Family prayer can be a daunting task.. how do we start?
Who is going to pray out loud?
What do I say?
This is awkward.
These are all things that we think when it comes to praying out loud with other people. Well, at first. But, the more you do it, the better you get. The more you practice and stumble through prayer time, the easier it will become. If you’re struggling with how to pray, download my free elements of prayer guide to help you get started.
I am just like you. I desired family prayer but I didn’t know where to start. I prayed in my head but not out loud. I let others pray out loud at any group prayer even, so I didn’t have to. I had zero confidence because I didn’t know what I was doing and didn’t want to sound stupid. I would compare myself to people I thought were holier than me.
But, something changed. I one day realized the magnitude of prayer. I suddenly realized that my kids wouldn’t learn unless I taught them. I knew that my husband was growing in his faith and prayer life but I didn’t have time to wait on him to be the prayer initiator. So, I learned how to pray. Seriously, I studied prayer. I watched prayers. I asked elders in our church to pray for me and with me. I asked them how I could pray for them in return. And, as eloquent as some of the older women’s prayers were, I didn’t let it stop me from fumbling through prayers over them.
You see, God does call the equipped, He equips the called. And He’s calling you to step out in faith and pray with your family. He will equip you when you wholeheartedly seek Him in prayer.
Family Prayer is Born
So as I awkwardly would ask my husband to pray together with me as we would get into bed at night (just on nights that I’d work up the courage to ask but not very often), God began to work in us. At first, it was just me who prayed. Then, my husband would give me things to pray for. Then, our prayer time morphed into watching 21 Days of Prayer on our TV with our kids. Man, was that an answered prayer in and of itself. Then, before I even knew it, we were all watching prayer on tv, then each taking turns and each family member praying. By the end of 21 Days of Prayer, my oldest son (3 years old at the time) was leading family prayer. My youngest bonus daughter had multiple friends come over to stay the night and THEY even participated in prayer.
Our prayer time isn’t always structured and doesn’t happen all together every night, but we are still growing in our prayer lives. Our now 4 year old will walk up to people, put his hand on them and pray out loud. He also prays for his team before t-ball games. Our 13 year old has friends reach out to her for prayer. Our Almost 18 year old doesn’t feel as confident praying out loud but she will be present for prayer and still showing spiritual growth. Our 2 year old will copy any prayer he hears said out loud and thank Jesus for anything. Any time something less than desirable is happening my kids automatically say, “devil, get out! Jesus fill this place!”
This wasn’t something that just happened because we are “holier-than-thou”, but because I started praying for this years ago and God equipped us along the way to get where we are now. He will continue to equip us and grow us just like He will equip you if you let Him.
What steps can you take to start praying with your family? If you’re unsure, start with prayer. Ask God to equip you with words to say to your family. Ask God to provide that sacred family time and He will provide.
Ways to start family prayer time:
- Pray for God to equip you for this and anoint your words in prayer
- Learn the structure of prayer to have a template of how to pray
- Set a time for everyone to meet up and pray (It doesn’t have to be some fancy formal meeting. We just do ours on the couch in our jammies and snuggle up.)
- Ask if anyone has any prayer requests and come with a request so you can break the ice and set the example
- Be the first to pray and ask if anyone else wants to pray. Don’t put pressure on anyone, just offer. With time and prayer, God will move and grow your sacred family prayer time.
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Understand How To Pray Over Your House
If you need help getting started with prayer, download my free elements of prayer guide.
For fun, inexpensive family activities for dinner time, grab my conversation jar topics to have tons to talk about at the dinner table!
When you prioritize prayer for your family and with your family, big things will happen.
I pray you have a wonderful family prayer life together and that heavenly things constantly interrupt earthly things.
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