Praying for God's FAVOR in Your Family

Praying for my family is something about which I always felt very strongly, but for years lacked a good model to follow.

One day, I was reading Psalm 90 in my devotions and came across a verse that forever changed the way I prayed for my wife and children.

Psalm 90:17 (NIV84)

¹⁷ May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands.

"Favor" comes from the Hebrew word, no'am, and expresses the idea of God's kindness or pleasantness. In Psalm 90:17, the psalmist (Moses) appeals to the kindness of God to be upon the people and the work of their hands.

I use this analogy based off of the word FAVOR to structure my prayer life over my family:

F - Faith. Pray for a continued deepening of their knowledge of, relationship with, and love for God. I use Ephesians 1:15-23 to guide my prayers for their faith.
A - Activities. My family has always been extremely active. My kids always seemed to be involved in everything under the sun. Pray Colossians 1:9-11 over the activities your family is involved in.
V - Virtues. Healthy fruit is one of the surest indications that a tree is healthy. Jesus said we would know those who followed him by their fruit. Pray that your family will partner with the work of the Spirit to produce the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) in their lives.
O - Obstacles. Each member of our families has certain challenges that are unique to them. Character defects, places of spiritual struggle, hurdles in their maturity, and stage of life challenges. Praying specifically toward these challenges is important. One great way to find out what they are: ask them! Pray Ephesians 3:16 over each area of struggle.
R - Relationships. Second only to matters of faith, relationships are vital to the health and well-being of our family members' lives. Pray that God will help each person to have healthy relationship skills. Pray that each will develop strong, positively influencing friendships. Pray that each person will have strong mentors and disciplers in their lives. Romans 12:10, 16 is a good place to start praying for the relationships in your family.

I would encourage you to develop this acronym for each person on a sheet of paper. I use pages from my prayer guide in The Believer's Guide to the Spirit-Formed Life, a devotional resource I developed a number of years ago.

As you begin to pray for these specific areas, don't be surprised to see God begin to go before your family members and make a way for them, making their lives fruitful in every dimension.