Updated on September 13, 2026

Prayer for a Loved One

Q: Can I pray for someone who does not want prayer?

Yes. Prayer does not need the other person's permission, only their good in view. What needs care is how you tell them: for some, hearing it is a comfort; for others, it lands as pressure, so it is often kindest to pray quietly and simply be there.

Q: What if I do not know what to ask for them?

Then say that. The sisters of Lazarus only told Jesus that the one he loved was sick, and Paul writes that when we do not know how to pray, the Spirit prays in us. Bringing the person is the prayer; the wording can be as short as their name.

Q: Does praying for someone far away make a difference?

Paul prayed for churches hundreds of miles away and told them so, and he did not consider the distance a problem. Prayer is addressed to God, who is not far from either of you, and it usually changes the one praying as well.

For someone you love who is going through something you cannot fix for them

Most prayers in the Bible are prayed for someone else. Abraham pleads for a city, Moses for a people, Paul for the churches he cannot visit, and two sisters send Jesus a message that says only, the one you love is sick. Praying for a loved one is what you do when you cannot carry the thing for them but refuse to leave them alone with it. Use this prayer as it is, or put the person's name where it belongs.

The prayer

Lord, I bring before you someone I love. You know their name before I say it, and you know what they are going through better than they can put into words. I cannot fix it for them, and that is why I am here.

Be close to them today. Give them strength for the next step and not just for the whole road, sleep when night comes, and one person who says the right thing at the right time. Where there is illness, bring healing; where there is a decision, bring clarity; where there is fear, bring your peace that holds even when nothing else does.

And show me my part. Make me the kind of friend who turns up, listens more than talks, and does not disappear when it drags on. Guard me from trying to be their saviour, since they already have one.

I leave them in your hands, which are safer than mine. Amen.

In one breath

Lord, you love this person more than I do. Be close to them today, give them what they need for the next step, and show me how to help. Amen.

Verses to hold on to

Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick.
John 11:3Martha and Mary do not tell Jesus what to do; they tell him who is suffering, and that is enough of a prayer.

The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
Psalms 34:18For the days when the person you love is not just struggling but crushed, the psalm says where God stands.

Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
James 5:16James assumes that praying for one another is ordinary, and adds that it does something.

James 5:16 was the verse of the day on June 21, 2022. See that day

How to pray it

Say the person's name out loud; it turns a vague worry into an actual prayer.
Pray for one concrete thing they need this week, then tell them you did.
Set a reminder at the same time each day; intercession is easier to keep than to restart.

Make it your own

Say what you are living, in a few words, and receive this prayer written for your situation.

Your words
Your prayer

Questions

Can I pray for someone who does not want prayer?+

What if I do not know what to ask for them?+

Does praying for someone far away make a difference?+

Other prayers

All prayers