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A Simple Way to Teach Kids How to Pray

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teaching kids about prayer - guest post at happyhomefairy.com by Jeannie Cunnion, author of Parenting the Wholehearted Child - love this encouragementI am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Today I am BEYOND thrilled to have Jeannie Cunnion guest posting at Happy Home Fairy!  Jeannie got in touch with me after reading my post called The Grace Response.  We made an instant connection and she offered to send me a copy of her book, Parenting the Wholehearted Child.  As soon as it arrived, I dove right in and LET ME TELL YOU – this book is seriously my new favorite.  Jeannie offers so many practical ideas to point our kids (and our mama’s heart) to Christ – I think I must have highlighted every single page.  One part that stood out to me in particular, however, was Jeannie’s encouragement on teaching kids how to pray.  I love her simple model for prayer that children AND adults can use to draw closer to Jesus.  Take it away, Jeannie!

*     *     *     *

A prayer I pray often is simple.

“Lord, help.”

Motherhood will do that to you. Because God doesn’t just work through us to shape our kids. He also works through them to shape us!

And the deeper into mothering I get with three boys, the more praying I do.

I pray, not because it always changes the situation, but because it changes me.

I need God. I need the power of God, working in me and through me so that I can be a reflection of His love to my kids. And I need the grace of God, working in me and through me when I fail to be a reflection of His love to my kids (which, let’s be real, is often)!

Teaching our children how to pray is one of the greatest gifts we can give them.

And while praying, “Lord, help!” is a wonderful prayer to teach our kids, it’s only the beginning.

So what else can we teach and model for our kids when it comes to prayer?

For starters, our kids will be thankful to know that prayer is something we can do anytime, about anything.

Anytime:

Prayer isn’t just for blessing the food or asking God to keep us safe while we sleep.

We can encourage our kids to pray before they start their day to ask God for his blessing and guidance.

As they go about their day, they can pray when they sin or make a bad choice and they want to ask for forgiveness, when they feel happy or see something beautiful and they want to give thanks, when they need help controlling themselves and they need God’s strength, or when they feel sad or scared and they need God’s comfort.

And they can pray as they lay their head on their pillow at night, giving all of their fear and worry over to Him.

Anything:

This is huge! Our kids must know that there is no request too big, no feeling too bad, no shame too great, and no feeling too unworthy to express in prayer.

We can come before God with honesty, with our struggles, and even with our doubts, and He will receive us with open arms.

Prayer is not telling God what we think He wants to hear, nor is it telling Him anything He doesn’t already know.

Prayer is getting real with God.

We never have to fear his rejection!

Friend, if praying is new to you, or maybe you are just struggling to lead your kids in prayer, I want to share with you one of my favorite ways to pray with our boys.

We use four simple words to guide us in prayer in the evening:

“Wow, Sorry, Thanks, and Please.”

(Throughout the day you’ll find us praying any portion of this prayer, particularly the “sorry” one, as we are a family who messes up a lot but also seeks forgiveness a lot. If we know anything, it’s that the grace of God never runs dry.)

It looks a little something like this:

Wow – We acknowledge how amazing God is. It might sound something like “God you are so loving. God you are so powerful. God you are so generous.” Or as my youngest son recently said, “God you are my hero!”

Sorry – We confess our sins and receive God’s endless forgiveness.

Thanks – We thank God for everything He has given us for daily life and everything He did for us in giving us His one and only Son Jesus.

Please – We present our needs and worries and fears and hopes for ourselves and others before Him.

It’s a wonderful way to end the day with our children. Not only does it help each of us grow in our relationship with God, but it also gives me a window into their souls. Listening to the thoughts of their hearts is my favorite part of the day.

***This post is an edited excerpt from Parenting the Wholehearted Child.

*     *     *     *

I have been teaching my own boys this simple model for prayer and posted a photo about it on Facebook HERE.  Happy Buddy now begins all of his prayers with, “Wow, God!” 🙂

Y’all, I love sharing the things that I love and Jeannie’s book is at the top of the list.  If you are trying to find just one Christian parenting book that has it all – THIS IS IT!  I know you will love Jeannie’s heart and be inspired to share the Lord’s sweet grace with your kiddos in fresh and practical ways.  You can buy it on Amazon HERE.

*Follow Jeannie on Facebook HERE, Instagram HERE, and subscribe to her site HERE.* 

Thank you, Jeannie, for being a part of Happy Home Fairy today!

Parenting
Christian, Christian Parenting, Kids, Prayer, Teaching Kids How to Pray
7 Comments

About Happy Home Fairy

Julie Brasington is a Preschool Director, wife of a South Florida Worship Pastor and mom of 3 boys. She writes at Happy Home Fairy where you can find easy craft ideas, FREE printables, simple recipes, holiday fun, thoughts on raising kids, and encouragement for moms.

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Reader Interactions

7 Comments

  1. April

    July 27, 2015 at 5:32 pm

    I love love love this!!!!! Wouldn’t it be so cool to have a printable saying “wow sorry thanks please “!!!!!! I would love to hang that in my boys’ rooms as a reminder to all of us!!!!!!
    Thanks again, fairy!!!!!

    reply to this comment
    • Happy Home Fairy

      July 27, 2015 at 11:53 pm

      Great idea, April! Let me think about it!! 🙂

      reply to this comment
  2. gladysapiado

    July 29, 2015 at 11:17 pm

    Great post! Thanks for sharing.

    reply to this comment
  3. Sarah Williams

    August 3, 2015 at 11:31 pm

    LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!!
    I have heard her on a podcast, and she’s amazing!

    reply to this comment
  4. Quinn

    October 21, 2017 at 11:31 pm

    This is me! Struggling to lead my daughter in prayer. And struggling in prayer myself!
    Will start trying this. I have tried working through a book called I can learn to pray with my daughter, but I think its too much right and I need to keep it simple. I always complicate things! Have you come across a printable for these? I saw the first comment. Great idea on the printable. I could do that myself too. And list under the Wow.sorry.thanks you. Things to lead our prayers.

    reply to this comment
  5. Barb Ingram

    April 19, 2020 at 11:50 pm

    I recently planned a lesson on the Lord’s Prayer for the children of our church, using this pattern of wow, sorry, thanks, and please. I love that those words are so relatable for kids and all of us. We haven’t gotten to use the lesson yet because of our new stay-at-home 2020 pandemic life…but I thought I’d share a poem and song I wrote to use with the lesson…someday! 😉

    WAYS TO PRAY
    Four words that help us pray are these:
    Wow and sorry, thanks and please.
    Wow because God’s so great—woo hoo!
    Sorry because of wrong things that we do.
    Thanks because he gives good gifts each day.
    Please because we need God’s help always.

    The song below is to the tune of the Doxology:

    Wow, God, you are so mighty and strong!
    Sorry, God, for times when I do wrong.
    Thanks, God, for all your love and care.
    Please, God, help your people everywhere.

    Wow, God, you listen when I pray!
    Sorry, God, I sometimes disobey.
    Thanks, God, you have good plans for me.
    Please, God, help me serve my family.

    ❤️

    reply to this comment
  6. Abraham Joseph Ajenifuja

    August 13, 2020 at 11:46 pm

    Hi Julie, thanks for sharing this great post! Love it!

    reply to this comment

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Hey there! My name is Julie, the Happy Home Fairy. I am married to a Worship Pastor, we have 3 boys, and I am a Preschool Director. I love sharing easy, fun ideas to help moms build a happy home! Here you will find simple crafts, FREE Printables, yummy recipes, stories about my journey to trust Jesus with my family, and encouragement for your mama's heart. You can read more about me HERE!

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