After a period of study and discussion, the family should pray. Dad should begin by thanking God for what was just studied and learned and asking Him to enable the family to faithfully fulfill what’s been learned. Then various petitions can be made. These can be for needs mentioned in church the week before, for personal family needs, and other concerns such as neighbors, missionaries, etc.
Each week, pick one or two families in your church, and pray for their specific needs at every family devotion. Also thank God for the families and their friendship. Remind each of your children to also pray for these families during their daily private prayers. This will bless the families you pray for and train your children to pray consistently for important needs.
Another great way to pray is to follow the prayer directions from Jesus Himself, by using the Lord’s Prayer as your guide. Here’s something we’ve prepared to help us pray according to Jesus’ model. It’s based on the Shorter Catechism’s section on the Lord’s Prayer. This guide can be printed and has space to list specific issues that relate to each part of the prayer. For your convenience, a file is attached containing the guide on one page.
In prayer, we offer our desires to God in the name of Christ for things that agree with His will, confessing our sins, and thankfully recognizing His mercies. The whole word of God, but especially the Lord’s prayer, which Christ taught His disciples, directs our prayers.
Our Father in heaven,
We draw near to God with completely holy reverence and confidence, as children to a father who is able and ready to help us. We pray with and for others.
Hallowed be Your Name.
Pray that God will enable us and others to glorify Him in everything He uses to make Himself known and that He will work out everything for His own glory.
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Your kingdom come,
Pray that Satan’s kingdom may be destroyed, that the kingdom of grace may be advanced, with ourselves and others brought into and kept in it, and that the kingdom of glory may come quickly.
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Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Pray that by His grace God would make us have the capability and the will to know, obey, and submit to His will in everything, as the angels do in heaven.
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Give us today our daily bread.
Pray that we may receive an adequate amount of the good things in this life as a free gift of God and that with them we may enjoy His blessing.
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Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Encouraged by God’s grace, which makes it possible for us sincerely to forgive others, we pray that for Christ’s sake God would freely pardon all our sins.
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And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
Pray that God would either keep us from being tempted to sin or support and deliver us when we are tempted
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For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
We praise God by acknowledging that the kingdom, power, and glory are His. To show that we want to be heard and have confidence that we are, we say Amen.