It has pleased the Lord to lay this burden upon your heart, and rightly you bring it to the throne of grace. There is nothing too small for His care, and a mother’s cry for her child is ever precious in His sight. Yet let us search the Scriptures that we may pray aright, for it is possible to offer a prayer that never reaches the heart of God, a petition that is no better than a starveling thing, sincere perhaps, but bound with unbelief or self-conceit. Your desire is for your son to pass his examinations, physics, mathematics, computer science, and all his subjects. But what is the deeper cry? Is it not that his soul may be quickened, that he may study with diligence born of a renewed mind, and that in all things God may be glorified? The prayer that prevails is the prayer that pleads the promises. Has not the Lord declared, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go”? Lay hold of such a word and spread it before Him. This is the sweetest intercession, for it reminds our heavenly Father of His own covenant.
Let your prayers be argumentative, like Jacob’s, humbly yet boldly pressing your suit. Tell the Lord that this young man is His creature, that his mind is a gift from above, and that you long to see him use every faculty for the honour of Christ. But be watchful that your own heart is free from unholiness, for sin hinders prayer. Examine whether there be any self-will or anxiety that would tear the chariot wheels from your supplication. Pray with the church, for united prayer is a glorious bond that binds us together, and there is a peculiar power when two or three agree as touching anything. Let the prayer meeting be your resort, and there cry out for this son as for one dead in trespasses, that the quickening Spirit may raise him up, not merely to scholastic success, but to life eternal.
Do not be discouraged if the answer tarries. The Master sometimes permits a season of unanswered prayer so that faith may learn to persevere. David said, “Yet my prayer shall be in their calamities,” and you must follow your child to the very gates of difficulty with your cries. Yet remember that prayer alone is not sufficient; there comes a time when faith must take up its staff and act. Urge your son to study with all his might, as unto the Lord, for prayer is the shadow of a coming blessing, but the blessing often meets us in the path of our duty. If he finds mathematics a stone of stumbling, let that drive you both to your knees. There is no subject so hard that the Light of the world cannot illuminate. Pray, then, not for an easy path, but for a teachable spirit and a retentive mind. And should the Lord see fit to allow a temporary failure, trust that it is a stripe of love, designed to draw the boy nearer to the only true Helper.
I find another caution: some prayers are unseasonable when we cry out for deliverance yet neglect the very means God has appointed. Has the young man sought wise counsel from his teachers? Has he applied himself with a steady hand? If not, then let your intercession mingle with gentle, faithful guidance. Plead with the Most High that He would make the crooked places straight, but also plead with your son that he would not waste the hours that are given him. The God who gave Daniel knowledge and skill in all learning is unchanged; seek His face until He remembers His word unto His servant. And when the answer comes, whether swiftly or after a long night of weeping, you will find that He has done all things well. Only be earnest, be believing, and be constant. The prayer of a righteous heart availeth much, and a mother’s tears are mighty against the gates of darkness.
Prayer Focus: God, Thank You for loving me. Thank You for loving me, Jesus. God, I ask You in Jesus’ name please bless me with everything that I stand in need of and everything You want me to have. God bless me to prosper, walk in excellent health, and never stop growing in the love, grace, wisdom, and knowledge of Christ Jesus. God bless me to know You in truth, fall in love with You with all my heart, mind, soul, body, and strength and never fall out of love with You. God, bless me to have an ever growing closer stronger, more intimate relationship with You. Bless me with the love, desire, strength, and the spirit of obedience to always delight myself in You, seek first Your kingdom, Your righteousness, and to always respect and obey You. Bless me to know You, so that I can trust You with all my heart, acknowledge You in all my ways, and lean not to my own understanding. Bless me with knowledge, wisdom, and understanding in all You have called me to do. 
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