Scriptures to Pray for Children and Youths
Helping your Child to know God
Matthew 19:14
But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”
The Lord Jesus was not weary of having little children around Him during His earthly ministry. Lessons from the life of Jesus teach we are never to resist children from coming to the saving grace of Jesus Christ. They are not to be denied Jesus’ love, even when they have erred. Jesus encourages children to come to Him, and as Christian parents, the responsibility is on us to bring them to Jesus. Children should be given the opportunity to come to the saving grace of Jesus Christ as soon as they are able to understand.
Genesis 18:18-19
Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”
God is looking for godly parents who would be able to teach their children in the way of the Lord. Abraham was chosen in His generation to bring his children up in God's way. Today, as a Christian parent, you have been chosen to bring your children up in the way of the Lord. I pray that the Lord will give you the grace to function well in this role.
Isaiah 54:13-14
All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children. In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you.
Affirming Words
I declare and confess that my children are taught of the Lord and I affirm that great is their peace. The evil deeds of this world will not be their yardstick. I declare that my children are established in righteousness not in evil deeds or truancy. My children are far from oppression and fear, for it shall not come near them.
Children are Gifts from God
The bible tells us in Psalm 127:3-5 Behold, children are a heritage (gift, legacy) from the LORD, the fruit of the womb is a reward.Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them. They shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.
Children are God’s gift and heritage; they do not belong to drugs, sexual perversion, gangs or on the streets. A nation’s heritage sets it apart.
We live in a dispensation where moral decadence is the norm. Today, there are lots of talks about troubled teenagers and their exponential impact on our society as their influence spread to their peers, and younger children. Because they are God's heritage and leaders of tomorrow, I pray that God will birth a new desire in the hearts of many who would be keen to rebuild Christian morals in children and youths. I pray that God will awake a fresh vision to channel them appropriately, and a new commitment to shape their future through prayer. I encourage parents, teachers, pastors, and Sunday school teachers to release their hearts’ cry to the Lord on account of the children and youths in their neighbourhood.
Praying for your Child
Psalm 147:13
For He has strengthened the bars of your gates; He has blessed your children within you.
I declare and confess that my children’s education, health, jobs, relationships and life choices are blessed. Thank you, Lord, for no-one can curse who you have blessed. and for the irrevocable blessing with which you have blessed my children. I pray that the children of our time shall be a blessing to their generation. I declare that the children and youth in this land will live up to God's standard by the help of the Holy Spirit, in Jesus' name, Amen.
Lamentations 2:18-19 (New King James Version)
Every child is an individual and should be treated as such. Asking God to show you how He wants you to pray for your child will help.
18 Their heart cried out to the Lord, “O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night; give yourself no relief; give your eyes no rest. 19 “Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches. Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord. Lift your hands toward Him for the life of your young children, who faint from hunger (not from physical hunger this time but spiritual and emotional hunger) at the head of every street.”
Today, I admonish you to begin to travail for the lives of your children. Are there things in the lives of your children, youths, children around you or children in this generation that are disheartening to you? Pour them out before the Lord in prayer.
Luke 23:28-29
Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!