7 Intentional Prayers to Pray Over Your Kids

One of the most difficult things about motherhood is the worry that we carry for our kids. As moms, we worry about everything from how to choose the right diapers to whom our kids will marry one day.

Mothers can have many sleepless nights solely because they are worried about raising their children well.

So many things can go wrong, and we often put all the pressure, the anxiety, and the responsibility on ourselves. Perhaps you feel that you keep messing up as a mom and therefore, your kids will never become who they’re meant to be. Or, perhaps you feel that you’re doing everything you can to ensure they are raised well, but you still find yourself worrying about what they will face in life and if they will remain loyal to their faith in a world of falsity.

It’s so hard to admit that we aren’t in control when it comes to our kids. We want everything to be perfect, and the idea of their growing up and having to make decisions on their own can be a scary thought for a parent.

Sometimes all we can do is pray.

But even praying for our kids can seem like an enormous undertaking because we have so many concerns. That’s where intentional praying comes in.

What is Intentional Praying?

All prayers are, in essence, intentional, but, when we pray specific things over our children, we pray for our kids with purpose.

One of the best ways to pray intentional prayers for your kids is by praying specific passages of Scripture over them. Everything your children need to learn about growing in the Lord and living out their purposes can be found in His Word. So by intentionally praying scriptures over our kids, we continually invite truth and invest in their spiritual growth even before they understand who Jesus is.

No matter how young your children are, it’s never too soon to begin praying for their spiritual growth. (And know it’s never too late to start praying for them either!)

If you’re unsure of what to pray for, or how to pray for your kids, here are some wonderful scriptures to pray over your little ones:

1.    Protection

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’”

Psalm 91:1-2

Ask the Lord to protect your children. Ask Him to shield them from harm and from the corrupt darkness of this world. Ask Him to protect them in ways you can’t. Ask that as they get older, they will have security in Him and learn to come to Him for refuge.  

2.    Peace

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4:6-7

Ask God to provide your kids with peaceful hearts and minds. Pray that He will help your kids learn to seek Him in prayer as they get older and that you will be filled with His peace instead of worry as seasons come and go.

3.    Hope

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength.”

Ephesians 1:18-19

Pray that the Lord will open your kids’ eyes to the hope of their Father. Ask that He will reveal to them His power and His presence, that they will come to know His heart and the living hope that He has given all of his children.

4.    Connection

“I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.”

Psalm 34:4-5

Communion with God is having a close connection to Him—it’s friendship, closeness, and trust. Ask the Lord to help you cultivate your kids’ hearts to seek community and communion with Him. Pray that their faces will be radiant as they become closer to Him.

5.    Trust

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Proverbs 3:5-6

Pray that the Lord will reveal Himself to your children as someone they can trust—that He is good, and gracious, and that He never makes a mistake. Pray that they will learn to lean on Him for guidance, direction, and wisdom.

6.    Joy

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Romans 15:13

Pray that your kids will be full of His joy, which is unlike any happiness they might find somewhere else. Ask God to overflow their hearts with His joy so that they will live lives of hope, not just happiness, and that they will choose His joy daily even in the midst of trials.

7.    Love

“Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

1 Corinthians 13:13

Ask the Father to show your kids the magnitude of His love. Ask that your kids will be rooted and grounded in love. Ask the Lord to grow their love for Him, that they will care for no one else more than they care for Him.

It’s all Prep Work

Never forget that everything we do to grow our kids spiritually is prep-work. It’s preparing them for far greater things than we can ever know, and it’s our job as mothers to cultivate their hearts well so that they can grow in the knowledge of God and become closer to Him. 

Praying intentionally for your children helps guard them, and it helps us as mothers relinquish control and learn to trust the Lord with our most precious gifts.

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