What to Pray for Your ChildrenSample

What to pray for your children

Actions of parents that prevent children from seeing and experiencing the character, care, and love of their parents and God

So often, parents' actions prevent children from experiencing positive love from their parents and cannot see God as He really is. Their actions bring spiritual pain to their children's lives. What does it look like practically?

1. Violent parents – try to control their children with physical violence, anger, profanity, and brutal and bombastic behaviour.

2. Unstable and unreliable parents – who don't keep their promises and who you can't count on.

3. Authoritarian parents – who try to rule their homes with rules, regulations, and instructions and allow their children no freedom. There is no relationship of trust.

4. Joyless parents - houses where there is no laughter and joy.

5. Sarcastic parents – who speak negatively, do not encourage, humiliate, act abusively and judgmentally.

6. Parents who are addicted to alcohol or drugs.

7. Unreasonable parents.

8. Dishonest parents.

9. Parents who don't speak (silent parents): There is only silence, and children are ignored when they ask questions.

10. Absent parents.

Think carefully about your actions. Ask the Holy Spirit what actions need to be changed. What do children long for?

Here are some basic expectations:

1. Forgiveness and not unrealistic punishment for failure.

2. To be encouraged.

3. Acceptance that is not tied to performance.

4. Gentle words.

5. Positive physical touch.

6. Love without conditions.

7. Recognition for achievement – no matter how small the achievement.

8. Not to be compared to their brothers/sisters or other children.

9. To be allowed to have an opinion.

10. Parents who listen to them and answer their questions.

11. Parents who keep their promises and speak the truth.

12. Parents who are not unreasonable.

13. Parents who make time to play with their children.