As a parent, it is heartbreaking when our children, who were raised to know the Lord, choose to reject Christ or wander from Him. God knows the heartbreak such a parent feels. The Bible calls these children prodigal. Merriam-Webster defines a prodigal as someone who leaves home to pursue a reckless, wasteful lifestyle.
When Jesus shared the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15, it was to show how both God’s and the father’s hearts ache for a child who has turned his back on what he knows is right. Speaking from personal experience, no amount of words we can say or things we can do will turn their hearts back to the Lord.
Our only hope is God. WE MUST PRAY.
Dwight L. Moody once said, “Our God is able to break the hardest hearts. Let us make our requests known unto God; and let us expect He will give us an answer…. Don’t let infidelity come in and make us believe that God has got a deaf ear and cannot answer or that His arm is shortened and cannot deliver. Our God is a prayer-answering God. How many mothers had their sons and daughters saved, not through some sermon, but by the mighty power of God converting them.”
God fully sees, knows, and understands our wayward kids. Below are eight scriptures you can pray if you have a prodigal in your life. When we wield the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, in our daily battles, we unleash the power of God into their lives. Insert the prodigal’s name into the blank as you pray specifically for him or her.
- May ___ ponder the direction of (his/her) life and turn to follow You. Psalm 119:59
- Lord, You free the prisoner and open the eyes of the blind. Free __ from the captivity of [unbelief, apathy] and open his/her eyes to Truth. Psalm 146:7b-8a
- May ___return to You with his/her whole heart. Jeremiah 24:7
- Give ___ a new heart and put a new spirit within ___; Remove (his/her) heart of stone and give (him/her) a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:26
- You leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the one lost sheep until you find him/her. Lord, go after ____. Luke 15:4
- May ____come to (his or her) senses. Luke 15:17
- Bring about godly sorrow in the heart of ____. A godly sorry that leads to repentance which leads to salvation and no regret. 2 Cor. 7:10
- You are able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray. Please deal gently with __. Hebrews 5:2
Keep praying. Never give up. Fight, sweet friend, for your precious child in prayer.
THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH
Q&A with BRIAN & DENITA
LED BY BRIAN AND DENITA THOMAS
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 26TH
6:30PM | ZOOM
Tara’s NEWEST BOOK!