As I look ahead at the rest of this year, it’s not difficult to see that our national and global situation is in turmoil.

A good friend focused my attention on Isaiah 60:1-2 as a word from the Lord for the year:  “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you.” 

I can feel the invading darkness of evil like a heavy, moral, and spiritual fog infiltrating our nation at every level. It is precisely at this moment of national darkness that God commands us to arise, let our Light shine, and the distinctive glory of our Lord will be evident to all. It is wonderful to know that God is in control. His word reminds us in Psalms 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength”.

As grandparents, let’s not let the enemy dull our desires to intentionally pray for our grandchildren and their parents. Prayer is our most strategic weapon.

The enemy wants to disintegrate and divide our families, rendering them chaotic, restless, and unfruitful. I believe it’s our place to get on our knees, humble ourselves, seek God’s face, repent of our sins, and intercede for our nations, children, and grandchildren. Then having done all, we stand firm in our faith that God does indeed hear and will answer our prayers according to His will.

Years ago, Esther stood in the gap for her people, the Jews, when their lives were physically threatened. Today, grandparents can stand in the gap with prayer for their grandchildren in the same way as their spiritual lives are threatened.

We live in a day of urgency for the power of prayer to keep the hearts and minds of our grandchildren from falling captive to the enemy’s deception and lies. We are engaged in a spiritual battle that requires a spiritual weapon — prayer.

As grandparents, we can make a significant difference in the world by praying regularly and intentionally for our grandchildren and their parents. We have an opportunity to join together to powerfully touch the lives of another generation.

Grandparents @ Prayer (G@P) intercessory prayer groups consist of small or large groups of people meeting once or twice a month to pray together for each other’s grandchildren and families.

Groups are meeting in retirement centers, schools, churches, and homes weekly. It is a great way to launch a grandparenting ministry focus in your church.

Now would be a great time to get started! Just ask a few grandparents to join you, try it for a few months, and see what happens. Many grandparents have told me that they appreciate a safe place to share their concerns for their grandchildren.

You can find more prayer resources from Christian Grandparenting Network here!

After I asked God for wisdom and read several books about prayer, my praying changed dramatically. I discovered God’s Word was a great resource to help me with my praying, not only for my family, but also for myself.

PRAYING GOD’S WORD

In Hebrews 4:12 we read, “The Word of God is full of living power.” When I pray according to God’s Word, I am in line with His will, enabling me to pray with direction, power, and wisdom. I not only find myself in intimate communication with God, but my mind is renewed to think His thoughts about the situation for which I am praying, instead of my own thoughts. Ultimately, God shrinks the situation that I thought was overwhelming and impossible into a viable possibility. He gives me peace as I wait for His answer.

As I started claiming God’s promises and personalizing the scriptures, I experienced more boldness and confidence in my praying. Nothing threatens the enemy (Satan) more than when we are intentionally praying God’s Word for our children, grandchildren, and ourselves. Many scriptures in Psalms, Proverbs, the Gospels and Paul’s writings can be used in our prayers.

We live in a time when the darkness of sin and unrighteousness ravages our land seeking to capture the minds and hearts of our youth and young families. The enemy is determined to steal their faith and the plans God has for them. The enemy’s attacks against our families and our nation’s moral foundations are relentless. It is urgent that grandparents stand in the gap praying for the spiritual, emotional, and physical protection of these who are under attack.

SIGNIFICANT GRANDPARENTING

I found a letter in my family archives, written by my great-grandfather in Poland, addressed to my grandfather who had immigrated to America. In the letter, he wrote that he was praying for my grandfather, his children, and his future generations. It was a special blessing for me to see in writing that my great-grandfather prayed for me before I was born.

A few years ago on a sunny autumn day, my husband and I were traveling in the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Mesmerized by the reflections of the rugged snow-covered mountains and golden aspen trees on a pristine lake, I could not help but ask myself: Do my children and grandchildren see God’s love reflected in my life in the same way? Do they see Jesus in me? Pondering the answer to this question led me to realize that the sun must shine on the water to create a reflection. In order for God’s love to reflect from my life, the love of God’s Son, Jesus Christ, must shine in my heart.

MY GRANDFATHER’S LEGACY

My great-grandfather’s prayers had a ripple effect on my grandparents, my parents, my life, my children, and my grandchildren. If you did not have a Christian heritage, you have the privilege of starting the ripples in your family. God has given us the awesome opportunity to partner with Him on behalf of these dear ones as prayer warriors. As we get older and face physical limitations, we might feel less useful. Yet God has a purpose for us for these times—to be front-line prayer warriors for our grandchildren.

