Prayers for Church Family: Renewal in the Body of Christ

When we think about prayers for a church family, it is not the same as praying for regular family members. There is a bond of church family that is almost hard to describe. 

When my dad died, we were still newer to our church. My husband had gotten a job as the youth pastor of our church four days before our world shut down to Covid, so getting to meet people was nearly impossible. When my dad passed 9 months later, we still barely knew anyone in the community we could turn to. We only had our regular family, who all traveled from out of state to be with us during the time. 

As my family was together at my mom’s house, the doorbell rang. One of our pastors was at the door with enough food to feed all twelve of us. I never figured out how she knew how many of us were there. She didn’t call or ask, knowing that we would have most likely said no. 

She specifically made a meal that could be frozen if we had already had plans for dinner. As she handed it to us she said “Sometimes people don’t know how to ask or say what they need, because we barely know what we need when we lose a lost one. So think of this dinner as just a start, and then if anything else comes to your mind that you need let me know.”

That is living like a church family.

We didn’t know the family quite yet, but it did not matter because we were all part of the body of Christ. 

And the body of Christ does not simply check in with someone and then disappear. Our other pastor had sent a card to us days after my dad’s passing. However, he also sent another note a couple of months later, and one another a couple of months after that.

It wasn’t just the pastors either. Random people we didn’t know from the church sent cards, checked in on us, and dropped off food. 

Family is there when life is good. Family is there when life is hard. And family checks in on you when no one else does. 

And this is why it is more important than ever to pray for your church family. Prayers for church family depends on how you want to pray for your fellow members of the body of Christ. 

• If you have an amazing church family, a great way to pray is that your hearts and minds are opened to welcoming more and multiplying the body of Christ
• If you have a church family that is not like my example above, a great prayer is by asking God how He can use you as a vessel to start that type of relationship among your people. 

You don’t need a leadership position to start getting your church congregation to start living as a church family. You need prayer.

Thought-Provoking and Heartfelt Prayers for Church Family

As always, we give prayer points, or prayer ideas, as a starting point. God knows you inside and out, so it is important that you pray with a true, sincere, and repentant heart. 

However, sometimes praying written out prayers can get the creative juices flowing and open up to a great back-and-forth conversation with God. For that reason we list them below by category.

General church family prayer

Dear Lord, we thank you for the daily bread you provide our church. We don’t go to church for just a good time, we go to worship and honor You and who You are. We thank you for giving us glimpses of the heavenly realm here on earth and amazing great love through the power of the Holy Spirit. We ask that you bless the daily living of every member of this church, and also for past members and those who are not yet members. Continue to show us the mighty power that can only come through You, O God. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Prayers through text messages 

It can be so powerful to check in with those that are part of your church family, even those that you normally do not have close communication with. A simple check-in can change someone’s whole day and be a spiritual blessing someone did not even see coming. A text message that’s a prayer though? To send someone a prayer in a world that constantly receives “praying for you!” without anything else can be a true help as well as a surprise. It will remind the person receiving it of the power of fervent prayer.

Here is a great prayer you can send:

Heavenly Father, I just want to thank you today for ________. This person was laid on my heart when I was praying, so I just thank you for ______ and how much of a blessing he/she is to our church body as well as the body of Christ Jesus as a whole. Remind him/her today how much he/she is loved. Remind them of Your love throughout their lives today and this week. Thank you for being a gracious father, Amen.

Prayers for your small group 

There is nothing that makes a family stronger than small groups. This is where we can truly become a church family. Here is a great prayer for your small group.

O Lord, We praise you for bringing the exact people together that needed to be brought together. Let us do everything for your glory and to be able to share with others just how amazing You are. Help us open our hearts and be vulnerable with each other, help us keep anything private in here private, and help us learn new rhythms and ways to step out in bold steps of faith so we can see just how mighty You move. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Prayer for the young people at your church 

You may have heard this before, but I am a big believer that the youth are not the future of the church: they ARE the church. And we cannot afford to lose them. Here is a great prayer to pray for the youth at your church.

Dear Father, we thank you for our young children at church as well as our older youth. We pray that each one feels spiritual growth in all the ways that you are calling them too. As they go through life, we pray for a unity of the Holy Spirit in them through God’s word and their fellowship with each other and the rest of the church. Create new life in them, a life in which their whole heart is dedicated to You and You alone. Remind them that the right thing is always the best thing throughout daily life, and that You are a merciful Father that loves them so much. Let them know that there are always better things ahead when they come to You in prayer. Help them thrive in their daily prayers and to always reach out to the church community when they need anything. Amen. 

Prayers for spiritual gifts 

We know from the word of God just how important discovering spiritual gifts are for not just church leaders, but the entire body of Christ. Beyond amazing resources for spiritual gifts, this can be a great prayer:

Lord, We pray that every single member of our church comes to find out their spiritual gift. Not something they are “simply good at,” but a gift that You alone placed in them. Help them remove any negative thoughts that need to be undone in order for this gift to happen, and help them take bold steps of faith in honoring that gift. In your name we pray, Amen. 

