20 Practical Prayers for Family during Times of Stress and Worry

Updated April 06, 2023

The family is one of the most important units in which we’ll operate in our lives. God created families as places to experience love, to give birth to future generations, and to spread the values of the Gospel with those closest to us. Because God treasures families, we often find that Satan will try to rip apart families at the seams. A prayer for family can go along way when we face the enemy.

Familial definitions have certainly changed over the last few centuries to the nuclear family that we once commonly knew in the twentieth century. Whether we consider close friends to be family or a biological relative, we have a list of practical prayers for your family.

Please feel free to come up with some of your own, but these serve as an example for many situations in which you may find your family, or the family of a friend, and how to ask God to guide you through that circumstance.

Prayer for Adoption in God’s Family

Heavenly Father, thank You for choosing us to be part of Your family. Remind us that no matter what challenges we face, You are with us, encouraging, guiding, protecting and cheering us on. Thank You for showing Your unconditional love to us through adoption. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. – Lauren Dungy

Prayer for Family Protection

Father in Heaven, I ask that you protect my family from the snares of the devil. Because you value families, he will do anything within his power to tear them apart. Protect us from both enemies of flesh and blood as well as powers and principalities. We know you are stronger than the enemy, God. Amen.

Prayer for Family’s during the Holiday Season

God, thank You that You are a Father who is, and always will be, with me. I’m so very grateful for Your love. I really need You in my life. Open my eyes to see the one who also needs Your love this holiday season. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. – Lynn Cowell

Prayer for Family Guidance

My Dwelling Place, I want to guide my family down the path of righteousness. I know that as a human I may stumble in my attempt to do so. Please guide my footsteps. Direct me in a way in which I can lead my family closer to you. Amen.

Prayer for Family Division

Lord, I thank You for my family. Reveal harbored feelings that have stolen our peace. I ask You for the courage to pursue peace we need and You desire. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. – Wendy Pope

Prayer for Family Strength

Glorious Father, I want my family to be a family of strong believers who leads by example. I know we can fall short at times, and our weaknesses as a family can often cause divisions. Please remind my family of your truth and goodness and give us the strength to become stronger in our identities in Christ. Amen.

Prayer for Family Loss

Dear God, thank You for Your great love for me every moment of my life, including in seasons of loss and confusion. Even when my eyes are blurred by tears, help me to clearly see You and Your lavish love for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen. – Cindy Bultema

Prayer for My Family in Difficult Times

Helper and Holy One, my family had fallen on hard times. I know this is often the catalyst that can tear us apart or bring us closer than ever before. I ask that you give us your peace and comfort during this difficult season. Help us to recall all the ways you have come through for us in the past. Amen.

Prayer for God’s Plan for Our Family

Father, I want to please You by the way I love my family. Today, I choose to see each family member through your eyes of love and mercy. I will wage peace in my family. I will be quick to forgive and slow to condemn. I will encourage my family members with my words, my prayers, my love and my time. I want my home to be a safe place filled with kindness and compassion, a place that illustrates Your presence and power. Today, I choose to trust my family to God. Amen. – Mary Southerland

Prayer for Family Bible Verse

Numbers 6:24-26: “May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.”

Deuteronomy 6:6-7: “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

Ephesians 6:1-3: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’ (this is the first commandment with a promise), ‘that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.”

Prayer for Messy Families

Heavenly Father, family is so messy. We hurt each other and love each other, sometimes at the same time. Help me to forgive quickly. Help me to allow every situation to make me better and not become bitter. Help me to trust in Your sovereignty in every situation. Amen. – Sharon Jaynes

Prayer for Family Peace

Lord and Father, Scripture guarantees that as Christians we will face trouble in this world. I pray that my family, as we face this trouble, will take heart. Fill us with comfort and peace and remind us of how you encountered trouble during your days here on Earth. Amen.

Prayer for Grandchildren

Dear God, help me to pray and cover my family for generations to come. Bless my children, their children, and their children’s children. Wrap your loving arms around our family, be our guide, and be our shield through the years. In Jesus Christ’s Name, I pray, Amen. – Beloved Women

Prayer for Family and Friends

God and Father of All, I consider many of my friends to be like family. Whether they’ve been born again (family members in Christ) or I have a close bond with them, I pray that you protect them and guide them. Lead them on the paths of righteousness and give them comfort and peace that can only come from you. Amen.

Prayer for Daughter

Dear Jesus, help my daughter know that we are all born as sinners and separated from God because of our wicked hearts. However, at an early age, help her grasp the life-transforming concept that he does not have to live as a sinner under that condemnation. Teach my daughter that she has the opportunity to accept a new, beautiful identity that is called “good,” not because of what she has done or what she looks like, but because she is secure in who YOU say she is: treasured, delightful, known and protected. Let her not place her self-worth in accomplishments she may or may not achieve, but let her discover these deeper truths about who You believe she is and build every decision she makes on that sure foundation. In Jesus name, Amen. – Alicia Michelle

Family Prayer for Healing

My Hiding Place, my family has encountered many trials that have left them battered and bruised. In some cases, I’m not quite sure if on our own we can heal completely. Not without you. God, we know you are our Healer and Provider. Please help to bandage my family’s wounds. Heal the scars that have formed over time. Amen.

Prayer for Son

Lord, I pray that my son will develop an eternal perspective and purpose, not an earthly one. Help him to see life–and every challenge–through Your eyes, eager and unafraid to share with others the good news of Jesus wherever he goes. I pray that they will set his minds on things above, not just what’s going on here, and that he will be rooted and grounded in Your love. I pray that he will come to understand the extent of Your own love for him–that it surpasses all the head knowledge they will acquire in school. I pray he will be filled up with You from morning ’til night. – Rebecca Barlow Jordan

Prayer for Family and Home

My Fortress, I ask for your protection at home. May my children and spouse feel safe and comforted within these walls. Amen.

Prayer for Spouse

Father God we thank you for divine health in our physical bodies, spiritual life, and marriage. We pray that you will make known to us anything that we are doing that does not directly correlate with healthy living; body, spirit, soul. Give us the strength to honor you through our bodies as they are the temple of the Lord. Give us the wisdom to continuously build a healthy spiritual life and marriage with you at the center. Help us to always remember the sacrifice you made that gave us the promise of healing and peace. You are worthy to be praised! In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen! – Michael and Carlie Kercheval

Prayer for Family Restoration

Holy Healer, my family has, it seems, been broken beyond repair. Whether in my extended or immediate family or within my friendships, I feel the divide so acutely. But I know you are a God of miracles and restoration. Help us to find ways to restore and forgive one another. Amen.

This article is part of our prayer resource meant to inspire and encourage your prayer life when you face uncertain times. Remember, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us, and God knows your heart even if you can't find the words to pray.

Prayers for Healing That Bring Daily Strength and Comfort
Prayers for Strength to Use in Difficult Times
Can We Really Pray Without Ceasing?
Powerful Morning Prayers to Begin Your Day

Types of Prayers We See in the Bible
What Is the Prayer of Jabez in the Bible?
How to Pray for Your Daily Bread
Prayers for Anxiousness

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