Just Keep Seeking, Seeking, Seeking!
- Lori Ogilbee
- Aug 27, 2024
- 3 min read
“Friends, our kids need Jesus more than ever before! Our little arrows need to be pointed to seek Jesus every single hour of the day.”
“Seek the Lord and His strength, seek His presence continually.” 1 Chronicles 16:11 (ESV)
Ahh, the first day of school. Summer has ended, and it’s time to return to the Monday-Friday schedule. What does that look like for you? Is it rushing around looking for lost shoes, packing lunches, planning for after-school pickups, and running in three different directions to everyone’s sports and extracurricular activities? Is it fast food or pizza for dinner because you forgot to turn on the Crock-Pot or thaw out some chicken, math homework that requires a calculus professor to help with, and battles over bedtime? It may be a combination of all of those things. It’s exhausting just to think about, isn’t it?
These people we are raising are probably exhausted, too.
Take a moment to digest that statement. They’ve gone from days spent outside or at the pool, lounging and relaxing at their leisure, back to a regimented schedule. They are likely facing new teachers, new friends, and new intellectual challenges. They’re navigating social situations and competitive environments that we never knew as kids—surprises around every corner, bullies in the hallway, and teachers who are struggling just to get through each day.
Friends, our kids need Jesus more than ever before! Our little arrows need to be pointed to seek Jesus every single hour of the day. Before the morning chaos starts, and little Annabelle won’t get out of bed because she was up too late, and now she’s going to miss the bus, pray FOR her. On the way to school (since she missed the bus) pray OVER her. In the drop of line at school, pray WITH her. Seek His presence to surround your babies every day, whether they are four or forty. Ask Him to surround them with His love and His wisdom every moment that you’re away from them. Spoiler alert: this will change your perspective. Those frustrations are still going to happen—they are part of our growth. (Yes, OUR growth—our children’s and our own.) But when we look to him FIRST, things change. He hears our prayers and surrounds our loved ones with His heavenly army.
That’s an army that I want fighting my battles!
Action Steps:
Many of us have daily planners or schedules for the school week. Take some time today and add a “pray for the kids” reminder to each morning. It may look different for you than it does for me, and that’s okay. I choose to pray over my family before my feet hit the floor in the morning. You may decide that right before you wake them up you want to pray outside their bedroom door.
Read and reflect on these verses about seeking God. How can you apply them to your day?
Prayer: God, I ask You today, to watch over my children. As we step out into this new season, help us to be mindful of Your love for us and Your desire to be in our presence. Help us seek You for ourselves and our children every day, and give You the glory for protecting and surrounding us as we face new challenges. We know that You already know what’s facing us, and I give the struggle and the joys that lie ahead to You to use for Your glory. Thank You for being our Savior and allowing us to be alive in You.
Written by Lori, former chaos coordinator of two now twenty-somethings, who are discovering what it means to be parents themselves, still fervently praying for God to be present in their lives.