Jesus, Be a Fence Around Our Children

When my children were small, we had new neighbors move in next door. They owned a very large and angry dog. At that time there was only a small fence on their property, and the owner installed an electric fence to keep his dog from coming into our yard. However, it gave us little consolation that their dog wouldn’t eventually get into our yard. Even though it was expensive, we put a 6-foot fence on our property. Our children had peace as they played because they felt protected by the fence.

The most difficult part of being a mom is that I can’t protect them all the time. In fact, I often feel there are five parts of me scattered all over the world. I can’t be there to always console them when they are sad, comfort them when they are sick or lonely, or protect them when they are in danger. It doesn’t matter if they are in the room next to me or in another country—I can only do so much.

However, as a Christian mother, I can pray Psalm 91 over them and ask the Lord to be a fence around them at all times. As much as I love them, God loves them more and He is their ultimate Protector every day. While I want them to experience every good thing, I know God will allow some pain for themselves in order to help them trust in Him. I would never want them to trust in me more than they trust in the Lord.

God is in control, and He will take care of them even if they are walking in disobedience. Regardless of the age of our children, God always hears the prayers of their fathers and mothers interceding on their behalf. We must trust God with protecting and keeping our children.