Unusual prayer request for a complicated blended family situation-
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sjcwoodPrayers: 7Requests: 1
May 5, 2020 at 1:01 amI haven’t listened to the Daily Audio Bible in awhile, but was yearning for God’s Word and His wisdom tonight. I came to know Jesus through regular church attendance as a child and into adulthood. I am my mother’s only daughter, about to turn 40 on the 20th and have been married to a loving husband for 12 years.
I had a painful text conversation with my mom earlier today, after I told her about a nightmare I had last night. It’s not uncommon for me to have vivid dreams, but God has given me the ability to decipher which dreams have spiritual significance, though I often don’t know what they “mean” specifically. Sometimes, it is just spiritual attack and Satan just trying to scare me since I am a child of God through faith in Christ Jesus. I have experienced God rescuing me after crying out desperate prayers for help within my nightmares. My mother has had some prophetic dreams as well as my grandmother who was also a Christian. So it’s this strange phenomena that happens that I don’t know what to do with sometimes. Of course, I pray. But as Brian rightly said at the end of today’s message (5/5/2020), it’s really hard for us to turn down the dial of our thoughts and feelings, so I think and try to figure out what they mean. We must “hold every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ”, but I’m not good at that. It is so very true how our thoughts and emotions are often distorted and the same is true for the people we are in relationship with. Thus, miscommunication, misunderstanding, arguments and fights inevitably happen. Many relationships are especially strained right now because of the extreme stressors caused by COVID-19. However, I often forget that when I “quarrel” with the people I most love and care about, Satan is often at work in the spiritual realm (Ephesians 6:12).
Back to the nightmare. I dreamt that I was babysitting my stepdaughter’s children along with about 20 other neighborhood children under the age of 5 or so. Strange things started happening in the house, like doors swinging and slamming shut by evil spirits. With the children ushered behind me, I put out my hand and boldly declared the name of Jesus over and over. “In the name of Jesus, you must leave, you have no power over me, I am not afraid of you!” I then wrote the name Jesus in cursive on the doors and on the ceiling fan and used oil to annoint the ceiling fan with the sign of the cross in several places.
So, I texted my mom just briefly about this scary nightmare. Her responses were awful. Though she is clearly saved through faith in Christ, my mom tends to be very negative, fear-driven, very money motivated and makes declarative statements that are totally false. She started off by saying something bad was going to happen in my stepdaughters life. I interrupted her and declared that not to be true in Jesus’ name and told her to stop saying that. She then started to criticize me for how involved I am as a stepmom with her two young daughters (age 3 and almost 6) . Here is a quick rundown on some of the hurtful things she said, “You’re involvement with her kids is totally useless and you’re wasting your time. They won’t appreciate you years down the road. Never babysit.” Summary of my responses, “I’m not babysitting to be appreciated by anyone” (thinking everything I do, I do unto the Lord and not unto man). I shot back with telling my mom how I’m not like her. I said, “You’re always looking to do things for people to get something in return. That’s called using people.” I then took a screen shot of Ephesians 4:29-32 and circled it for her to read. Her strange response to that was, “You will not be remembered as a good person by her entire family”. My response, which was definitely sinful toward the end: “Wow. I feel sad that you think that way. Everything I do I do unto God and not unto man. Love is sacrificial. It’s not just about me and what I get from it. You really need to read the Bible. You married your men to get something out of them. How did that work out for you? I suffered because of your bad choices. Even if what you said ends up being true, I will continue to love others knowing full well people are broken. That is why you’re all alone. I’m not like you. I want to be the person God wants me to be. Not afraid, not self-seeking, not self-interested.” My mom responded (in a text) with “Please be aware that she (my stepdaughter) is a master at controlling you, she is punishing you to make you feel guilty” (I am also in a conflict with my stepdaughter Rachel, which has remained unresolved for a couple of months). The conflict with my stepdaughter has to do with a fight we had about COVID-19 testing and from communication issues related to us financially helping her. At this point, I was very angry with my mom. I laughed at her ridiculous claim. Rachel is not “controlling” in any form or fashion. Rachel is also strong in her Christian faith. I then, in anger, wrote, “You are alone and diseased” (my mom has been battling a rare fungal skin infection for the past few years known as sporotrichosis). She is really distrustful of everybody so refuses to see an infectious disease specialist and/or dermatologist. My husband is a physician and he can’t convince her to see a doctor either. I ended my text by telling her to stay away from my house and from me.
Thank you for reading all of this. I tried calling my mom three times to apologize to her for the hurtful things I said. She didn’t answer. I was comforted by my husband who is faithful in his walk with the Lord, actively engaging in various ministry projects. I thought of the Samaritan woman at the well and told my husband Glenn that I should remind my mom of this story. Jesus took time to minister to a prostitute and He did not shame her. I was encouraged and surprised that later when I tuned in to the Daily Audio Bible, I heard this very message and the story of Ruth, in which I think of my mom as Naomi.
So friends, please pray for protection from the enemy’s schemes against me, my household, my family. For restoration and healing of my relationship with my mom and stepdaughter. And prayer that my mom would open her eyes to God’s truth rather than what she thinks is wise in her own negative thought process. Prayer that God would change her. And wisdom for how I should respond in a way that is honoring to God. Thank you so very much. Sonia
sachemwilsonPrayers: 23Requests: 3
May 5, 2020 at 7:43 amLifted you up Sonia. The first step was seeking His Wisdom as you’ve done! We are all (you, me, your mom, Franklin Graham etc.) equally in need of our heart’s eyes to be opened by Him. Continue to ask that He would open yours — I think you’ll immediately start to find the situation less stressful. Remember, Love never fails! 😊❤️
mamoose1970Prayers: 162Requests: 23
May 5, 2020 at 9:17 amI’m praying for you and your whole family Sonia. I’m praying that Jesus’ love and the Holy Spirit flows through all involved.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 New International Version (NIV)
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.mclemore4Prayers: 119Requests: 68
May 5, 2020 at 10:08 amI will pray for you and your mother that the love of Jesus Christ and God will be there for you.
gsimoninPrayers: 5621Requests: 43
May 5, 2020 at 11:08 amYes, Lord, we pray for Sonia, her mom, her family, and all that was said in this conversation. Lord, I know how challenging it is to have a negative mom and I’m not sure that what Sonia said was really heard by her mom. So, Lord, we ask You to step in and instruct each person giving them Your wisdom about how to proceed from here, how to build a good, healthy relationship. Blessings, gail
sueblumaPrayers: 30Requests: 3
May 10, 2020 at 5:16 amLord, please cover this family’s situation in love. Please soften everyone’s Hearts to each other. I ask that you would be with Sonia. That you would give her wisdom. You do not give us a spirit of fear and love drives out fear. I ask that you would fill this family with love. That her mother’s heart would be softened toward her and toward her stepdaughter. That you would restore the relationship between Sonia and her mother. I pray that you would restore the relationship between Rachel and Sonia. Thank you Lord. In Jesus’s name I pray amen
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