A Practical Guide for Praying Parents by Erwin W Lutzer

Lutzer starts out with a bold statement. “It is a sin for you to not pray for your children.” (11) So we know we must pray but how do we do it day after day? How do we pray knowing we pray God's will? How do we pray and not repeat the same requests over and over?

Lutzer says the prayers for his children changed when he began praying Scripture. He helps parents and grandparents pray scriptural prayers and remain faithful when it appears prayers are not being answered.

One aspect of the book I really appreciated was Lutzer's teaching on spiritual warfare and specifically curses. He is clear that for believers, any curses from previous generations are broken in Christ. Christ bore our curse. (59) That is such good news as many Christian parents have worried about possible generational curses plaguing their children.

Another insight I really appreciated was Lutzer's clarification, “Some of the prayers and promises in the Old Testament that refer to the material blessings of God for Israel do not apply directly to the church.” (63) Christians are not to use Old Testament Scriptures to demand God pour physical blessings upon their children. His plea is for believers to exercise discernment. (66)

This book is aimed at getting parents on the journey of a life of prayer. I really like his insights into what to pray for, such as the child's heart condition, their attitude toward sin and realizing their identity in Christ. I like how Lutzer shares his own weekly prayer practice as an example for readers. I like his sample prayers, more examples of praying Scripture. I like his chapter on praying beyond the family, for the nation.

This is a very good book to get parents and grandparents on a rewarding and effective prayer journey. I highly recommend it.

You can read an excerpt here.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

Erwin W Lutzer is pastor emeritus of The Moody Church in Chicago, where he served as the senior pastor for 36 years. He earned his BTh from Winnipeg Bible College, a ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary, a MA in philosophy from Loyola University, and an honorary LLD from the Simon Greenleaf School of Law. He is an award-winning author and featured speaker on three radio programs heard on more than 1,000 outlets in the United States and around the world. He and his wife life in the Chicago area and have three grown children and eight grandchildren.

Moody Publishers, 112 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)