My friend, Krista, asked me to do a review on the book (for her blog -
Prayer of Hannah) “Every Child Needs a Praying Mom” by Fern Nichols. I thought I'd share that review with you. Fern is the founder of
Moms In Touch International - which is a really great resource for Christian moms. I recently read this book and I have to tell you…it has changed my life. Maybe I’m on my own here, but I have days when I’m pretty sure that nothing I’m teaching my children is getting through. Days when I go to bed and feel like a complete failure. Days when I am not proud of the way my children acted or the way I reacted to them. Days when I feel completely defeated…
Prior to reading this book, I was having one of those weeks where I was really struggling with wondering if I was doing the right thing with my boys. Then God brought Psalm 127:9 to mind. “As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of youth.” As I began to think about this verse I thought about how arrows are aimed at a target before they are let go. Obviously, for our children this “target” would be a life that glorifies God. But then I started thinking about the person holding the bow and arrows - us as parents. What if we lose our focus and our eyes are not fixed on the target? When we let go, we’ll more than likely miss. What better way for us to stay focused than through prayer? That is why I picked this book off the shelf to read and I am so glad I did.
Reading this book has made me realize, more than ever, that we as Mothers have another role to play in our kids lives. Caring for our kids, disciplining, discipleship and showing love are all so important but what about prayer? There is a very real battle going on over the lives of our children. If we believe that, why are we not consistently on our knees fighting for them?
Fern encourages all moms to pray for their children as well as their husbands. She reminded me what a privilege it is to be able to bring my family before the Lord and uphold them in prayer. I love how she really emphasizes praying Scripture for your family. She also gives some very helpful prayer charts and scriptures in the back of the book.
Fern says “I found that if I’m to keep my zeal and passion for God, I must “plan to neglect” anything that would hinder me from prayer. Like anything that brings about great results, prayer requires discipline.”
She also says “How often are you coming into God’s presence? The privilege, the power, the authority is yours. Do you think that Satan could be running rampant in your homes because you are not bringing your husband into the Holy of Holies as often as you should? Are you taking your children in, claiming the Word of God for them?” Ouch.Talk about convicting...
I found her “Four Steps of Prayer” (which are basically taken from The Lords Prayer) so helpful. I think that sometimes I get stuck on one area of prayer (usually asking for stuff) that I forget to praise God and give thanks.
I believe that every Christian mom should read this book. It offers hope and encouragement as we fight this spiritual battle over our homes and our families. I know you will not regret it.
