Prayer is not easy for me. I either get stuck in prescriptive formulas, or my mind wanders, and I can't concentrate on what I'm trying to communicate.
However, Timothy Keller explains in his book, Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God, that, "The infallible test of spiritual integrity, Jesus says, is your private prayer life” (p. 23). Here Keller is referring to Matthew 6:5-6 where Jesus teaches us that private prayer is important.
Right after this, Jesus uses the Lord's Prayer to teach us how to pray. So even though prayer can be difficult, it is essential to the life and growth of a follower of Jesus. It is also one of the first spiritual disciplines the enemy will try to hijack, so it must be protected at all costs.
Here are seven prayers, one for each day of the week. Included in each of them are adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. Each day presents a new focus for each of these parts, and the supplication is always for other people and world issues. You may want to use these as verbatim prayers; however, I also encourage you to use them as a template and add your own words and concerns as the Holy Spirit leads.
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Lord, I love you because you hear my voice and my supplications (Psalm 116:1). I have confidence that when I ask anything according to your will, you hear me (1 John 5:14). Thank you for hearing me.
Lord, please forgive me for my sins. They are many. Forgive me for the idols in my life that I put before you and for the times that I try to be my own god. Change my heart, Lord. Make me pure and righteous in your sight and by the power of your blood that you shed for me. Thank you for your promise of forgiveness.
Lord, today I pray for my leaders and other leaders all over our country and world. I pray for the pastors, elders, deacons, and Bible teachers at my church and other churches. Please bind the enemy from attacking them. Keep them safe under your wing of protection. Amen.
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Heavenly Father, you are sovereign, and you are my hope. You have always been my confidence, and you are my confidence today (Psalm 71:5). In my suffering, you comfort me (2 Corinthians 1:5). Thank you for being the one who I can always count on.
Today, please have mercy on me. Allow your grace to rain down on me because I am sinful. Please forgive me, Lord. Forgive me for taking my life for granted and for my ungratefulness for all you've given me. Forgive me for any entitlement I display in my heart or mind.
Today I pray for missionaries all over the world. Please provide for all of their needs—spiritual, physical, and emotional—and strengthen them. Give them the words they need to bring others to you and give them a heart of service so that others may see your love through their actions. Protect them from the enemies' schemes and from other people who seek to harm them. Amen.
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Lord, your mercies are new every morning because of your great love for me. I know the enemy will never consume me (Lamentations 3:22-23). I praise you, Lord, for your faithfulness! Thank you for your love!
Today, please forgive me for all impatience and lack of self-control I display in my life. Forgive me for demanding my own way and not loving other people by bearing with them and showing them grace. Change me, Lord. Make me loving in this way.
Today, I pray for people who are homeless or poor. I pray for people who do not have what they need to live healthy and secure lives. Please have mercy on them, Lord. Please strengthen them and provide for them in ways that only you can.
More than anything, please use their circumstances to bring them to you. Also, please open my eyes to the needs around me. Help me to see people in these situations as your beloved children. Give me compassion for them. Forgive me when I judge them. Show me how I can help and equip me to do so. Amen.
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Heavenly Father, you are my salvation. You are who sustains me and gives me life. You are my strength, my defense, and I do not need to be afraid. Whatever happens in my life, I know you are there protecting me (Isaiah 12:2). Thank you for your protection, Lord.
Lord, today forgive me for my thoughts that do not honor you. Forgive me for thinking thoughts of jealousy, slander, and malice. Please help me to think on things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8). Thank you for giving me the ability through the power of the Holy Spirit to renew my mind (Romans 12:2).
Today, Lord, I pray for people who are sick. I pray for people with all kinds of illnesses—physical and psychological. I pray for people who are in the hospital, homebound, chronically sick, and disabled. I pray for people with cancer and other life-threatening diseases. I pray for those who will not get better or recover in their lifetime. Please comfort them and their family members and bring all of them to salvation through their experience. Amen.
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Lord, you are just in all your ways (Deuteronomy 32:4). In all ways you are righteous, and I praise you (Revelation 15:3). You exercise justice toward all of humanity (Genesis 18:25). Thank you for being a God of justice and mercy.
Today, Lord, forgive me for the sinful things I say. Forgive me for gossiping, slandering, criticizing, exaggerating, and lying, even if slightly. Please help my "…conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that [I] may know how to answer everyone" (Colossians 4:6).
Lord, today I lift up people who are oppressed. This includes people who do not have basic human rights, people involved in human trafficking and slavery, people who are being persecuted, women and children who are abused and not cared for, orphans, widows, and unborn babies who face abortion. Please have mercy on them and do miracles to save them from their torment. Most of all, draw them to you so that you receive all the glory. Amen.
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Lord, you are the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). Your Word gives me life and sustains me (John 8:32). I honor you for the hope of eternal life you offer me and the life you give me now. Thank you, Lord, for giving me life.
Today I ask you to forgive me for any resentment and anger in my heart. Please forgive me for not forgiving other people. I know your Word says, "For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14-15). I need forgiveness from you, Lord; so please, help me to forgive.
I pray for my friends and family today. I pray that you meet each of their individual needs. Keep them healthy in all ways. I pray that you will heal any discord between me and my friends and family and any discord that is between them.
I also pray for each of their salvation. If any of my friends and family have not given their life to you, or are not following you wholeheartedly, please, Lord, lead them to you through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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Lord, “there is no one holy like [you are]; there is no one besides you; there is no rock like [you]” (1 Samuel 2:2). You, Lord, deserve constant honor (Revelation 4:8). As I end the week, I look to you as the only one who deserves my praise. Thank you for being my rock and my salvation.
Lord, please forgive me for the ways that I neglect time with you. Forgive me for allowing busyness to take over so that I'm not spending adequate time in your Word and in prayer. Lord, give me a heart for you and only you! When I get complacent in my spiritual growth, prick my soul and bring me back to you.
Today I pray for unbelievers in my community and all over the world. I ask the Holy Spirit to come into their lives and save their souls so that they, too, can have a relationship with you now and eternal life with you in heaven. Please, Lord, allow every person on this earth to hear your name and accept your gift. Then, please come back quickly. Amen.
Brenda Rodgers considers herself a “recovering single” after years as a single woman chasing after marriage instead of chasing after Jesus. Now her passion is to mentor young women to live purposefully and grow in their relationship with God and others. Brenda has been married for five years to a heart transplant hero and is the mom of a toddler girl miracle. She is also the author of the eBook Fall for Him: 25 Challenges from a Recovering Single. You can also read more on Brenda’s blog, www.TripleBraidedLife.com and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
This article is part of our Prayers resource meant to inspire and encourage your prayer life when you face uncertain times. Visit our most popular prayers if you are wondering how to pray or what to pray. Remember, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us and God knows your heart even if you can't find the words to pray.
Serenity Prayer
The Lord’s Prayer
Irish Blessings & Prayers
Morning Prayers
Good Night Prayers
Prayer for Healing
Prayer for Protection
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