10 Important Things You Need to Pray for Your Family

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You know you should pray for your family, but… how often do you actually do it?

I’m not talking about your spouse and children. I mean your parents, grandparents, in-laws, siblings, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

It’s a long list, isn’t it?

Did you know people have severed ties with family members over religious and political disagreements now more than ever before?

Erma Bombeck wrote the following quote about her family, or as she called them, “a strange little band of characters”…

The family.  We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another’s desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together.”  

It’s funny. Bombeck’s definition sounds a little innocent and dated, doesn’t it?

One thing that’s still true today is that no one knows our emotional “buttons” better than our family members. We want those relationships to bind us together, but the enemy has learned that telling us no one’s feelings matter more than our own is the best way to tear apart families and society.

And of course, the people we live with, or lived with in the past, know us better than anyone. So, they know how to upset us faster than anyone. Which is why so many people have a love/hate relationship with family gatherings.

We all know it’s true that… “you need to pray for your family.”

Theologian Reinhold Niebuhr once said,

“Family life is too intimate to be preserved by the spirit of justice. It can only be sustained by a spirit of love which goes beyond justice.” 

He’s right! Maintaining and getting along with the people in our families is not always fair, especially when it’s our emotions that are telling us what’s just and fair.

I believe that’s why the Lord spoke often about our relationships needing love and forgiveness.

He knew that every family would have times when someone…

• Says something hurtful and doesn’t apologize.
• Gives an apology but isn’t forgiven.
• Takes and doesn’t return or reciprocate.
• Leaves and never comes back.
• Lies and lies again.

Someone did. Someone didn’t.

Families are messy. Really messy.

It is why “Family life is too intimate to be preserved with justice.” No matter how hard we try, getting along with those we’re related to with perfect equality and fairness is impossible.

We have to reach beyond justice and/or feelings to love… deeply committed, completely forgiving love and prayer.

You need to pray for your family, and so do I!

10 Powerful Things to Pray for Your Family

Pray:

1. That those who don’t love and trust Jesus will come to love and trust Him.
2. That all family members will forgive each other and make these relationships more important than past hurts, power, or possessions.
3. That family members will build each other up with encouragement.
4. That family members will speak the truth with respect and kindness.
5. That patience will be a priority for everyone in the family.
6. That God will protect hearts and minds from envy and jealousy.
7. That God will heal broken relationships and return those who have walked away.
8. That God will bless everyone with physical, spiritual, and emotional protection.
9. That family gatherings might be times of joy and laughter.
10. That God will bless you with the strength needed to treat every family member the way you want to be treated.

Let’s pray…

A Prayer for Your Family

Father God, You chose my parents and siblings. You put together a specific DNA for them, for me, and every person in my family. That has been and will be true for every family in every generation.

David wrote…

You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! (Psalm 139:13–14)

Each one is loved by You and uniquely created for Your plans and purposes.

Oh, we don’t always follow Your will for us, and because of that, we often disappoint and upset each other. We need Your forgiveness. Every one of us! I’m sorry I’ve been prideful, envious, selfish, and unkind. Please forgive me and help me forgive __________.

Please help us love as You desire. May we honor our parents and grandparents as You command. Bless us with patience, gentleness, kindness, and self-control as we get together. By Your grace, help us focus on all that’s good, not on every annoyance big or small.

We need Your Spirit’s help. I need Your help, as I believe I can do Your will when Jesus is my strength. I can love every character in my family.

I pray this all in the precious name of my Savior, Jesus. Amen.

God gave us our families – whether we like His choices or not, He uses them to work in us to make us the people He wants us to be.

Maybe your annoying little sister was supposed to teach you patience. Maybe your elderly grandmother was there to teach you gentleness and respect. Maybe your older brother was given to teach you humility. Maybe your parents were intended to motivate you to pursue your hopes and dreams. Maybe you were given to your family to teach them unconditional love.

Life lessons are not learned easily. The most lasting ones are developed through difficulty and repetition.

So, don’t give up on your family. Pray for your family. God is using those people in specific ways for specific reasons. Sure, there are times when we have to bite our tongues and times when we need healthy boundaries. But we don’t give up.

We hold on to these words from Paul, paraphrased in The Message…

So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

Colossians 3:13–14

Keep loving them, forgiving them, and praying for them. Because it’s hard to give up on the people for whom we’re praying.

Mother Teresa said…

Keep the joy of loving God in your heart and share this joy with all you meet, especially your family. Be holy and let us pray.

May the Lord be with you, bless you, and help you remember… you need to pray for your family.

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