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Prayer to multiply the body of believers 

Father God, we come to you today knowing that you are an almighty father that can do what our human family may think to be impossible. In a world where less people are evangelizing, and church numbers are dwindling, we are stopping to pray a bold prayer not to simply add new sheep, but to multiply. We pray that people fall in love with church again, and instead of shifting sheep around, we are finding the lost sheep and bringing them to church where they can meet Jesus Christ in new and revolutionary ways. Break any chains that need to be broken and soften any hearts that need to be softened in order for people to be open to invitations to church. And help the shyest of the church members become bold in ways that will invite people to the church to continue to multiply the body of Christ, Amen. 

Prayer for the fruit of righteousness 

O Lord God Almighty, thanks to the Book of James, we are well informed about how a good work can affect faith. However, we also know about the fruits of righteousness. Please help us to live out the fruits of righteousness and glorify You in the best ways we know how. In the name of your son Jesus Christ, Amen. 

Prayer to open prayer meetings

Dear Lord, Where two or more are gathered you are there, so we come to you as people of God knowing that Your presence is already here but we need to seek you and your dwelling place over any human elements. We ask you today to take your mighty hand and bless our time together. Give us a spirit of wisdom as we pray, Your wisdom only, and help that everything we pray is in the name of the Lord, our savior Jesus Christ. Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we ask you to give us the type of peace you gave Elijah, peace that can only be from quieting our hearts and listening to your still small voice. Amen.

Prayer for a member of our family going through a difficult time 

Dear God, Thank you for allowing _______ to be open and vulnerable and share the difficult time tey are going through. However, we know that no words can explain the heartache that people of this world feel. Give this person unexpected time and place to be able to deeply embrace whatever emotion or emotions they are feeling at this current time. Give them words to be honest with You in how they feel. Then please Lord, turn that person to You instead of away. Have this be a Genesis 50:20 experience in which anything that was meant for evil You mean for good. Show the good to this person. Enlighten us as the church family to know how we can best help this person. Amen. 

Prayer for a new church member or family 

Thank you for the gracious gift of near dear friends. We are excited to see them on Sunday mornings, but we pray to you knowing the most important thing is not that they find us as their church congregation, but they find You. God of hope, please create a bond of peace between us and this new family. Provide us with the foundation of the apostles so we can show what real joy is and what the love of God looks like through us. Let us speak not just with a Bible verse here and there, but with a whole heart that is focused on multiplying God’s kingdom. Help this family grow with any spiritual gift they need to help grow, help their knowledge of God grow stronger, and let it overcome their own understanding of Your heavenly places. We pray this all through the most powerful name, the Prince of Peace Jesus Christ, Amen.

Prayer for a special occasion 

Lord, we pray to you on this special day as a church family but as a part of a bigger church family, the body of Christ. Unite us in ways that only You can, and give us clean and peaceful hearts to be able to not simply celebrate this moment, but to celebrate all that You are. Amen. 

Prayer for the pastor 

Dear God, Understanding the fullness of God can be overwhelming on its own, but then to lead a church family can bring burdens and types of overwhelm that we are not even aware of. However, we know the spirit’s power. We know the power of your Holy Spirit and that it can give constant strength to our pastor and their family. Give them whatever tools they need to continue to share the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Give them time and peace and renewed strength that can only come through You. Amen.

Prayer for the Pastor’s family 

Dear Lord, we know when the enemy attacks, He attacks hard and close. Please cover the pastor’s entire family with a hedge of protection. Give them an angel army here on earth to be praying them through tough times that they may never be able to let the congregation know about. Give them your almighty strength so they never have to depend on their own human strength. And help them get closer together through every obstacle in life. All for Your glory, Amen.

Prayer for broken relationships within the church 

Dear Lord, each family has broken relationships, and our church family is no different. However, we do have the power of prayer. We ask that any relationship that may be headed toward a destructive path to be dealt with immediately before it becomes broken. Take any strained or broken relationships, and find fruitful new ways to revive and renew them. Let it all be learning lessons on how to live like Jesus and how to live like family, Amen.

Prayer for sinful nature 

Dear Lord, we want to be a hospital for sinners instead of a place for saints. But we want people to join us and feel the need for repentant hearts so they can live a life with burdens lifted. When Jesus said his yoke was not heavy, it did not mean we would not go through heavy things, but we would go through them lightly because we had Him. Help and unrepentant heart learn about repentance and turn to You so we can be a clean and healthy church, Amen.

Final Thoughts

Whether we have people that we see at church every Sunday or we have people at church that we only see on Easter Sunday, we do better living as a church family. May God bless your church family each and every time you all take a bold step in faith, and may the kingdom of God multiply here on earth.