Personal Prayers Written Down #2

Back on August 11, 2004, I wrote a post on prayer called Personal Prayers Written Down, in which I used a prayer I wrote for my daughter as an example. It is one of my most read archived posts. People find it through various search engines, especially using phrases like “prayer for a daughter”. In that post, I suggested that every father compose a unique prayer for their daughter(s) and give it to them as an ongoing remembrance of their love and support and willingness to help in times of need.

Recently, my wife and I have been going through a relational growth spurt (see the previous post Two Become One). One of the changes in our relationship, born in part out of my 2006 Lenten discipline on prayer, has been for me to lay hands on my wife’s head and to pray for her every morning before she leaves for work. It has become an important and intimate part of our day.

However, I have felt the need to do something more. So, inspired by the prayer I wrote for my daughter, I decided to write a prayer for my wife, print it out, laminate it, and give it to her. She will get it when she comes home this evening (surprise… 😉 – she will read this at work today). I am telling you, my readers, about this because I believe every husband should try and do something similar: lay hands on your wife’s head and pray for her every morning and write a prayer unique for her and give it to her to for her keep with her at all times.

With that in mind, I include the prayer I wrote for my wife below, as an example and inspiration to all of you husbands out there. It uses a similar structure to the prayer I wrote for my daughter, but it is written for my wife and I pray that it will always remind her of my love and supportive concern for her.

Personal Prayer for Anna Marie

Dear Lord, thank you for my loving and faithful wife, for trusting me to be her husband, to be united with her in this life, for enabling us to grow together as one flesh. No matter the circumstances, may she never doubt my love for her. May that love always be righteous and nurturing, never permissive and destructive.

Teach me to care for her as Christ cares for his bride, the Church. Help me to express joy whenever I speak to her, to act with patience whenever I respond to her, and use your wisdom whenever I make decisions concerning her. Let me never demean or belittle her in any way, always counting her better than myself, following in the footsteps of my Lord, being a true servant to her needs, a true husbandman to her hopes and dreams. May I never fail her Lord, but if I do, let her forgive me, as you have forgiven me in Christ Jesus my Lord.

As she goes about her day, O Lord, guard and protect her heart, mind and soul, and along with my love, may the love and sufficiency of Jesus Christ always surround her, guide her, and sustain her through all the trials and tests of life.

While I seek always to be her protector and shield, O Lord, I do not pray that she never suffers pain, only that any pain that comes into her life will give her deeper roots in you, teaching her that even before me or even herself, she should rely on you above all else.

Finally, When that inevitable moment comes, dear Lord, may Anna Marie stand before you and hear the words we all long to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant,” and again “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.” Amen.

There you have it. May this inspire you to write your own prayer for your wife. Let me know how it turns out and may God bless your and my efforts by bestowing upon our wives the blessing of good husband, by using this effort to continue our transformation into the men, husbands, and fathers we are destined in Christ to be. Amen.

1 thought on “Personal Prayers Written Down #2

  1. Being the very private person that I am, I leave my (tearful:-) response to everyone else’s own private thoughts — Surprise indeed;-)… !

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