Intercessory Prayer: How to Build Faith in Your Grandchildren

Following the Navy’s boot camp, the visit with our son Ben had been painfully short.

One day.

Less than twenty-four hours with the son we hadn’t seen for eight weeks.

As the pageantry of boot camp graduation faded, my husband and I faced a second separation

from our firstborn. Now officially a military family, we returned to the summer heat of Texas while Ben

stayed in Great Lakes, Illinois for eight additional weeks of conditioning, before traveling to San Diego

in hopes of becoming a Navy SEAL.

My son faced the most rigorous military training in the world.

Helplessness doesn’t begin to describe how I felt.

What’s a mom to do?

A distance runner at the time, I committed to marathon train while Ben endured the rigors of

Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training (or BUD/S), courtesy of Naval Special Warfare.

Marathon training calls for a weekly long run to build mileage.

A perfect time for intercession, I planned to pray for Ben during my Saturday long runs. The first

weekend I ran 13.1 miles, a half marathon, which wasn’t unusual for me at the time. But as I shoved open

the door of our church the next morning, I silently prayed, “Lord, why am I so tired?”

The answer came immediately. Fatigue. Pray about fatigue for Ben.

Whoa. God knew exactly what Ben needed and He had shared it. With me.

A cringe followed my initial response of awe and excitement. What had I just gotten myself into?

Every Saturday, God gave me a picture of something to pray for as I supernaturally experienced

a taste of Ben’s training.

Muscle soreness.

IT band issues.

Unrelenting pressure to quit.

As marathons go, this was not my first rodeo. But the training for this one? I hope I never repeat it.

Weeks passed. My intercession (and training runs) continued as did Ben’s SEAL training.

As for Ben? Swim test. Check. Hell Week. Check. And on and on.

I ran my marathon that fall, right after Ben completed Hell Week. My slowest race ever, but I

continued to pray.

Ben successfully completed BUD/S and moved to the second half of SEAL training, SQT. He

graduated with BUD/S Class 298 in October of 2013.

And I learned the importance of intercession and the privilege of partnering with God in what He

was already doing in Ben’s life.

Our nation’s Navy SEALs are the elite of the U. S. special forces. No one compares

to the SEALs. God has special forces too, except His operate in the spiritual realm.

And you can join them.

In fact, the faith of your family may depend on it. How? Intercession. 

I still pray for my kids. Spouses and grandchildren have joined the list. Though I’ll never attempt

anything like SEAL training, I’ll gladly sit in God’s school of prayer.

You can too.

Because God calls you to prayer just as He did me.

As a grandparent, you have several key advantages many young moms and dads don’t have.

Time.

Wisdom.

Experience.

All three are key to prayer.

James tells us in James 5:16, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” You

are important to the spiritual development of your grandchildren (your kids too).

Here are some how-tos:

1. Pray specific verses. Do your grandchildren have a Bible verse that was chosen for them when they

were born? Pray that verse. Out loud. If not, ask God for a verse for each grandchild and pray what He

shows you.

I chose Psalm 92:12-15 for two of my children. Everywhere the passage says “they” I put my

sons’ names in that place.

“The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they (Ben and Richard) will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the Lord, they (Ben and Richard) will flourish in the courts of our God. They (Ben and Richard) will still bear fruit in old age, they (Ben and Richard) will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, ‘The Lord is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.’”

2. Pray Scripture. Character qualities like Deborah’s leadership and David’s tender heart

toward God. Psalm 91 for protection. Psalm 23 for comfort. The Fruit of the Spirit in

Galatians 5:22-23. The Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3-12. Paul penned some wonderful prayers in

Colossians 1:9-12, Ephesians 1:17-19; 3:14-19, and Philippians 1:3-6. And don’t forget Aaron’s blessing in 

Numbers 6:22-27, or the prayer of Jabez, 1 Chronicles 4:10. No shortage of material here.

3. Pray for needs. Ask the grandkids (and their parents) about their prayer needs. Let them know you

are praying for them and ask what you should pray about. Be sure to follow up.

4. Pray well-known prayers. Try this list for starters: St. Francis of Assisi Peace Prayer,

St. Patrick’s Breastplate Prayer for Protection, and Reinhold Niebuhr’s Serenity Prayer.

5. Pray with God. Still feeling a little shaky? Remember, you never pray alone. Even when you don’t have

the words, you have two Companions who do.

Romans 8:26 says, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what

we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”

Hebrews 7:25 reads, “Therefore he [Jesus] is able to save completely those who come to

God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.”

Gives new meaning to the words, “Our Father,” doesn’t it?

6. Pray together.  Team up with other grandparents and pray together. There’s power in multiplication. If

I were the enemy, the very thought of a team of praying grandparents would send me running.

God not only calls you to pray, but He promises to meet you there. 

Start by asking your kids and grandkids how you can pray for them, then move to other how-to points. 

Come. Join the ranks of His intercessors, God’s special forces.

Let’s meet Him now.

Father God, in the list of spiritual armor, prayer is the final weapon. Your Word says in Ephesians 6:18, “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” 

May Christian grandparents join the ranks of Your intercessors as Your kingdom advances and as our families’ legacies of faith extend through the generations.

In Jesus’s name, Amen. 

For you established prayer warriors, please share any tips and insights in the comments that

would benefit our Christian grandparent community.

Now, let’s hit the trail. See you out there.

Next week: Faith-Building St. Patrick’s Day Ideas for Your Grandchildren