A Mother's Prayer

Dear Father God,

Tears swell and my heart aches when I feel his tiny fingers cling to me. The wonder in his eyes, his helplessness, innocence and trust, all bombard me with the depth of his dependence on me. I think of so many failed attempts to conform myself for You – So many broken vows, angry words, lost chances, unkind actions. Can it be possible that I will be the one to shelter and instruct another? How will I fulfill the enormity of nurturing this precious child?

My Lord, you know all of my weaknesses. Help me to find victory over them for my child’s sake. Put within me a new heart, as clean as his is, so that we may begin together. Give me the desire to sacrifice willingly and to discipline myself totally. Let the confidence you have shown by placing this blessed child in my care, become my own.

I seek your counsel in every moment and every decision I make. Recreate me, Father, to be like stained glass, allowing Jesus, the light of the world, to pierce the colors that are me until we blend and shine through with love – A steady sunbeam to glow before my child as he grows. Fill me with a passion for your Word and elevate my soul towards You so that I may gain the wisdom and patience his mistakes will demand. Let my love be freely given - With no trace of it hoarded away in any dark, selfish corner of my heart. But if in my weakness I should fail him, reassure his heart with the knowledge that he is always cherished and that nothing, can separate Him from Your love for him.

My fear is great at times, knowing that my little son will be watching and learning from me – It doubles the burden of my imperfections. Please don’t let my faults stain his chances. Give him the courage to realize the great strength found in weakness; his need to turn his struggles over to you so that his lower instincts to embrace sin will have no power over him. Show him, rather, how to draw power from Your Throne.

Lord, I implore you to inspire my teaching. Give me the depth of understanding and the total acceptance of who You have created him to be. Show me how to nurture his dependence on You, which will form a healthy self-esteem in him. Deliver him from temptation, making him capable of withstanding whatever Satan throws at him. Let nothing in this world ever devastate him or separate him from his faith in you.

Father, I dedicate my precious little son to You as a faithful servant to further your Kingdom. I trust you to direct my guidance of him so that he puts all his trust in You and loves all humanity with a truthful, compassionate heart. Let his faith always give him hope and a firm assurance that he is a child of God, unique and invaluable to You. I ask all this in the precious name of Jesus ... Amen.