Tag: pray

Let Us Go With You

I have been using the app Pray As You Go for awhile now. It is a wonderful tool for directing my prayers based on daily Bible readings, and paired with various musical selections and probing questions.

Tuesday morning’s reading was from Zechariah:

20 Thus says the Lord of hosts: Peoples shall yet come, the inhabitants of many cities; 21 the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, “Come, let us go to entreat the favor of the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts; I myself am going.” 22 Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favor of the Lord. 23 Thus says the Lord of hosts: In those days ten men from nations of every language shall take hold of a Jew, grasping his garment and saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”

Zechariah 8:20-23 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

As I listened to this scripture read a couple of times, the part that hit me was verse 23: Thus says the Lord of hosts: In those days ten men from nations of every language shall take hold of a Jew, grasping his garment and saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”

What would that be like? To have people who grabbed ahold of us and begged to go with us because they knew God was with us?

The thing is, in order for someone to want to go with us for these reasons, we must be exhibiting qualities and professing faith that is evident not only to those who share our faith, but also to those who are observing us from a distance.

The question that I am pondering today is: am I living a life that draws people to God? This is what I want more than anything! I want to be living in such a way that brings glory, not to self, but to God alone, and draws others into a relationship with the God of my salvation.

So, what is it that draws people to God through us? I have some ideas, but I am curious about what you think. Leave a comment below and next week we will continue the discussion!

Mom’s Words of Wisdom: Parenting Your Adult Children

Today’s post is brought to you by my very own mother! She has some insight for us about parenting our children when they become adults. Thanks, mom, for your willingness to share your thoughts with us!

Parenting Your Adult Children

Parenting. That word holds a lot of responsibility not just for young adults having children, but for everyone who has ever had children. As a senior citizen, I still have a responsibility to parent my adult children and be an example for my grandchildren.

My husband and I did our very best to raise our three daughters to become independent and productive in society as adults. We endeavored to provide a Godly environment and spiritual foundation, but they all knew they had to make their own decision to serve the Lord. There were a few bumps in the road as they were spreading their wings, but I am so grateful and thankful they all made the decision to serve the Lord and are very involved in the things of God.

Here are some suggestions for making the transition from parenting children to parenting adult children:

  1. Love your adult children unconditionally.
  2. Build an ADULT relationship with them. Treat them as you would any other adult you were interacting with.
  3. MYOB. Mind your own business. They don’t need to hear you tell them the way YOU would do something.
  4. IF they ASK–offer your best counsel, but don’t be offended if they choose not to take it.
  5. Don’t HOVER–Let them live their own lives.
  6. ENJOY any times you get to be together. You never know if it will be the last.
  7. And, finally, Pray, Pray, Pray. EVERY DAY!!!

I have learned some of these thing by the way my parents parented me as an adult. My mother was the hovering kind….3-4 calls daily…being told I needed to lose weight… not sharing our joy when we found out we were expecting for the third time in 4 years…wanting to follow us to a new town when we moved 30 miles away for my husband’s employment…etc. I was a very frustrated adult being parented by my mother. I vowed I would not be that kind of parent to my children when they grew up. I have endeavored to follow the 7 steps I presented. I hope I have done my very best for them. I loved my mother, but was often frustrated, but that too changed the day she died in a tragic fall. That was 30 years ago and I still miss her.