A Prayer for Families to Draw Near to Jesus - Your Daily Prayer - December 18

Your Daily Prayer

Audio By Carbonatix

By Christine F. Perry, Crosswalk.com

A Prayer for Families to Draw Near to Jesus
By Christine F. Perry

Bible Reading:
"The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth." Psalm 145:18 NKJV

Listen or Read Below:

On a scale from 1-10, 10 being the greatest, how would you measure your home life? Whether or not you’re married with a family, you can still participate in this.

What does your home feel like when you walk through the front door? Is there laughter or chaos? Is it a place of encouragement or one where you feel torn down? Is there peace or strife? Is there striving or humility?

Psalm 16:11 says, “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

Whether you have a family or not, would you say you’re loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled? Galatians 5:22 says these are the fruits of the Spirit. When we draw near to Jesus, these fruits should become more evident in our lives. At His right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Whoever you spend the most time with, you will be impacted and influenced by them. Who better to be influenced and impacted by than Jesus? Imagine how conflicts would be better handled if we sought to be more loving in our communication. What if we assumed the best instead of the worst? What if we never gave up and remained hopeful? This is one of many descriptions of love written in 1 Corinthians 13.

When we individually draw closer to Jesus, everyone, including our family, will be impacted. When we surrender to the Lord’s control and give up trying to control everything, we will find we have more peace. Those closest to us will notice. When we seek the Lord together, our homes will exude Christ’s attributes instead of our self-serving attributes.

You may be wondering how to do this. First, pray and start reading the Bible for yourself. Make sure you have one-on-one time with the Lord first thing every morning.

Second, ask your spouse if you can find time to read a book of the Bible, discuss it, and then pray together. This can be in the mornings, evenings, on lunch break over the phone, or whenever you can find a time to connect. It may take creativity, especially if you have a busy schedule. It may also require you to cut things out of your schedule. What is more important than you and your family's spiritual well-being?

Third, once you and your spouse figure out a time, try to incorporate your kids into reading and praying together. Additionally, you can start a gratitude journal and ask everyone what they’re grateful for. This time together seeking the Lord doesn’t have to be long, but it must be a priority.

It is never a waste of time to spend time seeking and drawing close to the Lord. He holds all time and all things in His hand. Nothing is too hard for Him. When we draw near to Him, it's miraculous how he can change our attitudes, perspectives, and us! I am not sure about you, but I know I need more of Him. I want to be full of all that He is because life is the essence of all He is.

“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” – Saint Augustine

Let's Pray:

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You that when we seek You, we will find You (Jeremiah 29:13). I pray that You would help us to draw near to You individually and then that You would help make a way for our families to also draw near to You.

Lord, we always need more of You. Please help us to reorient our lives so that You are at the center, because if You’re not, we are just wasting our time. You deserve all that we have and all that we are. Please help us to never lose sight of all You have done for us and Your sacrifice on the cross. We love You, Lord. Please help our love for You and others to grow deeper and sweeter.

Amen!

Share your reflections on today’s devotional in the Your Daily Prayer discussion on the Crosswalk Forum.

Photo Credit: Deagreez

Christine is just a lady who was given the gift of being raised in an incredible family. For reasons unknown to her, God has blessed her with an amazing life full of beautiful friendships, remarkable experiences, and a love from Him that is completely underserved. She desires to encourage others and share hope as we journey through the highs and lows of life. Christine is the author of How I Met Peace and For the Weary Life Traveler, a 31-day devotional. Check out more of Christine's work at her website: Learning to be fearless and her Patreon.

Related Resource: Be Still - Advent Meditations

This Advent season can be full and hurried, which is exactly why we need moments to pause and be still with God. So Much More is a podcast created to bring you space to be with God - and this month, we're walking through Advent Meditations all designed to help you quiet yourself and hear from the Lord. If you like what you hear, subscribe to So Much More on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode!