Sample prayer

Gracious Saviour, when I reflect on kindness, I think of You. You exercise kindness, righteousness and justice. These are the things You delight in (Jeremiah 9:24). In Your abundant love and mercy, You gave us Your Son, Jesus, to personify Your love. Your desire is to show us the incomparable richness of Your grace, expressed in Your kindness to us in Jesus Christ. It is by Your grace we are saved (Ephesians 2:4-8). It comforts me to know that You have such far-reaching, kind-hearted, Fatherly love for us.

Your word says that whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did (1 John 2:6). That is a challenging statement! Please forgive me for the times that I get irritable and impatient, and fail to demonstrate kindness to the people whom I love most. I pray that I would be rooted and established in Your love so that I can grasp how wide, long, high and deep Your love for me is! How much I need to be filled with the fullness of Your love, God (Ephesians 3:17-19)! Only with Your power at work in me is it possible for me to offer others the kindness, consideration and grace that You take pleasure in.

Lord, for my children, I pray ________ and ________ will be known as kids who are loving and kind. Please pour out Your wisdom from heaven on them so they may be pure, peace loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere (James 3:17). As _______ and ________ are hurt or feel wronged by another, I pray they will not pay back wrong for wrong, but that they will recognize that they need to wait on You instead (Proverbs 20:22). Self-centeredness is often the root of unkindness. Please give my children the wisdom to ask for Your Spirit to pour love into their hearts so they can pass Your love along to others in the kind things they do. Enable ________ and ________ to be considerate, doing to others as they would want done do themselves (Luke 6:31). In speech, I pray the words that come out of my children’s mouths will benefit those who listen. May they excel in encouraging others. As they see another feeling down and anxious, I pray they will be quick to offer kind words to lift them up (Proverbs 12:25, Ephesians 4:29).

God, You are there at the playground when push comes to shove and You are familiar with the weekly grind of getting the laundry and dishes done. You know that it is often easier to be kind to a neighbour than a family member. My prayer is that we will be a family who practices kindness even when we are late, busy, tired or simply worn out. Please allow our love for You to be obvious in the way our family members interact with each other. I pray that we will be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ You forgave us (Ephesians 4:32). If the qualities of goodness, brotherly kindness and love are evident in our family life, we will be effective and productive for You (2 Peter 1:3-8). This is our desire. Please send Your Holy Spirit to fill our home and our hearts with kindness. Thank you God, that when we pray according to Your will, You hear us (1 John 5:14). Amen.

Scripture-guided prayer for parents

Pray through one or more of the selected Scriptures under each heading. Focus on listening to God and allowing His Spirit to direct you as you pray.

Character focus

Begin by letting God know how much you appreciate His love and kindness.

Psalm 36:5-9 | Jeremiah 9:23-24 | Jeremiah 31:3 | Joel 2:13 | 1 John 4:7-10

Heart search

Acknowledge when and how you are unkind.

Romans 2:1-4 | Philippians 2:3-4 | James 3:14-16 | 1 Peter 3:8-9 | 1 John 3:17-18

Gratitude

Thank God for ways you have seen kindness exhibited in your family.

Family requests

Ask God to help you and your family members practice kindness.

Psalm 19:14 | 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 | Colossians 3:12-14 | 1 Thessalonians 5:11-15 | James 3:17