How to Pray the Scriptures Back to God
Learning how to pray the scriptures may be a new concept to you. Perhaps you’ve never heard of it before or maybe you’ve been praying the scriptures back to God for years. Either way, this post is intended to help you focus your prayers on the things God has promised and use those promises to see His answers.
When you pray the scriptures, you are harnessing the power of God’s Word. By taking His Word and treating it as a promise, you are acknowledging that He has the power to fulfill those promises.
This in turn, helps you give your worries to God, knowing that He’s promised certain things and His promises are true.
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What Does It Mean to Pray Scripture Back to God?
Praying the scriptures back to God might sound a little silly, like repeating what He’s said. But, when we claim His promises, by incorporating them into the words of our prayers, we are acknowledging that He has promised something. We then transfer our worry and concerns to Him by trusting in those promises. Knowing that God will keep every one.
There failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass. Joshua 21:45
This process is more for us than for God. God hasn’t forgotten what He’s promised and doesn’t need to be reminded of His promises when we pray. But we need to be reminded of what He has promised and then keep track of the fact that God has been faithful and kept His promises to us as well.
When you pray to God using scriptures, you can rest assured that You are praying in accordance to God’s will. And that God will hear and answer.
And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him. (1 John 5:14-15)
4 Simple Steps to Pray the Scriptures Back to God
Whenever you want to learn how to pray in a more meaningful way, it’s best to start by asking God to guide and lead you. Here are some simple steps to pray the scriptures back to God.
- Pray – Ask God to direct you and help you find the promises that will speak to your need.
- Search – Search online for “promises for healing”, “promises for fear” or “promises for children” or whatever need you have. Write down some promises that apply to that need. Index cards or sticky notes are great for this as you can slip them in your Bible, prayer journal, or stick them on your bathroom mirror to remind you of God’s promise for your need.
- Personalize – When you find a Bible promise or two that applies to what you are going through, make those promises yours by personalizing them. To do that simply replace pronouns in the verse with “I” or “my” or your name. When you pray repeating a promise in this way, you are claiming that promise for yourself.
- Track – Part of praying and claiming God’s promises is keeping track of His answers. As you begin praying the scriptures to God, write down your prayer requests and revisit them often. You might also want to write out your prayers in a prayer journal. When you begin seeing the answers to your prayers, write those down as well. Having a record of God’s answers will strengthen your faith and your memory of how God is working in your life.
And remember, even if you don’t immediately see God’s answers to your prayers, keep praying. God is always working on behalf of His children. He will answer you. His answer may be different from what you’ve been praying for. But we can trust that God’s way is always perfect. (Psalms 18:30)
For more help deepening your prayer life, you’ll want to be sure to check out all these powerful Prayer Resources!
Examples of How to Pray the Scriptures
As you begin searching the Bible and praying the Word of God over your life, you will be amazed at how the stories in the Bible and God’s promises apply to your life today. The Bible characters suffered, were challenged, worried, were afraid, and needed help just like you and me!
Here is an example prayer you might pray each day that references David’s struggles recorded for us in the Bible .
Dear Lord, thank you so much for your promises and that they are true. You have promised to give wisdom if we ask (James 1:5). I’m asking You to teach me how to pray in a way that glorifies You and helps me not to worry about the things I can’t change. Just like David, when he said “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.” (Ps. 20:7). Help me to fully trust You. Thank you that all of your promises are true! In Jesus’ name, Amen.
If you have a lost family member or friend, you might want to pray this promise of God over them.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
Dear Lord, you loved child’s name (spouse, friend, relative) so much that You gave your only Son. You’ve promised eternal life to whoever believes in You. Please help Name to trust and believe in You and give their life to You today or someday soon. Please surround them with influences that will lead them to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Or, you might want to claim and pray God’s promise in Isaiah 54:17 over a difficult situation in your life or the life of someone else, as I did a few years ago.
No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord. (Isaiah 54:17)
A friend of mine was facing an extremely hostile situation with a co-worker. She was up against false accusations, slander, and lies about how she was doing her job. She knew that she was doing the right thing and doing her best, but the weight of the situation was overwhelming to her. So, together, we started claiming Isaiah 54:17 in prayers that sounded like this:
Dear Lord, you have promised that no weapon formed against me (my friend) will prosper. Right now, it feels like there are many weapons and they are getting the best of me (my friend). Please cut off the words of the tongues that are saying untrue things and prevent the condemnation and judgement. Please fight for me (my friend) in this situation and help the truth to come out. Give me (my friend) the courage to keep working diligently for You. Thank You for this promise I am claiming for this situation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
As we prayed through this difficult situation, it didn’t make the situation change immediately, but we did see specific answers. My friend was offered a job in a different location, and her devastated reputation did not follow her. She found peace, knowing that God had opened up doors that she hadn’t expected in order to provide new opportunities. In the midst of the situation, it seemed like forever before the answer came, but in reality, once we started praying, the answers and opportunities came within a couple of weeks!
The more you spend time praying the scriptures, using this powerful way to pray, your prayer life and faith in God will grow. Start your scripture promise collection today!
And keep claiming God’s promises and praying the scriptures! Because God will hear and answer. In His time. And in His way.
Find these scripture memory cards in our printable God’s Promises Scripture Memory Journal. There are pages to record your thoughts and prayers and the promises you want to pray. Click the image to check it out.
And if you’re looking for more premium resources for Bible study and encouragement, you might like to check out the Bible study worksheets and other resources we have on Etsy!
About the Author – Karen Carlton
Karen is a wife, mom of two grown daughters, teacher and school administrator. She loves encouraging younger moms in their parenting journeys as they raise their kids to love Jesus. She shares her parenting and teaching experience and passion at Savoring Each Moment.
