Isaiah 44:2-3. "Thus says the Lord who made you, who formed you from the womb and will help you: Fear not, O Jacob my servant, Jeshurun whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your descendants, and my blessing on your offspring."

None of my children practice their faith. My (almost obsessive!) prayer for over ten years now has been for them to come back; to see the beauty, love, and joy that is theirs for the taking. St. Monica has been my daily helper in this, I ask her and her son and St. Ambrose to plead for my children, as she did for Augustine. Over the last year or so, I have added to my prayer all the children who have turned away from God (my children are adults, everyone is someone's child, and we all are God's children, so this prayer is meant to include everyone, not just the young!).

It is hard to describe how painful it is to worry about your children's salvation, although I know many parents do know what it's like, since they share this plight. I often feel guilty, or maybe the better word is responsible, for this state of affairs, I could certainly have done a better job prioritizing the faith with them as they were growing up. I sometimes wish I knew then what I know now, but I also know that God rejoices when we turn to Him at any age, and I cannot let personal recriminations keep me from trusting the Lord.

So God's words through Isaiah today are very comforting to me. God, who formed me from the womb and will help me, also formed my children from the womb and will help them. He will pour water on the dry land of their thirsty souls, and pour His Spirit on our descendants. He will bless our offspring. This does not relieve us from the obligation to pray and fast for our wayward children, our prayers for them are what helps gain them His blessing!

Trusting God means that I can use what I know now to make up for what I did not know then. As I get closer and closer to Him, I bring them with me, at least in spirit. Like the persistent widow, I keep reminding God that in order to bless me, He has to bless them as well (haha, gotcha there, Lord!;). Since this is something He wants, too, I can trust that He is always working on them, leading them back at the pace and in the way He knows they need. Thank you, God, for promising water to our children once they realize how thirsty they truly are, and for giving me water when I did the same!