Daily Devotion

The Parent Trap

Over the years, I’ve noticed something that surprises people.

Parents come asking for prayer for their children — and rightly so. A son drifting. A daughter making choices that break your heart. Nights staring at the ceiling, wondering where you went wrong.

But many times, before I pray for the child, I pray for the parent.

Because kids don’t just hear what we say about God.
They watch how we trust Him.

Children are perceptive. Like good horses or old farm dogs, they sense fear fast. They pick up on worry, tension, and quiet panic. They know when Mom and Dad say, “Trust the Lord,” but live like everything is falling apart.

That’s the trap.

We pray… but we don’t release.
We ask God to handle it… then we try to take it back.

Scripture reminds us, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God… will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6–7).

Notice the promise isn’t control.
It’s peace.

Our children don’t need perfect parents. They need steady ones — calm, grounded, anchored in God.

I’ve come to believe this:

We are the physical evidence of the spiritual reality that God is faithful, present, and still at work.

Our peace proves what we preach.

So sometimes the first prayer isn’t, “Lord, fix my child.”
It’s, “Lord, steady my heart.”

Because when parents truly rest in God, children learn they can too.

Walk in faith, rest in grace, and trust the One who walks beside you.
In His love and grace,

ray mileur 

“Helping believers walk closer to Jesus, one day at a time.”
www.raymileurministries.com