Dear parents, teachers, and pastors, may your journey to bless and guide children, even in their developing writing skills, bear much fruit. I can hear my sweet mother saying the famous expression, “The pen is mightier than the sword.” How about, “The Word is mightier than the sword, especially since the Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. Since God is Holy, Sovereign, Love, and our Creator, we do best to seek God in prayer and in His Holy Word before we start “attacking” all our problems and endeavors, including writing, right?
 
“Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. Sing Hallelu, Hallelujah.” This beautiful song can empower you as you prepare to teach children.
 
So how do we teach a “seek God first” habit in our students and children?
Make sure they learn the secret of how to do their BEST writing, and that is to seek God first! Teach them their loving God cares about their writing and He can help them.
 
As for God, His way is perfect: The LORD’s word is flawless; He shields all who take refuge in Him. (Psalm 18:30 NIV)
So, what do you say to the young writers who say, “But I just want to write about my new puppy or my dream vacation!” Let them know God is “all about” their new puppy and dream vacation, and He can also help them with the best words and ways to tell others about them in their writing. 
 
Children are much more likely to pray when they know some of the basic building blocks of prayer. Here are 3 steps to guide your child in prayer:

• First building block--Praise God. This is how we start our church services, so many children can connect with this.
  
  
• Second building block--Seek God’s forgiveness. God wants us to be humble, and in our weakness is His strength. Teach your children that God will cleanse them and prepare them to be better messengers of the Good News. Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. (Isaiah 1:18, NLT) After we confess our sins to God, He cleanses us and because of His great love, He forgets about those sins. He wants us to be renewed and ready to run the race He sets before us.
  
  
• Third building block--Ask. God wants to hear our requests. If we turn to Him, He knows we trust Him. Since He is our loving, Creator God, that makes Him happy! Requests can include asking for His help in our writing. Your students might also want to include prayer requests for those who will read their writing and how it may bless them.
  
  

Such joy they can have when seeing answers to their prayers even with their writing! When I received word that my recent podcast—("Helping Your Children Adjust to Change” ) came just when a family needed it to help their son, I was grateful for God’s guidance and answers to my prayers in writing my presentation.
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• Fourth building block--Thank Him with deep and heartfelt gratitude. Teach children to become aware of how God has and is continuing to help them and those whom they care about. God knows we will have more peace in our souls when we have grateful hearts. He loves us and wants us to know this peace.

 
As in the children’s praise song “Christ Redeemed Us” (from Child Evangelism Fellowship, we have so much to be thankful about--foremost God sending His Son to be our Redeemer. What a joyful promise He has given us!
 
Use these prayer blocks to guide prayer but be careful to keep prayers fresh and alive for children.
 
To help children and youth picture these building blocks for prayer, have them imagine going before a king with their requests. Wouldn’t they first want to show respect to the king and act humbly? After their requests were presented, wouldn’t they want to thank the king? Jesus is the King of all kings. Even the order of worship for many churches is modeled like these prayer blocks. We can think of an entire church service as one giant prayer. 😊

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​Choose joy!

• When we go on a trip, we should start with a full tank of gas. Teach your children that likewise we should start each day with prayer, so we can “drive” well each day. Might call it “Joy Fuel,” to be joy-full!
  
  

Even young children can begin each day saying, “Dear Lord, thank you for this day and thank you for my life.” As they embrace Jesus to be their Savior, they can add, “…that is eternal life with Jesus.” Think of the joy children and teens can have starting each new day knowing this bright and wonderful future.
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• On a big trip we also usually stop midway in the day to check the car. Great time to pray, too! At midday review that morning’s events and gear up for what lies ahead for that day. Scripture says we should take one day at a time. Let’s teach this wise practice of focusing intently on God’s gift of the present.
  
  
• When we park our car at night, we should check it again. Nighttime “check-in” prayer with God is a great practice too. For children, this is an important time for parents to reassure them of a loving God in whom they can trust, as they prepare for sleep and rest.
  
  

While we are imagining a car, in the words of beloved evangelist Corrie Ten Boom, “Is prayer your steering wheel, or your spare tire?”
 
Praying first thing in the morning, three times per day before meals, and just before going to sleep are important daily moments for children and teens to learn to do. Building a strong family or group is beautifully done by praying before each meal. God is our Provider, and we need to thank Him for all things good including our nourishment. Frequently praying to our heavenly Father can help our children learn much joy. Since God wants a loving relationship with us, prayer is a key way to build that relationship.
 
When at the beach, I love walking along the seashore and admiring creative sandcastles. To get the sand wet enough for molding, one needs to be daringly close to the waves which ultimately in high tide sweep over those glistening castles and wash them away. Scripture says to build our homes on the Rock. That’s Jesus and with Him we will have a firm foundation that doesn’t wash away. (Matthew 7:24-27)
 
Jesus taught that the two greatest commandments are--Love God with all our hearts, souls, and minds, and love our neighbors as ourselves. (Matthew 22:37-39)
 
When we write, we are writing to an audience. Even if it’s scribbling in a diary, God is there. As I write, I try to picture my readers and write words of thoughtful help.

• When teaching children and teens the two greatest commandments, help them see the core: LOVE. Children may ask, How? How do we learn to love God and those around us?
  
  
• Through prayers children can begin to see God’s wondrous love for them in their lives. They can learn to trust God and know Him better. This builds their love for God and empowers them to have a sense of purpose and self-worth which makes it possible for them to love others.
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• As children and teens grow in this beauty of the LORD, they can more aptly shape their writing to be enriched by God’s love and power in their lives.

 
Children and adults can learn much from the short video, “The Meaning of ‘Strength’ in Hebrew,” produced by pursueGod.org, on loving God with all our mind and strength. I highly recommend it.
 
In the words of St. Richard of Chichester, “…O most merciful Redeemer, Friend and Brother, may I know Thee more clearly, love Thee more dearly, and follow Thee more nearly, day by day.”
 
May the children and teens in your lives come to cherish faith, hope, and love through a richer prayer life,
 
Soli Deo Gloria,
 Heidi Vertrees
 Author/Educator
P.S. See below for a free activity guide for kids. Also, please go to CONTACT if you would like to receive these blog posts via email.

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​About Heidi Vertrees author/educator
 
God has blessed me with many opportunities to teach hundreds of children, as a teacher in public and private schools, in churches, and as a mom, homeschool teacher, workshop and camp leader, Bible club leader, and swimming instructor.
I am a licensed teacher, earned a BS in Journalism with Honors from the University of Colorado and a MPA from the University of Denver. I have written articles, short creative writing assignments, and curricula for multiple national and international publications. Victor Survives Being a Kid is my first novel.

​I wrote Victor Survives Being a Kid to help children experience God, good humor and courage, and the love of family even while going through major changes. It’s a high adventure novel particularly for boys and girls ages 9-12, is set in Colorado, and told through the eyes of Victor Ortega when he is in middle school, looking back over his fifth-grade year. Children delight in the Spanish (with translations) sprinkled in the story. A free, in-depth teacher’s guide is available (complete with Q&A, talking points, research and project ideas, and recipes) on newSongpress.net.

​Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Christianbook.com.