My wife became pregnant in September of last year and we recently found out we are having a boy. So, as God wills, I will become a father in 16 weeks. As the initial shock of the big reveal subsided, I was flooded with thoughts of his first steps, his first words, his first ball game, and his high school prom.

We have already begun praying together for our son and we’ve focused on Psalm 139. The way David portrays God’s exhaustive knowledge about us, the number of our days, the words we say and where we go is quite astounding. With David we are usually left to say “such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.”

While there will be hundreds if not thousands of prayers I will pray for my son, such as “God, help him in school,” or “Father, bring him home safe,” or “Lord, show him the right choice,” I believe all my prayers will fall within the bounds of three overarching pleas to God on behalf of my son.

1 // God, guide him to know, see, and savor Jesus Christ above all else.

Through the times when his flesh seems like too great an enemy, when he suffers heartache and pain, when he is frightened by what he does not know, when he feels like he’s messed up or wandered too far off, Lord, help him to see you for who you are: a merciful and powerful savior who has paid the price for every sin and cast them as far as the east is from the west. When his thoughts assail him and his heart condemns him, make him savor your heart more than his own, making him love you all the more.

2 // God, grow him to be a bold man for your Kingdom.

In grand ways and in routine ways, help him to find his security and worth, not in his own abilities or the praise of others, but only in you. When the pressures of the world mount against him, give him the strength to walk in faithfulness to you for the day. When idols vie for his identity and attention, show him just how empty and deadly they are and draw him back to you.

3 // God, show him your glory.

As Moses prayed in Exodus 33, Lord, demonstrate who you are in my son’s life. In every trial and triumph, reveal yourself to him so that he would give you the glory you deserve. Through his experiences, make yourself the only one he worships. May he be overcome by your goodness.