Prayer Calendar
"DearGodThankYouForThisFoodVitaminsFireHydrantAmen!"
So goes our prayers with the kids.
And if it's not mealtime? No matter! Our kids are still thankful for their food. And the "vitamins" and "fire hydrant" part? That's just a little something they added on once to be funny, and now it has "graced" their prayers for over a year.
So goes our prayers with the kids.
And if it's not mealtime? No matter! Our kids are still thankful for their food. And the "vitamins" and "fire hydrant" part? That's just a little something they added on once to be funny, and now it has "graced" their prayers for over a year.
A YEAR.
Yeah.
So whatever needs those vitamins and fire hydrants might have? They're prayed for. In spades.
Needless to say, the monotony got the best of me. Enter...
The Prayer Calendar
Sunday: Praise and thanksgiving
Monday: Government, Military, World
Tuesday: Community
Wednesday: Family
Thursday: Missionaries
Friday: Friends
Saturday: Church
We keep this schedule on an index card at our dining room table (along with our verses). When we sit down to eat, we pray for the category of the day (and the food too, when we remember).
I like having general topics, as it doesn't tie us down to praying for Dear Ol' Aunt Olga each.and.every.week.
I mean we love Aunt Olga, we do. But we also love the freedom to pray for whoever we want to whenever "family" day comes around. So even with a "schedule," there's variety.
Now don't get me wrong. My six-year-old and three-year-old are STILL thanking God for vitamins and fire hydrants.
But every once in a while we can settle them down long enough to repeat a one-sentence prayer for their friends or their toys.
But every once in a while we can settle them down long enough to repeat a one-sentence prayer for their friends or their toys.
Hey, ya gotta start somewhere.
But in my grand delusions, I imagine that these one-sentence prayers will eventually feel natural. Then the kids can work their way up to the long-winded prayers that their parents so dutifully spit out.
And since this Mama has about six nanoseconds each day for concentrated prayer--this little ritual gives me a chance to pray for things that would otherwise get lost in the Me Myself And I Kind Of World that I live in.
It's a happy world. But maybe not the best one to hang out in.
And that's my little organizational tip for today. So maybe your house will still be a disaster, but your prayer life can be ship shape.
So tidy, in fact, that maybe you can pray for Aunt Olga.
So tidy, in fact, that maybe you can pray for Aunt Olga.
19 comments:
Nice idea. Thanks for sharing.
That is a great idea, i think i may try that. That way we can move past the "thank you God for my food and my fork and my favorite cup......" Thanks for sharing!
Checked you out on the Carnival for Christian Women. Good site. Congrats.
What a cool idea! My child is not old enough to speak much yet, but i will be keeping your tip in mind when we do reach the point of thanking god for vitamins...hahah, so cute!
Thanks for the reminder! I used to do this when my older two were younger. As I have added kids, I have gotten out of the habit of doing it.
It definitely helps get past the one sentence prayers. :)
Enjoy the rest of your week!
Thanks for the idea! I actually have a schedule for ME, though it's a bit more complicated...don't know why I didn't think to do this for the kids! :)
I like this! We don't get as many regular mealtimes together as we would like, but we are pretty regular with our nightly, before bed devotions. I think we'll give this a try.
Thanks for sharing...I really like this idea, even for establishing them habit before my baby gets older. By the way, I have stopped by a few times and enjoy your blog. Funny to discover you live in Portland. I live right across the Columbia River in Vancouver. ;) Also funny to find out Portland is the #1 green city! I could have guessed that...
What a wonderful idea! Love it...and love your little accountability partner story over at my post, as well. Ah, motherhood. Who could have prepared us for all the ways it would change us? Even our daily prayers.
Fire hydrants...well, maybe a house was saved because a fireman was able to effortlessly loosen it and get that water onto the flames?
I LOVE the prayer calendar idea!! I am TOTALLY going to use that with our kiddos. Thanks so much for sharing!
What a great idea! I try to do that in my own prayer journal but had not thought of making it a family tradition. Thanks for sharing!
What a great idea this is! All too often it is overwhelming trying to pray for everything everyday and so many things end up on the "cutting room floor". I'm definitely going to incorporate this into my family's prayer time. Thank you!
Jennifer
We usually try to pray for all of those things every night - From Aunt Olga to fire hydrants. Fitting it all in sounds tough but it isn't when you don't leave space between words! Don't forget to pray for bubbles and boogers too (don't ask).
We have tried a ton of things with prayer, and they all help! The key for us has been to keep on going.
Great tip!
Jen
This was a great tip, and I really enjoy your sense of humor in your writing.
Thanks!
Becky
LOve it!
Great idea! Thanks for sharing!
That's a really great idea - I love the idea of printing out the list and keeping a small index card at the table to remember what to pray for today. I imagine using one of those 3x5 plastic protectors for index cards would come in handy - face the calendar one direction, that week's memory verse the other direction, neither card gets slopped on.
My only question - what do you pray for on Tuesday??
Tuesday...Community: We pray for our neighbors, or someone or some situation/event in the area that we want to pray for. I know for us – many times we just pray that we get to know our neighbors in ways that are meaningful and helpful!
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