31 Biblical Virtues to Pray For Your Kids

This makes for a great prayer calendar. Just pick one virtue each day of the month to pray over your child/children..

If you want to pray more for your children, but aren't sure what to pray or how to pray for them, then use this list of virtues as your guide. Next to each virtue is a prayer based upon Scripture that you can pray, with the reference to where in the Bible the prayer was inspires.

1. Salvation - "Lord, let salvation spring up from within my children, that they may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory." Isaiah 45:8, 2 Timothy 2:10
2. Growth in grace - "I pray that my children may grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 3:18
3. Love - "Grant, Lord, that my children may learn to live a life of love, through the Spirit who dwells in them." Galatians 5:25, Ephesians 5:2
4. Honesty and integrity - "May integrity and honesty be their virtue and their protection." Psalm 25:21
5. Self-control - "Father, help my children not to be like many others around them, but let them be alert and self-controlled in all they do." 1 Thessalonians 5:6
6. Love for God's Word - "May my children grow to find Your Word more precious than much pure gold and sweeter than honey from the comb." Psalm 19:10
7. Justice - "God, help my children to love justice and You do and act justly in all they do." Psalm 11:7, Micah 6:8
8. Mercy - "May my children always be merciful, just as their Father is merciful." Luke 6:36
9. Respect (for self, others, authority, etc) - "Father, grant that my children may show proper respect to everyone, as your Word commands." 1 Peter 2:17
10. Biblical self-esteem - "Help my children develop a strong self-esteem that is rooted in the realization that they are God's worksmanship, creating in Christ Jesus." Ephesians 2:10
11. Faithfulness - "Let love and faithfulness never leave my children, but bind these twin virtues around their necks and write them on the tablet of their hearts." Proverbs 3:3
12. Courage - "May my children always be strong and courageous in their character and in their action." Deuteronomy 31:6
13. Purity - "Create in them a pure heart, O God, and let that purity of heart be shown in their actions." Psalm 51:10
14. Kindness - "Lord, may my children always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else." 1 Thessalonians 5:15
15. Generosity - "Grant that my children may be generous and willing to share, and so lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age." 1 Timothy 6:18-19
16. Peace-loving - "Father, let my children make every effort to do what leads to peace." Romans 14:19
17. Joy - "May my children be filled with the joy given by the Holy Spirit." 1 Thessalonians 1:6
18. Perseverance - "Lord, teach my children perseverance in all they do, and help them especially to run with perseverance the race marked out for them." Hebrews 12:1
19. Humility - "God, please cultivate in my children the ability to show true humility toward all." Titus 3:2
20. Compassion - "Lord, please clothe my children with the virtue of compassion." Colossians 3:12
21. Responsibility - "Grant that my children may learn responsibility, for each one should carry his own load." Galatians 6:5
22. Contentment - "Father teach my children to the secret of being content in any and every situation, through Him who gives them strength." Philippians 4:12-13
23. Faith - "I pray that faith will find root and grow in my children's hearts, that by faith they may gain what has been promised to them." Luke 17:5-6, Hebrews 11:1-40
24. A servant's heart - "God, please help my children develop servants' hearts, that they may serve wholeheartedly, as if they were serving the Lord, not men." Ephesians 6:7
25. Hope - "May the God of hope grant that my children may overflow with hope and hopefulness by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13
26. Willingness and ability to work - "Teach my children, Lord, to value work and to work at it with all their heat, as working for the Lord, not for men." Colossians 3:23
27. Passion for God - "Lord, please instill in my children a soul that follows hard after You, one that clings passionately to you." Psalm 63:8
28. Self-discipline - "Father, I pray that my children may acquire a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair." Proverbs 1:3
29. Prayerfulness - "Grant, Lord, that my children's lives may be marked by prayerfulness, that they may learn to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests." Ephesians 6:18
30. Gratitude - "Help my children to live lives that are always overflowing with thankfulness and always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Ephesians 5:20, Colossians 2:7
A heart for missions - "Lord, please help my children to develop a desire to see your glory declared among the nations, your marvelous deeds among all people." Psalm 96:3
 
by Bob Hostetler, excerpted from Pray! Magazine issue #4