Prayer for my Daughter(s)

Our first-born is turning 8 this month. Eight.

No longer a Little Girl… she is, more aptly, a Young Lady.

I can readily recall my own eighth year: Tired of stick-on earrings strewn about the house, my parents finally obliged my request for pierced ears. I mastered cursive writing and memorized times tables. My aunt gave me my first perm- JUST in my bangs. At my annual visit to the Optometrist I selected hefty tortoise-shell frames claiming they made me look “intelligent”. A good year.

I’m tremendously proud of our precious eight year old. She is quietly courageous and eager to try new things. She is naturally adventurous and extremely self-disciplined. Stubborn like her parents, she is driven and focused as she masters a new skill. She is sharp, sensitive and keenly observant. What a gift she is. It’s not lost on me that this is a year that she might also fondly recall when she is grown.

My prayer for her this year (and every year)  is that my well-intended mothering would not stifle the spirit of her person that God created and entrusted into my care, that- despite my shortcomings- she would blossom into the unique woman He designed her to be. I pray He continues to mold and refine her into His image.

I pray her relationship with her Lord would deepen and her life would bear much fruit.

I pray He continues to develop in her the Patience of Sarah, the Faith of Hannah, the Humility of Abigail, the Compassion of Ruth, the Conviction of Esther, the Trust of Mary, the Discernment of Elizabeth, and the Zeal of Anna.

{Genesis 17-23, 1 Samuel 1-2, 1 Samuel 25, Ruth 1-4, Esther 1-10, Matthew 1-2, Luke 1, Luke 2:36-38}