One of our biggest responsibilities as adults is to teach and train our kids core principals from the Bible to give them a solid foundation in Christ as they grow. You don’t have to walk very far to see how important it is to pray right now. It seems like each generation gets a little more out of control than the last one. Here are 7 prayers you can pray for young people (ages 20 and under) and the next generation.
Table of contents
Rise Up
Father in Heaven,
I pray that You would raise up a generation of children that would fear You greatly! Lord, I’m scared about where our country is headed. Many bad decisions are affecting our kids. Abortion is not a scary word anymore. Father, our kids need to know to fight for what’s right and I pray that You would use me to help Your cause to raise a generation of young people that will continue to fight for You! I love You! Amen
“We know what’s right! We’ll stand and fight! It’s time to rise!” (We Know What’s Right, Whitecross)
Ministry
Lord,
You know the hearts of our young kids. I pray that you would grow a desire in them that some would devote a life of service to a ministry. We need honest preachers. We need passionate worship pastors. We need men that will take hold of these desires and run with them. You can do great things, Father, through us and I pray that You will use the Holy Spirit to speak to our adolescent children to grow a passion inside of them that wants to know You more and live for You daily! I love You! Amen
“And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’”(Romans 10:15)
Your Own Kids
Dear Lord,
I love my children so much and I know that they are learning to love You more daily. Father, I am scared for them because everything around them says You are a lie. I pray that the Holy Spirit will convict them daily to know what is right and what choices they should make. I know that they are only with me for a brief time and I pray that I would be found faithful in Your sight with how I raise them. I will continue to pray with them and encourage them to read their Bibles daily. Lord, I believe Jesus! He said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6) I pray that my children will grow to believe the same way. I put them in Your hands, Father. Amen
“And when you feel like giving up, I will walk you through the pain. And when you feel like life’s too much, remember Jesus is your strength always.” (Always, Seventh Day Slumber)
The Outcasts
O Father in Heaven,
My heart is breaking for the young men and women who are social outcasts. The news tells the same story every single night. Someone is being bullied or shot. Father, this is chaotic! Please, Lord, protect the ones who cannot protect themselves. Some kids are so emotionally traumatized that they have attempted to take their own lives…some have succeeded. Father, I pray that You would place men and women of faith in the paths of these kids to show them that they are special and they are loved. Until they see love they will only continue in the spiral of endless chaos. Father, use me to help in any way! I love You! Amen
“I will not turn my eyes. I will not ignore their cries…Orphans come home. The kingdom is yours.” (Orphans, Impending Doom)
Missions
Blessed Lord,
I thank You for the men and women that lead teams of missionaries to help spread the truth of the Gospel of Christ. I pray that as our church is planning its next trip that our young men and women will step up and fill the need. I have seen You move on these trips in mighty ways! Many people who needed clothes, shoes and a roof for their head have come to know and love You because of people willing to go on a missions trip. Lord, I will encourage the young people to go, just as You have told us to go in the great commission. I love You! Amen
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
In The Womb
Dear God,
I pray for those yet to be born. There are thousands and thousands of little babies waiting to be born from their mommies. I pray that these little ones will hear the truth of the Bible as they grow older. I pray for Your protection on them in the womb. Without new life, we would be extinct and children are a huge blessing. Guide, guard and direct these little ones as they grow in You. They could change the world because of You! I lift them up to You in the name of Your precious Son. Amen
“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.” (Psalm 127:3)
Prodigals
Heavenly Father,
I pray for the young men and women who have left their faith behind to indulge in the desires of the flesh. Father, I pray that You would open their eyes to see the decay that is around them. I pray that they would understand their sin fully and repent. Lord, bring them to their knees in sadness and remorse for the terrible things they have done. Until they see the need for Jesus they are doomed for hell. Please, Father, draw them back to You. Use men and women of faith to love on them and show them truth in the midst of the deception they are living in. The devil is crafty, but You are Holy! All things are possible through You! I love You! Amen
“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)
Conclusion
These are only 7 of many prayers you could pray for our young people and the next generation. We need to be in prayer daily for them! So, please, take just 2 minutes of your day and say a quick prayer to God for a young person you know. It may be the very thing that launches that young person into a life of service to the Lord! May God bless you as you continue to live a life worthy of the calling!
More about raising up children: How to Raise A Child in A Christian Home
Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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Fostering and Adoption
In our post on extended family we briefly referred to the fact that for many young people “family” does not consist of birth parents and siblings. Many young people grow up in the adoption and fostering system. Some young people may have been adopted or long term fostered when they were so young that they have no memory of a time before and this is the only family that they have ever known. For some of these young people there can be a sense of not completely knowing who they are or where they came from. (although for many this may not be the case).
Some young people who have been in the foster care system may suddenly be faced with the reality that they are not going “home”. That can mean that they are not going back to mum or dad tonight, but can also be the wrench of leaving a comfortable long term placement where they felt like a part of the family and were settled in their routine. Those who are in and out of care may also experience similar feelings. Even the everyday act of going to school is interupted.
Young people who are in fostering placements for their own protection. To remove them from a difficult situation at home or to help teach them a more healthy way of life. In particular we think of those in specialist remand fostering placements.
Some young people are adopted by their step parents. Whilst this can help cement relationships with their newly formed family and create a legal smoothness in many ways, it inevitably leads to a breaking of links with part of their history and a loss of a sense of connectedness with their original family for good or for bad.
It is often forgotten that the birth children of parents who adopt or foster have a vital role to play in the forming of a new family for however long, from a 1 night emergency placement to a lifetime of sibling rivalry! These young people also have to cope with changes to their family unit and routine although the benefits and learning for all can be huge.
Having said all of this sometimes the breaks created by fostering and adoption can create a positive effect for young people from the situations they find themselves in and help them to grow to be the best they can be in a happy healthy environment. For some young people fostering/adoption literally saves lives.
We pray for all those involved in fostering and adoption;
The young people, those being fostered and those with a foster sibling
The siblings left behind
The parents, grandparents, aunties and all others in any new formed family
The birth parents and their families
The Social Workers, Placement Workers, Youth Workers, Retrobation Service, LSB, information services, Letterbox Contact Workers and anyone else involved in the system
We also pray for those in need of fostering and adoption care and waiting for their first intervention.
ypprayers.blogspot.ru
