"Grown Children"

I look at my grown children,

And remember how they were,

When babies or just little kids,

How I loved him and her.

I remember funny moments,

When their laughter filled the place,

The Christmases and birthdays,

And the joy upon their face.

I think of those vacations,

And are we almost there,

The rides in roller-coasters,

With hands up in the air.

I remember cuts and tumbles,

Splinters, arms bound in a cast,

Tears and many stitches,

The time moved by so fast.

And now they’ve gotten all grown up,

And sometimes what they do,

Surprises me and saddens me,

And makes me worry, too.

And I wonder if I did enough,

To point them the right way,

But I cannot do it for them,

All I can do is pray.

That seeds were sown into their souls,

That in time will bear fruit,

That what I said and did back then,

By God’s grace will take root.

I bind them all to Jesus,

I loose from evil, too,

I give them once again to Him,

I pray His will comes true.

And, Lord, You know I love them,

Forgive all my mistakes,

Protect them and provide for them,

And do whate’er it takes,

To claim them for Your Kingdom,

Your purpose and Your peace,

Deliver them from evil,

And from all sin release.

And in the end their children, too,

Will love and walk with You,

Generations know Your blessing,

Until our race is through.

“And I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your children. They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank. Some will proudly claim, ‘I belong to the Lord.’” (Isaiah 44:3-5, NLT)

The ancient prophet, Isaiah, spoke of God’s promise to bless the children of God’s people. The promise was originally made to the people of the Old Covenant, but may also be claimed by New Covenant believers. What is the best thing that can happen to our children and grandchildren? It would be that the Lord would pour His Spirit out upon them! And that is what I pray for mine. Ultimately, it is the Spirit’s work in their hearts and lives that they need the most. In fact, that’s what we all need. Bind them to the best and loose them from evil, in Jesus’ name.

Lord, please bless our children and grandchildren, and pour out Your Spirit upon them, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Steve Boaldin, artofacowboy.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Steve, and God bless you.