When parenting gets hard...
One of the most important things I have learned as a parent is the fact that if I focus on my children as spiritual beings with spiritual potential, much of the natural issues will fall in line. This is so key. When I speak God’s Word over them I am speaking or aiming that Word into their spirits, not at the natural behavior or attitude that may be exhibiting at the moment.
If there is junk going on in your home, or with your kid, you can rest on this: The Word of God is powerful enough to get rid of anything in your life and in your house. It’s alive and powerful. Faith starts working the moment it is released.
How do we release faith over our kids? Speaking His Word, out loud, over them. I do it early in the morning. I sit in my bedroom chair and call each child by name and speak certain scriptures over each one. I also use my drive time (because I practically live in my mini van chauffeuring the kids around to sports events). Again, faith starts working the moment it is released.
I remember a time when my daughter was in first grade. All of the sudden, she started dealing with huge amounts of anxiety and terrible thoughts. These thoughts were so terrible, they tormented her all the time and she had to tell me about them in order to get relief. I made doctor’s appointments and talked to experts. My sweet little girl was coping with something most adults don’t know how to handle. In a short while, these thoughts literally had almost incapacitated her. My husband and I started speaking the Word against these thoughts coming at her day and night. She was six but knew enough Word to agree with us. She knew enough about Jesus to know that He is good and would give her His Peace. One night she was crying, too scared to go to bed, in fear of these thoughts that would come to her. We went in to pray with her until she fell asleep and inside we were crying out to God, asking for direction. As we were praying, God gave her a song. It was the sweetest song about how the Holy Spirit was with her always and she would not have any bad thoughts in her mind. It talked about how God had given her the power and strength she needed. It had two stanzas that perfectly rhymed. It was a song from heaven. That song from God personally to her delivered her from her fears. And the presence and peace of God came in her room. Oh, how faithful our Father is to each of us!
So maybe you’ve experienced some hard hits with your kids and closed the door to your bedroom and sobbed your heart out. …BUT, what happens next is where the victory lies. Through your tears, Momma, say out loud, “I believe God! I believe your Word! My children are (right now) personally taught by you, Lord, and great is their peace and undisturbed composure.” (Is. 54:13). This is a great scripture when your relationship with your teen looks like it has tanked and they don’t seem to be listening to you.
Rest assured, Momma, God is talking to them and loving on them according to Is. 54:13. The fig tree dried up from it’s roots. Faith ALWAYS goes to work at the root of the problem FIRST. We have the spiritual capacity to do the same things God does. Mark 11:24 tells me that I will have what I believe and say!
NEVER give up on your seed—the seed you’ve sown into your child’s life.
The devil knows kids’ potential. The devil knows this thing is about two kingdoms. He knows how this thing started and he knows how this thing ends. There is a war going on for our children. Culture is trying to bombard their hearts with deception about what is truth. And the Holy Spirit is speaking and drawing them to the real TRUTH. It’s critical to remember that we, as parents, have the final say.
Here’s some great scriptures to use:
Is. 54:17
Is. 54:13-14
Is. 49:25
Psalm 97:11
II Tim 1:17
Phil. 4:8
Is. 55:11
Phil. 4:7
And here’s your promise: Jeremiah 31: 16-17 says, “Thus saith the Lord: Refrain thy voice from weeping and thine eyes from tears, for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord, and your children shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord that thy children shall come again to their own border.”
Next week we will be talking about how to maintain an atmosphere of peace in your home during these “raising kids” years. See you next time!
Carrie Dillard
Carrie is passionate about seeing people’s lives changed by the power of God! A graduate of the University of Iowa and Rhema Bible College, her desire is to help people discover their God-given purpose.
Here is Carrie’s message everywhere she goes: “God has chosen each one of us since birth for a special assignment. It’s not by chance you are here. You were created on purpose with one mission — you are to be a carrier of the Glory of God to the places and people God has assigned for you to reach. And here’s the great part! God is ready to propel you from a seated position into a running position — directly into your destiny!”