Proverbs 31:2, "What, my son? And what, son of my womb? And what, son of my vows?"
This verse reveals a mother's anxious care for her child's good. He is the son of her vows, meaning a son she asked God for in prayer and dedicated to God. "Son of my vows" also suggests that her child was the object of her daily vows and prayers, "a child of many prayers."
How lovely is this image of a mother who thinks, loves, acts, speaks, and prays with a large and passionate heart! In her godliness she asks God for a child, dedicates that child to God, and then teaches him the ways of the Lord.
But this mother's passion for God and for training her son in His ways doesn't stop with mere verbal instruction to the child. No, she also speaks to God on behalf of the child. The desires of her mother-heart go deeper and higher than basic teaching and training. She is a mother who prays, who expends her greatest efforts to nurture a righteous walk with her God so that she may effectively pray for her child.
As a woman after God's own heart, she is vigilant about her own walk with God, dealing with sin in her own life (we're back to our first priority!) in preparation for entering God's holy presence and interceding for her beloved child.
Psalm 66:18, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear."
Yes, But How?
How does a woman after God's heart foster a love for and a commitment to pray for her children?
1. Learn from godly and praying mothers and grandmothers.
Real life examples will encourage you and model for you the role of prayers.
2. Ask God for His insights for your children.
As you read about the remarkable mothers in the Bible and all their children accomplished for God, you can catch a glimpse of how God might work through your children.
A Passion for Godly Training
As important as it is to pray for our children -- for salvation and for Christian spouses -- we must not stop with prayer. We must also model a life dedicated to the Lord and train our children to follow His ways. Many times a woman starts off well -- she gets married, wants a baby, prays for a baby, has a baby, and goes through a ceremony at church where she dedicates the baby to God. But then something happens -- the baby becomes a reason for missing church.
We must realize that attending worship faithfully instills an important habit in our children's lives and something into their hearts that nothing else can give them. Our decision to take our children to church communicates to them the importance of worship and fellowship in a corporate body.
Hebrews 10:25, "...not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching."
And this decision reaps untold dividends. For starters, your children will never know an option for Sunday!
And so...
...The Bible tells us to examine ourselves. You and I need to do that often to, first, live a life that pleases God and, second, fuel our passion for godly training. God's kind of training takes time and dedication, and sometimes the passion needed for the long haul wanes. Ask your own heart, Am I committed to getting my children to church so they can be exposed to truth, no matter what it costs me? It's never too late to shore up any weak areas in hour heart or in your parenting.
Our Heavenly Father is waiting to hear our prayers and enable us to raise our children to know Him and love Him and serve Him. Let's pray for the passion and wisdom to take the next steps.
