Prayer Prompt #35: They Will Have Their Own Testimony

“I have committed them to the LORD. They will have their own testimony.”  

I thought about this parenting wisdom from a dear friend long after our visit together ended.  I thought I had committed my children to the LORD - but had I, really? Had I really let go of trying to control their picture perfect futures? Let them go to make mistakes? Let them go and trusted the LORD with them, no matter if they faced hardship or illness - no matter what?

Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the ultimate example of this.  She knew from his infancy that Jesus would “be a sign that will be spoken against” and that “a sword [would] pierce [her] own soul too” (Luke 2:34-35). Can you imagine the pain of her mother-heart as she watched her dear Child be tortured and killed - and she could not stop it, she could not protect Him from it? He was born to die -- can you imagine being a mother knowing that your child was born to die? I can barely write the words without shedding tears at the mere thought of it.

So I have to ask myself again: have I committed my children to the LORD?  My friend already told me the consequence of this kind of faith, and it’s a glorious one: they will have their own testimony.  

What if my child becomes a prodigal? They will have their own testimony.

What if they rebel? They will have their own testimony.

What if they make a big, irreversible mistake? They will have their own testimony.

What if they are hurt by circumstance, people they had trusted, or physical illness? They will have their own testimony.  

Remember way back in Prayer Prompt #13 we prayed that our children are not really ours: we love and care for them in stewardship on behalf of their Creator?  It’s time to take up that mantle again.

Dear LORD, I acknowledge again that the children I have are children that YOU have given me: they were and still are Yours first, mine second, mine in stewardship.  I embrace my role to nurture, love and bring them up in the training and instruction of the LORD, but I acknowledge that I ultimately cannot control their lives. And so, by faith, I now commit my children to You and trust You with their lives and their futures. I know that no one loves them more than You do. For every mistake, every bruise, every hardship - give them a testimony, a glorious testimony that will magnify their Creator. In Jesus’ name, amen.