A note from my oldest granddaughter confirms that praying for my precious grandchildren is never a wasted effort. She writes: “Your phone calls, cards, and e-mails were encouraging and made a significant impact on my life, especially in my teenage and college years. Your prayers and encouragement have been rock-solid reminders of God’s truth in my incredible, crazy life-shaping years, and now in my married life. Your prayers help me surrender the craziness of my life to God.”

Her words warmed my heart; I felt like she had given me a beautiful bouquet of roses making my efforts significant.

My husband and I thank God he has given us an opportunity to be prayer warriors for our nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Serving Him in this way and leading the cause through CGN’s prayer ministry has given my life fulfillment and significance.

May the light of the Son reflect in you, and may you know the delight of serving as God’s prayer warrior for another generation.

In John 10:10 we read that Jesus said to his disciples, “The thief comes to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have abundant life.”  The enemy is determined and relentless to distract and steal the faith of our grandchildren and their parents as our media-driven culture has pushed the boundaries of right and wrong. The movies, music, TV, video games, and Internet are desensitizing our grandchildren. They are also faced with legal recreational marijuana, other drugs, sex trafficking, alcohol, sexual identity confusion, homosexuality, pornography, pre-martial sex and more.

Grandparents need to intentionally pray the parents will not be distracted and overwhelmed by the influence of a culture hostile to the truth. The enemy is watching for vulnerable spots and the unguarded doors of each of our hearts. Standing in the gap, praying for the spiritual, emotional and physical protection of these who are under attack. It’s imperative to pray God will give their parents wisdom and time management in their monumental task of guiding our grandchildren in the ways of the Lord.   

To pray effectively, we need to know their frustrations, fears, concerns, and expectations the parents have for our grandchildren. Ask them, “What are the issues you are dealing with and how can we pray for you?”

When I don’t know how to pray for my grandchildren and/or their parents I ask the Holy Spirit to intercede for me. The Holy Spirit knows their needs, so I ask him to intercede for me according to God’s will (see Romans 8:26). This keeps me from giving God my agenda of how to answer my prayers and comforts me to know I can put my concerns in God’s hands instead of carrying them myself.

Often, my prayers aren’t answered on my timetable, in waiting God does amazing things, both in my life and in the lives of my grandchildren and their parents. However, God will acknowledge our intercessory prayers and answer them at just the right time.

According to God’s Word, praying for our grandchildren and their parents should be a high priority for grandparents. Therefore, be intentional about your prayers. Pray the parents of your grandchildren will experience the abundant life Jesus offers, and join with you in passing it on to their children so they will follow Jesus.

Prayer for my Grandchildren’s parents

Dear Lord, I want to thank you for the parents of my grandchildren.

 I pray you will help them to value my grandchildren

 in the same way You value them.

 I pray they will commit to the responsibility You have given them to teach

 their children to love You and live

 according to your parenting manual, God’s Word.

May my grandchildren see their home and family as a “safe place.”

Help them to be fair and understand my grandchildren as You understand us.

 Pour out your Spirit upon my them as they parent my dear grandchildren.

May God bless them richly as they grandparent with a purpose.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.     

There are many U.S. troops in our military deployed all over the world leaving families back home. Many times their families see the importance of their mission, but their deployment results in a difficult life for those left behind. The remaining parents, spouse and children struggle with many issues, miss their family member, and often feel abandoned.

Struggling Teenagers of Deployed Parents

Ask your grandchildren if they have friends who have a parent in the military. If they know someone, encourage them to pray and reach out to their friend and their family with kindness. We are all part of the family of God. We are to share each other’s troubles and problems by being intercessors for those in the military and their families.

Cavin Harper, Executive Director of Christian Grandparenting Network talks about how military and civilian leaders “share a growing concern that grade school children from families with deployed military personnel struggle in varying degrees with intense feelings of abandonment and reintegration issues. Compounding this struggle is the limited availability of resources to assist in overcoming these struggles.”

Recently, I read an article in Parade magazine about the struggles of our deployed soldiers. The author said, “When mothers and fathers are deployed overseas, their children are also in danger.”* A new report from the Rand Corporation suggests that teenagers in military families suffer much higher rates of emotional distress than other teens. Across all age groups and genders, soldiers’ children had significantly greater emotional difficulties . . .”

