Upside-Down Prayers for Parents: Thirty-One Daring Devotions for Entrusting Your Child--and Yourself--to God
Upside-Down Prayers for Parents by Lisa T. Bergren automatically caught my eye because of the cover, but it is so much more than a pretty cover. After reading the description, I was curious to read this book...thinking quite honestly that I may think it was ridiculous.
Quite the opposite.
This book has caused me to think - not only about how I think about and pray for my kids' lives, but also how I think about mine.
About how I try to be in control.
I think the author sums it up well when she says:
The entire book challenged me to let go, to ask God to lead me (& my children), and to listen and wait for His answer. (Although the title states that this book is for parents, I think that it may be a bit misleading as this book can be extremely impactful for someone who doesn't have children.)
Each of the titles for the individual devotionals can sound a bit harsh (by praying that your child will encounter "bad" things), but when you have read through each devotional you will see the overall idea is not as harsh as it sounds. (It will, however, change how you think about a lot of situations.)
I love the way each devotional is laid out - it has so many ways that you can use it. Each devotional starts with the title and a verse and then is followed by a prayer, a prompt to "make it personal" (with a space to write down your thoughts) and then two prompts to discuss with your children (one for older children, one for younger children). I chose to read the devotionals and just think about the prompts, but I may go back and use the prompts for children as questions to discuss together or to write down in a journal for my child to think about and answer.
I love that this is divided into 31 devotionals - perfect for going over on a monthly basis. I feel that revisiting these ideas each month would be a great way to keep focused throughout the year.
If you'd like to check it out, you can read the first chapter here: http://goo.gl/nXDk2
Upside-Down Prayers for Parents by Lisa T. Bergren automatically caught my eye because of the cover, but it is so much more than a pretty cover. After reading the description, I was curious to read this book...thinking quite honestly that I may think it was ridiculous.
Quite the opposite.
This book has caused me to think - not only about how I think about and pray for my kids' lives, but also how I think about mine.
About how I try to be in control.
I think the author sums it up well when she says:
"...if we're to trust him with everything in us, we have to lay our lives - past, present, and future - in his hands. Perhaps most challenging, we have to lay our children's lives there as well."
The entire book challenged me to let go, to ask God to lead me (& my children), and to listen and wait for His answer. (Although the title states that this book is for parents, I think that it may be a bit misleading as this book can be extremely impactful for someone who doesn't have children.)
Each of the titles for the individual devotionals can sound a bit harsh (by praying that your child will encounter "bad" things), but when you have read through each devotional you will see the overall idea is not as harsh as it sounds. (It will, however, change how you think about a lot of situations.)
I love the way each devotional is laid out - it has so many ways that you can use it. Each devotional starts with the title and a verse and then is followed by a prayer, a prompt to "make it personal" (with a space to write down your thoughts) and then two prompts to discuss with your children (one for older children, one for younger children). I chose to read the devotionals and just think about the prompts, but I may go back and use the prompts for children as questions to discuss together or to write down in a journal for my child to think about and answer.
I love that this is divided into 31 devotionals - perfect for going over on a monthly basis. I feel that revisiting these ideas each month would be a great way to keep focused throughout the year.
If you'd like to check it out, you can read the first chapter here: http://goo.gl/nXDk2
FTC Declaration: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.
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