Prayer when Troubled

“O God, You are the Creator and Ruler of the universe; to You we commit our lives and trust in You for all our needs.  We don’t understand the reason for the problems that_______ has experienced, nor do we need to.  Our intent is to trust fully and to accept fully the gifts You give as necessary and beneficial for us.  Teach us to be thankful, even when our first reaction is fear and distrust.  Help us be strong in our faith, to seek You, and in every circumstance to give thanks, as this is Your will for our lives.  Finally, Father God, bring us both into Your presence, where all will be known to us as it has been known to You from before the beginning of time.  I lift this up to You in Jesus’ name.  Amen.”

Prayer at a Time of Marital Separation or Divorce

“Lord, I know _________ feels so alone and abandoned.  I know You are still beside ______________, but help ________ be more aware of Your presence and what You might be trying to teach through this crisis.  Protect _________ (and any children).  Help ________ begin to forgive and to be content-even in this time of trial and tribulation.  I know that You desire good for us.  Please guide and direct both _______’s (and his/her spouse’s)  ____________ path.  Provide Your strength, hope, and courage to both of us as ________ walks through and I encourage.  I pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.”

Prayer When Grieving (Whether current loss or reminder of previous loss)

“O Lord, __________ has experienced a great tragedy and wrong.  _________ is suffering and grieving over his/her pain and loss.  Please help him/her.  Please come and comfort him/her in his/her heartache and grief.  Give us Your wisdom to know how to help one another through this crisis.  Give Your strength to do the practical things that are necessary at this moment.  Give discernment to help in _________’s suffering.  Give us renewed faith to trust in You.  And give us hope that we may be vessels of Your goodness and mercy as we wait upon you.  I pray this because of the hope in Jesus, Amen.”

“Father God of all grace, we approach You as confused and brokenhearted children.  We don’t understand, but we do trust You and know that You are still in control.  We cannot rewind time and undo what has happened, but we do need the strength for today and hope for tomorrow.  We know You see ________’s sorrow, and we remember that Jesus wept.  We thank You that He is here with us to heal the brokenhearted.  You know the feeling of shock that ________ has experienced, and You have promised to meet _________’s needs.  I just thank you that we can express our hearts to You, O God, because of Jesus, Amen.”

Prayer of Encouragement

“Encourage” means to press courage into another.  “Discourage” means to suck courage out of a person.  Your hope, your courage, your belief in God and in them and the future can be transferred to another thru mentoring prayer.  Praying Scripture is a great way to encourage.  You might share how precious they are in God’s sight (Ephesians 4:4-6). 

A prayer reflecting this Scripture might be, “O God, I know __________ means so much to you and now me.  I believe as You do, that he/she has the ability and strength to carry on in the midst of this difficulty.  Give him/her a clear mind, a peaceful mind and Your guidance.  I bring this to You only because of Your Son, Jesus, Amen.”

Prayer of Restoration

This is for people who have failed or think they have failed.  They have nothing left and are exhausted.  Grief has overwhelmed them and they need jumper-cables-someone to pray and restore a sense of grace in their life.  And they need this often!  In the past six months this has been the most frequent form of prayer we’ve offered over the past 24 months of online mentoring.

Perhaps it’s as simple as praying, “Lord, just fill __________’s heart with strength for today and hope tomorrow.  May he/she be secure in Your arms.”  Or, “Lord, help __________ know he/she is loved.”

When someone has shared their itinerary of tragedies… more is appropriate.  Consider something such as this:  “O Lord God, here’s __________ whom I’ve come to know as he seeks Your love.  You know how much he is hurting today, Lord.  I know that he is fearful.  I know that he is in physical pain.  Lord, he needs something from You that no human being can give him.  He needs new power in his life.  He needs new courage in his life.  He needs to know that tomorrow can be brighter than anything that’s been in the past.  Lord, he needs the kind of strength that only heaven can give.  So Lord, would you take my friend today… this email is connecting us… so You know who he is.  Would You take _____ today and bring healing to his broken life?  Amen.”

Prayer of Affirmation

This is the prayer in which you recognize something in the heart and life of the mentoring partner that they cannot see themselves

“Lord, I thank you for the way ________ is making such good decisions in these past days and the way she continues to seek to bring glory to You.  I can see/feel/hear what You are doing in her life.”

Prayers of affirmation make you a “balcony person”-leaning out on the balcony and saying, “Yes, you can do it.  You’re capable.  See what you’ve already done with God’s guidance.  Wow!”

Prayer of Blessing

For many, this is unfamiliar ground.  This prayer is when you pronounce upon other people what you know is God’s purpose and will for them.  It is also an act of one person verbally invoking God’s gracious power in another person’s life.  You’ll find this within Scripture again and again:

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious with you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace (Numbers 6:24-26).

What could you say in response to this?

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  May He bless you with ….                      May the Lord bless you and keep you strong in……                                                                                             May the Lord give you hope that will neither despair nor disappoint….

 Prayer of Intercession

There are times when there is no doubt as to how weak and needy the one who musters their last effort to click the “Need Prayer?” button, and then fill in the form to request prayer.  They need you to stand between them and God and pray on their behalf.  In John 17 Jesus intercedes for His disciples.  We are called to pray on behalf of others.

“Lord Jesus, I pray the very words and thoughts of God for the protection of ______________.  Please honor my prayers and surround ________ with Your protection.  Protect _________ from all evil.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

Or, “Father, sometimes events intrude into our lives that bring distress and discouragement.  Use Your Word and the work of Your Holy Spirit to lift this from ________ and bring comfort.  I thank You in advance for doing this.  In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

Or simpler yet, “Dear God, _____________ needs the Holy Spirit as the Great Comforter at this moment to overcome this pain and distress.”