Call It Out

When I was pregnant with Hugo we received a few prophetic words about our unborn baby from various people. I also received a long and detailed vision of the kind of person they would be and their giftings. These words all lined up with one another and there was an obvious anointing upon this child as far as their call in life and how God would use them for his Kingdom. It was unbelievably encouraging to hear as a parent and it gave me great clarity as to how to shape and mould him now, knowing what I knew. Yet there were no specific details about what he would do, or who he would be or how he would carry out this call. It was very vague in that regard, however I found that to be helpful, because I've always been one to never want to push my children to be or do what I want them to be or do. I never want to have an agenda as a parent. I want the canvas to be blank, for them to become who they want to be and pursue whatever they want to achieve in life. In this regard, my prayers for Hugo and my future children are generally ambiguous when it comes to details of their life. Of course there are specific things I pray over them, but when it comes to who he is as a person and what he is going to go on to achieve, I like to leave a lot of freedom for God to move, because I've learnt along the way that God's plans and purposes for us are soooooooo much more than we could ever dare to hope, think or imagine! So whatever I can conjure up in my heart and mind for my children to achieve in this life will only ever fall ridiculously short of the plans that God already has for them. So I like to leave it up to him. But recently I've had a transformation in the way I pray for Hugo and my other children to come. And the way I have been praying for him has gone on to change the way I parent him and love him and aspire to shape and mould him.While surrendering my parenting over to God and trusting him to lead me in wisdom, discernment, truth and revelation as to how to go about my day disciplining, discipling and meeting the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual needs of my son, I've recently come to realise that I can actually do so much more than this, without trying to force my child/ren into a box of expectations and aspirations on my behalf. God created Hugo. And God has created all my other children who I have not yet met. He created them as who he wants them to be. They started out as a desire of his heart, a longing in the form of a human being, one of his very own children, unique and individual, like no other out of the billions upon billions of people that have ever and will ever walk this earth. He saw exactly what he wanted and who he wanted, formed them and then did something unbelievable...he placed them in my care! I am responsible for God's own children!!! What an amazingly fearful thought that is! I could harp on about this concept alone, but I'll save my breath (and your ears) for another time.

They started out as a desire of his heart, a longing in the form of a human being, one of his very own children

The point is I may not know who Hugo is going to grow up and become. I only have a tiny glimpse into his personality and personhood as a young 18 month old boy. I am only just getting to know him, and as each day goes by I am beautifully surprised by the person I see him becoming, the new things I watch him learn and discover, the development I get to observe as he finds his way in this big wide world. He has freshly embarked on this journey of life and I am so privileged to travel with him through it, taking my responsibility seriously as I gently guide and shape him on the path and in the ways he should go. I am equally unaware of his future as he is, but...I don't have to be! Not completely clueless, anyway.God knows who he is and what great call and anointing has been placed on his life, because he himself designed and created every little detail. And what has been spoken in heaven can be revealed to us here on earth. We can ask for and receive insight, revelation and vision! Just as Jesus said that he only does what he sees the Father doing (John 5:19), so can we! Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what is being spoken in heaven, and then speak it on earth. Let his will be done on earth as in heaven! And this doesn't just have to be applied to our parenting, we can do this in every area of our life.

What has been spoken in heaven can be revealed to us here on earth. We can ask for and receive insight, revelation and vision

So how have my prayers changed recently? I have asked the Holy Spirit to open my eyes and show me who Hugo is to him. Who Hugo really is. Show me who you created. Show me his call. Show me your plans and purposes for him. Show me his gifts. Show me his personality. Show me the man that you saw in your heart when you created him and breathed life into his being. Show me my son!This week I was passionately journalling these thoughts and prayers, here is a little excerpt to show you what I mean:"Lord, show me my children! Show me who they are! Show me who you have created them to be! Show me who YOU see. Open the eyes of my spirit to see what you see. Teach me how to draw it out and nurture it. Lord, let me see beyond the natural and into the supernatural potential that you have deposited in them.* Show me Hugo, Lord! Show me who he is! Every single day give me a fresh glimpse, a deeper revelation and a new truth of who YOU have created him to be. Then please give me the wisdom to know how to parent that and how to grow, nurture, shape, discipline, disciple, develop, build and mould him!

Open the eyes of my spirit to see what you see; teach me how to draw it out and nurture it

Today I step up to the mark. I raise the bar of my parenting and the expectations of all of my children according to your call and Kingdom. I promise to co-labor with you to build, empower and release world-changing, Kingdom-advancing, God-fearing, Jesus-loving, Holy Spirit-empowered leaders who know you intimately, who's greatest desire and passion is to love you and know you more. May they be baptised in the power of the Holy Spirit from a young age and may they continually be spirit-filled and spirit-led.Oh Lord, I have no idea how to do any of this! But I know by your grace and leading I can, and will. I surrender to you! Show me your ways. Show me how according to your will, Word and way, but please also show me how according to each individual child you bless me with. Give me grace. Give me wisdom. Give me revelation. Show me the secrets of heaven according to each of my children's lives."Like I said, this is just an excerpt (I tend to write for pages and pages on end!), but I'm sure you can grasp the general gist of it. Ask God who your children are! Ask him to show you, to open your eyes to see who he sees in them. Then ask him for the grace, anointing and wisdom to draw out that God-designed call and personhood. He will show you! Even in the past few weeks just from praying this, my entire parenting has been transformed, the way I look at Hugo has completely changed. I don't just see an 19 month old toddler...I see the potential of a powerful, mighty man of God leading his generation and transforming his culture. WOW!!!God has entrusted us with his very own children. Let's step up to the mark and not just expect them to grow up with a good education, a nice degree, a successful career and secure job, but let's find out what God has anointed them for in this life, in this world, in this Kingdom. And then let's partner with him to do all that we can to ensure that this potential is not derailed by the mediocre, but is fulfilled to 100% capacity IN THIS LIFE!*Let me see beyond the natural and into the supernatural potential that you have deposited in them. This sentence is from the book "No Ordinary Child - Unlocking the Leader Within Your Child" by Denise Mira. The second I read this in the first chapter it hit my heart like dynamite and I have been praying this everyday ever since. I highly recommend this book to anyone who desires to see their children fully equipped with the power from heaven to not just be the average in their generation, but to go forth and lead and transform!