How to Pray When You Aren’t Sure What to Say
If you’re not raised in a home where praying to God was a daily activity, then learning how to pray in your later years might take some work. Even if you were raised on prayer, you might find yourself struggling to know what to pray for or what to say when speaking to God. You know you want to talk to God, and you know want to start a prayer, but where do you begin?
What’s the first thing you should say to open up a prayer? You’re sitting there with your mind completely devoted to God, but your brain goes blank. When you find yourself in this situation, don’t panic.
It’s not uncommon to be at a loss of words when starting a conversation with God. Thankfully, there are a few helpful tips that might offer some guidance along the way. In this praying guide below, you’ll learn some of the best prayer advice to keep in mind.
Continue reading to get started!
Table of Contents
Pray For Others
When you want to speak to God but you can’t think of something to pray for, pray for others. Think about the people closest to you. What are some of the struggles they’re currently faced with?
Ask God to provide them with guidance, clarity, good health, or anything else you believe could benefit them. Then, think about situations happening all over the world. What are some struggles that the entire world is dealing with?
What are some of the struggles people in other countries are dealing with or people you may not know personally? Pray for these people too. Pray for the world as a whole.
This is always a great starting place for anyone who can’t think of something they need to pray about for themselves.
Pray For Forgiveness
All humans make mistakes. Everyone makes decisions they later wish they hadn’t or wish they could change. This is all a normal part of being a human being.
Don’t hesitate to ask God for forgiveness. Ask that you be forgiven and then remember to forgive those who have done you wrong as well. We know just how important it is to be given forgiveness from God, and it’s only right to give that same forgiveness to others in our lives.
You can then ask God to forgive others also.
Pray For Your Needs
What are some of your current needs in life? These things don’t have to be materialistic either. For example, you might need guidance in a situation you’ve found yourself in.
You may need the strength required to forgive someone that you’re struggling to forgive. Tell God about all of the things you need and then thank him for all of the things he’s given you and all of the things you have. Put all of your worries into the hands of God and trust that he will provide for you.
Pray For Protection and Healing
Another great prayer is that of protection and healing. When praying for protection and healing, you can think of yourself and those around you. You can start by asking for the protection and healing of anyone you know who may be sick or dealing with an illness.
If you, yourself, are ill, then don’t hesitate to ask God for protection and healing over yourself and your own situation. Then, remember to think of everyone, even those you may not know. What’s the current state of the world or of the country?
Are there people in the world who could use protection and healing? Ask God to provide this to them as well.
Share What’s in Your Heart
Sometimes, you don’t have to ask God for anything. Instead, you can simply have a conversation with him. You can talk to God about anything that’s on your mind.
You can even tell him about your day and what’s going on with your life. Try to speak to him as if he’s one of your good friends who’s there to listen and uplift your heart. If there’s anything that’s bothering you, then you can talk to God about that as well.
There doesn’t have to be a request at all. This can be your time to vent about life and then feel better about it once you get it all out.
Pray With Others
If you’re having trouble praying, then a great way to find inspiration is to pray with others. Attending mass gives you a wonderful opportunity to pray with an entire community. Here, you can learn about several prayers and how to pray.
You can also consider listening to Southwest Radio Church, or joining prayer groups with other members of the same church. If you have friends that also pray, then consider starting a group of your own. No matter who the prayer group consists of, try to meet at least once a week to focus on prayer.
Praying with others will inspire you to pray on your own as well.
Learning How to Pray Doesn’t Have to Be a Challenge
After reading through this guide, we hope you now know how to pray. Use all of the helpful information and advice listed above to get you started. Remember, pray is about what you want to say to God and there’s never any pressure.
Treat God as an amazing friend who’s always there to listen and offer guidance. For a wide variety of topics, and some similar to this one, be sure to continue visiting on a regular basis.
Biswajit Rakshit is a professional blogger and writer. He loves to write on various topics.