Pray By The Book: Psalmsনমুনা

# Pray for the Family ## Blessed is the family who walks in the Lord's ways. All of us are eager to have our lives resume after disruption from the pandemic, but how do we go about in our daily life, our family, and our future? We have to realize that without God, all of our efforts will be in vain. Psalm 127 and 128 are beautiful songs of wisdom to guide us through unparalleled times—and often, it starts in the home. We do our best in our work to provide for our loved ones and yet it is the Lord who watches and ultimately supplies what we need (127:2; 128:2). More so, God’s grace extends towards the family as the Lord blesses a person with a spouse, children, and a legacy—all of which are gifts that can only come from God. (127:3-5; 128:3). Peace and prosperity come from the Lord as we steward these blessings according to God’s way (128:4-6). ## Reflect: How can my family start walking with the Lord? All of us desire to have a blessed family where there is joy, peace, security, and satisfaction. This blessing starts with the man of the house who fears the Lord. His wife is fruitful in every way and he is satisfied with children. Does this characterize your house? What can you do or contribute to allow your family to experience the blessings of God? Start with what God has already revealed in His Word. Do your role as husband/father or wife/mother or child/sibling. Model obedience to God in your family. Show love through forgiveness, patience, and encouragement. Are you fulfilling your God-given role in your family? ## As you pray... Ask God to use you as a channel of His love to family members and relatives: • To be a better and more Christ-like family member, spouse, parent, child, etc. • To steward our families and our home in the ways of the Lord • To be filled with the Holy Spirit in order to exhibit the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23) • To glorify and praise God in all things, even through the often difficult relationships in our families Let us confess our tendency to take our families for granted and ignore conflicts or relational tensions, as well as our lack of forgiveness towards those who have hurt us, especially in our family. Take the opportunity to pray with your family. Encourage and appreciate one another for their good qualities and actions as well as take the time to ask one another, “how can I improve?” then lift each other up to the Lord.