BREATH PRAYERS FROM SCRIPTURE
Teach your grandchildren a short, easy, simple prayer that can be spoken in a single breath and repeated numerous times throughout the day. Cultivating the habit of Scripture-based breath prayers into the lives of your grandchildren will help them internalize God’s Word and enable them to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
From Scripture, choose a brief sentence or a simple phrase that your grandchild can repeat in one breath. Guide them in developing the habit of praying that sentence or phrase as often as possible during their day so that it becomes deeply rooted in their heart.
Examples:
ON THE INHALE & ON THE EXHALE
– “Speak Lord,… for your servant hears.” (1 Samuel 3:9, 10)
– “The Lord is my Shepherd… I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1)
– “Be still, and know… that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10)
– “When I am afraid… I put my trust in you.” (Psalm 56:3)
– “Thank you… Lord” (Based on Psalm 57:9, 108:3)
– “In Christ alone… my soul finds rest.” (Based on Psalm 62:1, 5)
– “My help comes from the Lord,… who made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:2)
– “My help comes from… the Lord.” (Psalm 121:2)
– “His steadfast love… endures forever.” (Psalm 136)
– “Peace… be still” (Mark 4:39)
– “Not my will,… but yours.” (Luke 22:42)
CIRCLE PRAYERS
Form a circle, hold hands, and take turns praying one sentence at a time for each “round” of your prayer. For those who are praying via some form of technology due to distancing restraints, simply determine the prayer rotation (your virtual circle) beforehand.
You may find it helpful, especially in the beginning, to focus your prayer by using the following kid-friendly version of the “ACTS” model.
Circle Prayer Model:
ACTS MODEL & KID-FRIENDLY REPLACEMENT PROMPT
– Adoration: “God, you are ….”
– Confession: “I am sorry for ….”
– Thanksgiving: “Thank you, God, for ….”
– Supplication: “Please ….”
FIVE FINGER PRAYER
Using the fingers on their hand as prompts, teach your grandchildren this simple prayer format.
Format:
FINGER & WHO OR WHAT TO PRAY FOR
– Thumb (Closest to the body): Those closest to you
– Pointer Finger: Those who “point” you in the right direction (Classroom teachers, Sunday School teachers, pastors, doctors, police officers, school principals, etc.)
– Tallest Finger: Our leaders (President, elected officials, etc.)
– Ring Finger (The weakest finger): The poor, the sick, the weak; those in trouble
– Pinky (The smallest finger): Personal needs
PRAYER CUBE
Incorporate all the parts of prayer into your teaching with prayer cube prayers.
Preparation:
First, you will need a cube.
Option 1: Simply use an empty cube-shaped tissue box “as is” or cover it with plain paper.
Option 2: Use the cube template in this resource packet to print out and make your own cube.
Next, on each face of your cube, write one of the following prayer prompts:
I praise you for …………………………” (Adoration/Praise)
“My favorite part about you, God, is ………………” (Adoration/Praise)
“God, you are……………” (Adoration/Praise)
“I’m sorry for……………….” (Confession)
“Thank you, God, for……………….” (Thanksgiving)
“I ask you for ………………….” (Supplication)
“Please …………………….” (Supplication)
Implementation:
In turn, grandparents and grandchildren will roll the prayer cube. On each roll, the “face-up” prayer prompt will be used to guide the “roller’s” sentence prayer.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.