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20 Ways to Pray for Your Children

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Praying intentionally for your children should be a high priority for every Christian parent. This guide on 20 Ways to Pray for Your Children is one tool that can help you to pray wisely. But remember, it is only a tool – the power is in the praying!

This is one of 10 posts about praying for specific people. Each list is built on one or more Bible verses, which you can use as part (or all) of your prayer. The links for the related posts are at the bottom.

20 Ways to Pray for Your Children

Why You Should Pray for Your Children

One of the best parenting skills you can adopt is to pray for your child or children regularly. Perhaps you already have that habit – great! I hope this guide will encourage you to expand your prayers into other areas of their lives.

Or, perhaps, you haven’t been praying regularly and now feel like it’s too late. I promise you it is never too late. Whether your children are toddlers or teens – or have toddlers and teens of their own – it is never too late to pray. And – it is never too early. So, if you just found out you’re pregnant, start praying now!

20 ways to pray for your children

But, maybe you’re on the fence about prayer – wondering, does it really matter? Explaining all the good reasons to pray would take too long, but here’s a brief list to get you thinking (and praying!):

Why should you pray?

  • The Bible talks a lot about prayer.
  • Jesus gave instructions on prayer many times.
  • Several prayers are recorded for us in the Scriptures.
  • God promises to hear and answer prayer.
  • Prayer changes things.
  • Prayer changes you.
  • Prayer provides protection for your children.
  • Prayer gives you wisdom about parenting.

How to Use the “20 Ways to Pray for Your Children” List

First, you must know that this list is not intended to cover everything you could be praying for your children. Think of it as a springboard to get you started. Then listen to the Holy Spirit and add other topics as they are needed for your children.

Also, these suggestions are not limited to your natural or adopted children but could be prayed for your grandchildren, your nieces and nephews, your sponsored children, your mentored children, children in your classroom, children of friends, or your children’s friends. You get the idea – if there’s a child in your life, they need your prayers.

How you use the list is up to you. Pray about what God would have you do and then do it.

  • Perhaps in your Prayer Journal, you could dedicate one day each week to all the children in your life, and pray through five of these topics per week, then start over.
  • Or maybe you want to choose one topic each week to pray for each of your children. Along with that prayer focus, you might want to study more of what the Bible says about that topic.
  • Maybe you want to pray about one topic per day with your child. This not only teaches them to pray but also shows them that you are praying for them.
  • Maybe you’ll change things up every time you cycle through the list to keep your prayer life fresh and growing.

How you use the list isn’t the most important thing. Praying for your children is!

20 Ways to Pray for Your Children, part 1

20 ways to pray for your children
  1. Pray for their salvation. Nothing is as important as their salvation. “I have no greater joy than to know that my children are walking in the truth.” 3 John 1:4
  2. Pray for their parents (you!). The influence of parents on children cannot be overstated. Pray that God will keep you faithful to Him and give you wisdom in parenting. Ephesians 6:4
  3. Pray for their attitude towards obedience. A child that will not obey his/her parents will have a hard time obeying the LORD. 1 Samuel 15:22
  4. Pray for their teachers, school work, and intellectual growth. School is a big part of their lives; be sure to cover it with prayer. If you homeschool, you can still pray that he/she will learn and grow in understanding and wisdom. Luke 2:52
  5. Pray for their friends. Pray that your child will make friends that will build his/her faith, not tear it down. Proverbs 13:20
  6. Pray for their growth in spiritual disciplines. As they age, have your children practice the spiritual disciplines of memorization, daily devotions, corporate and personal prayer, and giving. 2 Timothy 3:15-16
  7. Pray for their future spouse and marriage commitment. Pray that each will marry a fellow believer. Pray their marriage will strengthen their faith, and that they will each remain faithful. Pray that the right person at the right time will cross their paths. 2 Corinthians 6:14
  8. Pray for them to develop the gifts, talents, and abilities God has given them. Pray that the gifts and abilities God has given each will be used for His glory. Proverbs 22:6
  9. Pray for their future career path. Pray that each child will learn diligence, perseverance, and vision, as these attributes among many others will make their future careers more pleasant and productive. Proverbs 12:14
  10. Pray for God to use them greatly. Commit your children to the Lord and ask Him to use them for His kingdom. 1 Samuel 1:27-28

20 Ways to Pray for Your Children, part 2

20 ways to pray for your children
  1. Pray for protection from danger. We can never know all the situations that our children may face, but God knows, and we can always ask Him to guide and protect them as they go through their days. Psalm 91:15
  2. Pray for their protection from peer pressure. As with praying for their friends, you should pray for the influence their friends have on them. Peers can exert a strong influence on each other. Pray that your child will be the influencer, not the influenced! 1 Corinthians 15:33
  3. Pray for their sexual and mental purity. In this culture, mental and sexual purity are hard-fought prizes. Pray that their minds are protected from images and sounds that would cause them to stumble. Pray that they will discipline themselves to be holy. Psalm 101:3; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
  4. Pray for protection from a consumerist mindset. This is vital in our consumerist culture. Philippians 4:11-12; 1 Timothy 6:6-8
  5. Pray for a spirit of generosity. God expects His people to be generous with their time, abilities, and possessions. Train them early to be generous and pray that the message sticks. 2 Corinthians 9:6-8
  6. Pray for them to have appropriate respect for people in their lives, including you, their parents. Respect should be shown to all people in authority over them: pastors, teachers, principals, police officers, parents & grandparents, and adults in general. Leviticus 19:3, 32
  7. Pray for a spirit of love and compassion towards others, especially those who are different, or from a different culture. God does not play favorites; His love, grace, and redemption are freely extended to all people everywhere. We should strive for no less in our lives and the lives of our children. Acts 10:34; James 2:1-9
  8. Pray for strength of character and courage. Daniel is a great example of this for your children. Daniel’s enemies said that no fault could be found in him. Therefore, his enemies devised a plan to fault his reverence for God – and even then he was faithful and courageous. Pray for your child to be a Daniel. Daniel 6:4, 10
  9. Pray for physical health. Physical health is of less importance than spiritual health, but it is important that our bodies are as healthy as possible, so that we – and our children – can serve and worship the Lord wholeheartedly. 3 John 1:2
  10. Pray for siblings and other family members (cousins, grandparents, etc.). Pray they will be faithful believers, setting a good example for your children. Pray for their salvation, if they are not saved. Pray for good relationships that will enhance their lives. Joshua 24:15

As I’ve said, this list is meant to enhance your prayer life, not limit it. If you want more guidance on praying for your children, I recommend this book. Many excellent books are available on the general aspects of prayer. I was strongly impacted as a new believer by this book. My favorite book about prayer, however, has to be this one.

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6 Comments

  1. I love this! It’s so important to pray for our children – I love these scripture-founded prompts though. So awesome and effective.

    Thanks for sharing!
    xoxo

    1. Thanks for the kind words. I believe pray has such a major impact on our kids! We cannot pray too much for them.

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