I am a stranger in the earth; do not hide Your commandments from me. My soul breaks with longing for Your judgments at all times. Psalm 119:19-20
Surely the most painful thing for a Christian parent is to see a child grow up and reject the gospel. Indeed, we hurt for anyone who does not accept the good news of Jesus Christ. I recently heard someone ask whether we should keep trying to talk to a person about God even when the person has actively rejected Him.
In Peter’s second letter, he wrote that he would continue to remind fellow Christians of the truth as long as he had breath in his body (2 Peter 1:12-15). I can’t imagine Peter’s audience rolling their eyes and saying, “There he goes again.” Peter, now an old man, had been one of Jesus’s closest companions on earth. My guess is they were eager to hear anything he wanted to say to them before he died. We’d like our children to have this kind of respect for our words of warning, but sadly, sometimes they don’t.
Notice that in his first letter, in the case of wives with unbelieving husbands, Peter did not recommend continual reminding. Rather, her best bet was to win him by her good example; not with words of persuasion (1 Peter 3:1-2).
Consider also that, years earlier, Jesus had told Peter and the other apostles, “whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet,” (Matthew 10:14). In the sermon on the mount he had taught, “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine,” (Matthew 7:6). I’m not saying that a person who rejects the gospel is a dog or a pig, but when someone “judge[s] [himself] unworthy of everlasting life,” it’s probably time to find someone else to teach (Acts 13:46).
How hard should we push to teach the gospel? It seems from these verses that it is not for us to push hard. As long as someone is interested and willing to engage, we can assume God is at work and that we are to be at work too. If they clearly don’t want to talk about it anymore, God may still be at work, but we may do more harm than good by continually bringing it up.
What we can always do is pray. If you’ve planted a seed with someone and they’ve indicated that they have made their decision and don’t want to continue talking about it, you can “pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest,” (Matthew 9:38). Pray that God will bring the right person into their life to water that seed; the person who will be able to present the gospel to them in a way that will resonate (1 Corinthians 3:7). Especially if it is your grown child, or someone very close to you, they may need to hear it from someone else.
Peter said that as long as he was in his physical body he would not stop reminding his brethren. Christians should continually exhort one another. But unbelievers and those who have fallen from grace are often better served by our good example and our continual prayers.
You might try praying this prayer for unbelievers, adapted from the scriptures as indicated below. (For a female, just change the pronouns. See below.)
Prayer for an Unbeliever
Dear God,
Please bless ______
Teach him to walk,
Taking him by his arms.
Draw him with gentle cords,
With bands of love.
Take the yoke from his neck.
Stoop and feed him.
May Your testimonies become his delight and his counselors.
Remove from him reproach and contempt, and help him keep Your testimonies.
You rebuke the proud—the cursed, who stray from Your commandments.
So break his soul with longing for Your judgments at all times.
He is a stranger in the earth; do not hide Your commandments from him.
Open his eyes, that he may see wondrous things from your law.
Deal bountifully with ______, that he may live and keep Your word.
In Jesus’s name, Amen.
adapted from Hosea 11:3-4; adapted, excerpted, and reversed from Psalm 119:17-24
by Christie Cole Atkins
Dear God, the more we love someone, the harder it is to watch them reject You. Please give us wisdom and patience as we continue to pray for their salvation through Christ. Help us to be good examples, but please bring other people into their lives who can reach them in ways we cannot. Most of all, by the power of Your love and Your Holy Spirit, please draw them to You with gentle cords of love and open their eyes. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Related Reading:
For more prayers based on scripture, check this out: Praying God’s Word
Here is the prayer for unbelievers with female pronouns:
Dear God,
Please bless ______
Teach her to walk,
Taking her by her arms;
Draw her with gentle cords,
With bands of love,
Take the yoke from her neck.
Stoop and feed her.
May Your testimonies become her delight and her counselors.
Remove from her reproach and contempt, and help her keep Your testimonies.
You rebuke the proud—the cursed, who stray from Your commandments.
So break her soul with longing for Your judgments at all times.
She is a stranger in the earth; do not hide Your commandments from her.
Open her eyes, that she may see wondrous things from your law.
Deal bountifully with ______, that she may live and keep Your word.
In Jesus’s name, Amen.
Walk Worthy 