Have you ever felt lost for words when you pray?
I sure have! While prayer at its core is simply directing our communication to God, I don’t always know what to communicate, or how. When I recognize who God is: my Creator (and the Creator of all things!), my holy and loving Savior, my Heavenly Father, all-perfect and all-knowing and all-powerful; and I recognize more accurately who I am – yikes – it’s easy to get overwhelmed. What should I say? What should I ask for? Should I even ask for things? How should I approach Him? What should my attitude, my goal, my purpose in praying be?
The disciples recognized this need, too, and asked Jesus Himself to teach them how to pray (Luke 11:1) – and He taught them! He gave them an example to model their prayers after. So this is something we can learn, and God has provided, in His Word, what we need to learn it.
One thing that has helped me tremendously with learning how to pray is finding, studying, memorizing, and praying through prayers in Scripture. Prayers in the Bible help shape how I pray, and they give me words – words I know are right ones – when I don’t have any. God has given us many models of prayers in His Word!
As I’ve said elsewhere, God has provided us all we need in Scripture for life and godliness, all the equipment we need for every good work – and that includes teaching us how to pray. We can simply pray the prayers we find in Scripture for ourselves and others as we read them, of course, but we’ll benefit even more if we take time to ponder and study through these passages. Meditate on them. What is it we are really asking God for? What is it we are telling God? What is the pray-er’s attitude before God in each prayer? What are the underlying truths? What is the end goal of these prayers? Are they primarily asking for better circumstances, physical healing, immediate happiness? Or are they more focused on something deeper and more real and more lasting than those momentary things we so often default to in our requests? As we pray and study these Scriptures, we should ask: what is God teaching us to focus on through these prayers?
It’s always wise to read the context of any specific verse or passage someone shares with you, so I’ll encourage you to do that as you read through the prayers below. Click on the links, or look them up in your own Bible. Then, once you have a biblical understanding of what’s being prayed for in these passages, pray them! Pray them, meditate on them, study them. Let the prayers God has given us in His Word inform how you pray in every situation.
These are just a few of the prayers God has provided, to give you a start. But don’t stop here! Search for more (tip: Psalms is a whole book full of prayer!), and learn from them. Our good God definitely means for us to pour our hearts out to Him (Psalm 62:8), to bring our every concern to Him (Philippians 4:6), to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). And as we model our prayers after the ones He provided for us, we will be equipped to do that in a way that truly honors Him.
11 Prayers in Scripture to Learn From and Echo
(Note: I’ve included a printable file below, in case you’d prefer to have these on paper.)
Pray then like this:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Matthew 6:9-13 ESV
“And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
Colossians 1:9-14 ESV
At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
Colossians 4:3-4 ESV
To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of His calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by His power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.
May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.
Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all.
2 Thessalonians 1:11-12; 2:16-17; 3:5, 16 ESV
The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the LORD lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.
Numbers 6:24-26 ESV
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Romans 15:13 ESV
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Psalm 23 ESV
I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His great might that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
Ephesians 1:16-21 ESV
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of His glory He may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:14-21 ESV
And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Philippians 1:9-11 ESV
Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 13:20-21 ESV
What other Scriptures have been helpful to you as you pray? I hope you’ll share them in the comments below!
More Than This Mess 