Children of all ages greatly miss their deployed parents and find it difficult to cope. However, the article goes on to say these teenagers have greater emotional problems compared to the national average of teenagers. The older children are more aware of the dangers their deployed parents are facing each day. Younger children may feel that, though mom and dad are getting help, they are overlooked for the attention and help they need. During deployment spouses and children may feel abandoned, alone and even afraid.

It’s very important for grandparents to come alongside these spouses and children left behind. Dr. Arthur Kornhaber, well-known child psychologist has shown through decades of experience with young children and grandparents that grandparents have the power to facilitate healing in young lives. The Bible has proclaimed this for generations. Grandparents and extended family have a vital role in the lives of the children because grandparents really do matter.

Suggestions To Pray For The Military And Their Families

• Pray for a covering of protection over their families left behind. The numbers of spouses who leave a marriage, because of the stresses of long-term deployment and repeated deployments, is staggering. The impact this has on the kids is beyond imagination.
• Pray for grandparents of the children and spouses left behind by the deployed military to provide spiritual covering, encouragement, and intentional ministry of hope in Christ to their grandchildren, especially the teenagers.
• Pray for the witness and powerful presence of God for the troops who are followers of Christ.
• Pray for the local friendships they develop, to be able to build relationships and have opportunities to share the Gospel in ways and places no other missionaries would be able to do.
• Pray these troops would be the sweet fragrance of Christ among these peoples.
• Pray for the Chaplains and Commanders of the troops that they would be wise in their leadership and provide compassionate pastoral care.
• Pray for protection for our troops our soldiers as they face both physical and spiritual warfare in these foreign and hostile environments as they patrol the war torn area.
• Pray God’s presence will be obvious and powerful among the troops who do not know Christ.
• Pray for comfort and consolation for our troops as they lose comrades in battle or are wounded.
• Pray for the grieving families at home who have lost loved ones.

*Soldiers’ Children Struggle, Too, Parade Magazine, December 20, 2009, p.6.

In the mid-life of our lives, it’s perfectly normal to look forward to becoming grandparents. There are few things more exciting than the birth of  our first grandchild. In fact, the birth of every grandchild is an amazing and joyous moment. Unfortunately, there are also many grandparents with broken hearts because they are estranged from their children and grandchildren.

Negative emotions are one of the consequences of being estranged from your grandchildren. Sorting out those feelings and developing an approach for dealing with them is vital for your health, both mental and physical. On the one hand, anguish is a constant companion when you find yourself estranged from those precious grandchildren you love so deeply. On the other hand, you are better able to understand a tiny bit of what our Heavenly Father feels about all those who are separated  from Him.

However, God is still answering prayers, even if it is not on our timetable. So, we ask God for patience to wait until He is ready to answer. Sometimes we have to wait in His waiting room while He is working in the hearts of our grandchildren and their parents. God’s timing is always best. Do you believe that?

I have found the passage in Romans 8:26-28 very helpful when I don’t know how to pray for my grandchildren and their parents. Paul writes, “The Holy Spirit makes intercession for us when we don’t know how to pray.” When I ask the Holy Spirit to make intercession for me according to God’s will, it keeps me from telling God how to answer my prayer, which I am prone to do. Ask the Holy Spirit to make intercession for your estrangement, and let Him carry the burden instead of you. Let go of your agenda and ask Him to show you His.

Here are two suggestions for estranged grandparents:

1. Don’t give up. Keep trying to gently stay in touch. Send cards and letters to your grandchildren keeping the tone of any communication loving, but light.
2. Pray intentionally and regularly for your grandchildren and their parents. If you don’t know how to pray for them, I invite you to sign up for my weekly prayer blog. When you sign up I will send you 31 Scriptures to Pray for your Grandchildren which you may download and print for free.

Prayer

Dear Father, I pray You will give estranged grandparents wisdom to know how to face their separation from their grandchildren.  I pray Your Holy Spirit will make intercession for them trusting You to carry out Your agenda in Your timing for their healing. Encourage them and give them peace as they intentionally pray and patiently wait for the parents to allow them to be a part of their lives again.

In Jesus’ name. Amen

Grandparents who understand the desperate moral and spiritual climate our grandchildren must navigate today know they cannot stand by and do nothing. Satan has launched an aggressive attack on all fronts using media, technology, education, social influences, and political pressures to desensitize and cloud the boundaries of truth and righteousness that hold nations and families together. Perhaps at no other time in our history is a call to prayer more urgently required than it is today.

This is why The Legacy Coalition stands with the Christian Grandparenting Network’s call to set aside September 11, 2016 (National Grandparents’ Day) as a National Grandparent’s Day of Prayer.

