Just in time for Mother’s Day! Leslie shares ways she has personally sought to keep prayer as the cornerstone of her walk with Christ while being a mom to six children. Perfect for moms in the trenches, those who look forward to motherhood in the future, or those who are discipling and interacting with children, this episode beautifully expresses that prayer keeps stress, burn-out, and worry at bay as women choose the one thing that is needful — time in His presence. Discover practical ways to invest into your children … beginning with the impact prayer has on a child’s life!
PODCAST TRANSCRIPT
If you find that you are only getting whispered, hurried prayers crammed into a few spare moments of your days, this episode will be an encouragement to you. Whether you are a mom to young children or a woman who looks forward to mothering one day, it is vital to recognize and practice the importance of prayer in every season … but especially in busy seasons, such as motherhood.
It has been said that a “woman’s work is never done” and this is especially true in motherhood when we must be available to our children every day of the week. It can be easy to view prayer as unrealistic and impractical and while raising kids doesn’t make praying any easier … it does make it all the more necessary! Instead of falling into the mind-trap that says we are too busy to pray, we must reverse our mindset to one that says, “I’m too busy not to pray.”
Prayer is the fuel that makes godly motherhood work. It’s not just the act of praying that is important, but the process of connecting personally with the King of all kings that makes the difference in our day-to-day lives, and in the futures of our children. Remember that Christ-centered mothering is Christ-enabled motoring and nothing can equip us for this daunting task than spending time with our Savior.
Simple Ways to Prioritize Prayer:
1.Make an Appointment with the Lord
As Corrie ten Boom said, “Make an appointment with the Lord and keep it.” How much easier would it be to cultivate a discipline of prayer in our daily lives if we viewed it with as much importance as a commitment on our calendar? Our
If early mornings aren’t optimum for you to meet with the Lord in prayer, search your schedule for pockets of time you can steal away with Jesus. The key is to aim for regularity, consistency, and commitment when building a prayer life!
2. Remove Time Wasters & Distractions
We can often feel like our lives are overpacked … but sometimes this is due to the fact that subtle distractions and time wasters are eating up precious, valuable time to spend in His presence.
Prayerfully evaluate how you spend your time in light of the fact that time at the feet of Jesus satisfies and fills us more than any TV show, social media feed, or Pinterest board ever could! Make changes to your habits and pastimes that reflect the priorities of the responsibilities in which God has entrust you.
3. Get Back Up On the Horse
There will be seasons where you may be living in “spiritual survival mode” and you aren’t able to keep regular time with Jesus in prayer and Bible study. It’s important that, when these seasons lift, that we quickly get back into our routine of building regular and consistent prayer into our lives.
It’s also important to remember that you don’t have to play spiritual “catch-up” with God and feel like you have to cover all that has been missed. Find rest in the fact that you can pick up right where you left off. Our Heavenly Father is unchanging, and He is ready and waiting for us to cast our cares at His feet.
4. Develop a Prayer Strategy
The prayers we proclaim for our children are of great impact to our children’s lives — both presently and in the future. All of the child training and home organization won’t amount to much if prayer isn’t the cornerstone of your home.
Make a sacred list of things to pray for your children and regularly commit them to God until you sense a breakthrough has come.
Final Thoughts
Your relationship with Christ is meant to be the anchor of your soul. Don’t allow it to fade into the background … even in the busy years of raising your children. When you make the decision to put Him first — even when it requires sacrifice — everything in life will fall beautifully into place.
Key Scriptures
Matthew 6:33
Recommended Resources
Visit Leslie’s website: SetApartMotherhood.com for inspiration and encouragement for your motherhood journey!