Praying for your marriage? Start here with encouragement, scriptures and words to pray over you and your spouse.

Marriage is sacred. God ordains marriage and holds it in high regard. Mark 10:9, a well-known verse says “What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” Which tells us that when God brings two people together, He does not intend for them to be separated. Why? Malachi 2:15 tells us “Did He not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union?“

When we look at it with this perspective, that God joins into a marriage with His Spirit, we understand why it pains Him when it starts to fall apart. It isn’t just two people joined together, God is part of the marriage as well.

With this knowledge, we can take heart because that means we also have God’s Spirit holding our marriages together. And we need God helping us in our marriage because we have an enemy who hates marriage.

The War on Marriages

There is a war on marriage. We face it everyday, subliminal messaging, characters on TV shows with plot lines that make infidelity seem like a normal part of married life and divorce rates that would shock even King Henry III.

The truth is, the enemy has been allowed to slip into married life, only to destroy it. Why? Because God loves marriage and what God loves, our enemy hates. He seeks to kill and separate any good thing God puts together.

When marriages break down, homes break down. Children are affected, parents are affected, friends are affected. But most of all, two people, brought together with God’s spirit, have been torn apart.

So how do we fight this war?

With prayer; praying for your marriage is how you protect it.

Praying for Your Marriage

As always, I preface every post about prayer with this:

Prayer isn’t meant to change God, it’s meant to change you.

When we pray, it softens our heart to God’s wisdom, His word and His presence. It gives us clarity, peace and renewed strength.

When praying for your marriage, you are praying for yourself and your spouse, separately and together. But most importantly you are bringing God into the centre of it.

These are specific things to pray for, focusing on praying for your spouse but it applies to you as well!

Praying for Their Heart

I talk about how important it is to teach your children about protecting their hearts and minds, but it’s equally important to pray this over your spouse too. We must guard our hearts because that is where everything flows from (Proverbs 4:23).

This means praying for emotional health for your spouse, but also healing from past wounds. We all experience pain in our lives and sometimes the heart takes on more than its fair share of bumps. Pray that God would strengthen them, guard them and keep them steadfast.

• Example Prayer: “God, draw my spouse close to You today. Guard their heart from discouragement, fear, and lies. Fill them with Your truth and love.”

Praying for Their Calling/Purpose

Marriage has to weather many storms, from moving houses to changing jobs. As individuals you will grow and change, learn new things about yourself and your spouse, And through all of this you should pray for the calling God has on their life.

I have come to learn that our life calling can change. A “life calling” doesn’t necessarily mean a “lifetime.” So pray for clarity and direction in their work. For confidence in who God made them to be, or needs them to be.

Example Prayer: “Lord, remind my spouse of who You created them to be. Give them clarity about the work You’ve called them to. Help them walk in confidence and purpose.”

Praying for Their Protection

Praying for protection is more than just asking God to protect our physical bodies. We wage spiritual battles daily, and need protection from temptation from the enemy.

Pray that your spouse’s heart and mind would look to pure things, that they would not fall into temptation.

Also pray for emotional protection from stress and burnout, to seek God’s comfort and peace in times of hardship and frustration.

Example Prayer: “God, I place a hedge of protection around my spouse today. Protect them physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Guard them from temptation and keep them safe.”

Praying for Their Wisdom

This is a prayer I often pray for my husband. He is the one everyone would call in an emergency, he is a gifted decision maker and is able to remain calm in emergency situations.

But with great gifts comes great responsibility. I know he needs wisdom to make those tough decisions. His natural leadership ability means he needs to be aware of those he’s leading (and where he’s leading them!)

Praying for your marriage means praying that the leader in your home, the head to your heart, is using discernment. Pray for his wisdom, with your children, your family and with those outside your home.

• Example Prayer: “Father, give my spouse wisdom beyond their years. Help them make decisions that honor You and bless our family. Guide their steps today.”

Praying for Your Relationship

You and your spouse are a team. You come together, as the head and heart to create a relationship that will withstand the ebb and flow of the years.

This means there are going to be years of plenty, and years of want. And our prayers need to be those for unity, connection, grace and patience. As life changes, we need to pray that our marriage would be prepared to change too. To be better, stronger, and more fulfilling.

Pray that God would help you see one another with love, deep rooted love, where you are bound not by obligation but by choice. A choice that was made before God, is strengthened by the Heavenly Father and protected by Him when you walk in His truth together.

Example Prayer: “God, knit our hearts together. Help us prioritize each other. Give us grace on hard days and joy on ordinary ones. Strengthen our bond.”

For more, check out Scriptures to Pray Over Your Husband

Pray That God is at the Heart of Your Marriage

Praying for your marriage means praying that God would be at the heart of it all. As you pray for their heart, their calling, their protection, their wisdom and your relationship, remember to ask God to be part of all these areas.

And remember to pray for yourself as a wife, all of these scriptures and prayers apply to you as well. Man is the head of the home, but woman is the heart, one cannot work without the other. Pray for unity and love between the two of you and that God would give you both the joy of a long marriage!

Want more scriptures to pray over your marriage? Week 3 of my 30 day guide to pray over your home is filled with prayers for the relationships in your home, including your marriage. Get the full guide HERE.