Talking to God with prayer: for parents and carers
Talking to God with prayer: for parents and carers
This page has been specially put together to provide some resources for families who wish to pray together at home and for parents and carers who would like to teach their children to pray for themselves.
Prayer is an important part of the Christian faith. Followers of Jesus Christ have a unique relationship with their loving father God and that relationship is developed through conversation, or as it is sometimes called, prayer.
Bedtime
If your little one is too young to engage with prayer you can still pray a blessing over them as they go to bed. You can use your own words to ask God to protect and bless them or you could use a Bible verse like this one:
Numbers 6:24-26 New International Version
24 “The LORD bless you and keep you;
25 the LORD make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
26 the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.”
If your child is older you could use the Lord’s prayer as written below or use a picture book version; just search for the ‘Lord’s prayer for children’ on your favourite online bookshop.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
The teaspoon prayer helps children to give structure to their prayers. Teaspoon or tsp stands for thank you, sorry and please.
Thank you Saying thank you to God for the things that he gives us, such as food, clothes, home, family, friends and pets.
Sorry We all make mistakes and so we ask God for forgiveness and his help to do better. It is important to use this as a positive opportunity to receive a fresh start and not as a way of condemning bad behaviour. Your child might find this embarrassing so just ask them to picture something that they would like to say sorry to God for, they needn’t say it out loud.
Please This is where we ask God to help us, those we love and other people in the world. Sometimes your child will ask for something big and perhaps a little selfish; that’s fine as God really wants to hear what is on your child’s heart, but this may be a good opportunity to talk with them about their request and if God would think that this thing would be in their own best interest. God is a loving father and he only gives us things that are good for us.
Mealtimes
You may not eat together every day, but often it is possible to pray at the table (say grace) once a week or on special occasions. It is nice to recognise that God is at the table with us and to foster gratitude by saying thank you. Here are a couple of grace prayers.
Super hero grace - Said to the Superman theme.
Thank you Lord for giving us food,
Thank you Lord for giving us food,
For every plateful. We are grateful
Thank you Lord for giving us food.
Amen
We Give Our Thanks - Traditional
For food that stays our hunger,
For rest that brings us ease,
For homes where memories linger,
We give our thanks for these.
Amen
Other Resources
For Toddlers
My Very First Prayers (Candle Bible for Toddlers) by Juliet David
For Younger Children
The Lion book of 1000 Prayers for Children by Lois Rock
For Older Children
A Prayer book for Kids by Mel Lawrenz