As a grandparent, God has entrusted you with a sacred responsibility to impress upon another generation the message of God’s faithfulness, grace, and to stand in the gap on their behalf through prayer and the power of Christ living through you. Assuming this responsibility means taking seriously the effectiveness of prayer to keep their hearts and minds from falling captive to the enemy’s deception. You are engaged in a spiritual battle requiring spiritual weapons.

God has placed our children and grandchildren in our lives so we can be their prayer warriors and model a godly lifestyle. He has given us the awesome opportunity to partner with Him on their behalf. My husband and I have three sons, three daughters-in-laws, twelve grandchildren and four great-granddaughters God has given us to lift up in prayer. He has given you your family members as well.

A family’s faith legacy can be lost in one generation. This is why parents and grandparents must stand in the gap as defenders of the faith, and strive to powerfully touch the lives of another generation for Jesus Christ. Our children and grandchildren are our mission field. It is our privilege to help them stand strong in Christ before their spiritual enemy.

On Sunday, September 11, 2016, Christian grandparents everywhere will be asked to stand in the gap by linking arms together as intercessors for their grandchildren. As Esther stood up to intercede on behalf of her people in a very desperate time, godly grandparents also have the opportunity to intercede on behalf of  another generation.

Will you join us! Will you ask God to show you how you can champion a prayer event in your church or community? It’s easy to do. Contact us and we will supply you with resources and a step-by-step guide to help you create a successful event. Click here to get started with endorsements, testimonials, promotional materials and free downloads.

I also urge you to listen to this short video by Cavin Harper, Executive Director of Christian Grandparenting Network. You will hear why there is an urgent need for grandparents to intentionally pray for their grandchildren.

We have no more powerful weapon for spiritual warfare than prayer.

Will you partner with us to make America’s National Grandparents Day a Day of Prayer for our grandchildren, our families, our churches and our nation?

May God bless you and find you faithful.
Lillian A. Penner, CGN National Prayer Coordinator

Nations worldwide are under attack educationally, socially, financially and spiritually like never before. Christianity is under assault and parents and grandparents are involved in a tug of war for the hearts and minds of their children.

A Spiritual Battle for the Souls of Our Grandchildren

Our grandchildren live in a desperate moral and spiritual climate while navigating in a world hostile to truth. Many years ago, Queen Esther stood in the gap for her people, the Jews, when their physical lives were threatened. In our day, grandparents can stand in the gap for the spiritual lives of their grandchildren just as Esther did.

Cavin Harper, Executive Director of Christian Grandparenting Network (CGN) says in his book, Courageous Grandparenting, “Builders and Boomer generations represent the majority of today’s grandparents. There are nearly eighty million of us. Yet on our watch we have stood by in silence and allowed the Father of lies to inject his venom into our culture, hardening men’s hearts to the truth.”

However, grandparents who believe in the power of prayer can stand in the gap and pray that their grandchildren will not become casualties of the enemy’s deception. We are engaged in a spiritual battle necessitating the most effective weapon God has given us–prayer. As grandparents, we have an opportunity to imprint another generation with His love and faithfulness.

When Nehemiah faced opposition in building the wall in Jerusalem, he told the people, “Don’t be afraid of them, Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, sons, and your daughters, your wives and your homes” (Nehemiah 4:14). Just as Nehemiah asked the people to fight for their families. grandparents can use prayer to fight the opposition from the enemy our grandchildren face today.

Unite with Grandparents Around the World

Over the last five years, thousands of grandparents have united in prayer on the National Grandparents Day in September making it a Day of Prayer for their families. Again, CGN invites you to be a part of this movement to intentionally pray for our grandchildren, our families, and our world making it a Grandparents’ Day of Prayer (GDOP).

We are still looking for prayer champions who will take the lead to organize an event in their area, calling grandparents to join in prayer on September 11 or another date in September. This event could be in your church, your home, a retirement complex, or any meeting location you choose. CGN will provide step-by-step guidelines, resources, and online tools to help you create a successful event that will engage grandparents in prayer for your event.

Will you accept the challenge to join grandparents throughout the world to unite in prayer on September 11 for their grandchildren?

Check out our website for blogs, endorsements, testimonials and promotional materials and free downloads. Make the National Grandparents Day a Day of Prayer. www.grandparentsdayofprayer.com

For additional information, contact Lillian Penner, Nat’l Prayer Coordinator for CGN lpenner@christiangrandparenting.net.