13 Powerful Prayers for Wayward Son

There are so many temptations in the world around us that can easily grab the attention of our children. Here are 13 powerful prayers for a wayward son that will encourage you to seek God’s strength and encouragement to help bring your child back to the Lord.

Prayer for a Prodigal Son
Compassionate Lord, I intercede for my son who is wasting his life with a reckless and promiscuous lifestyle. Lord, I feel such heartache because he is rejecting everything that we and the church have taught him. Lord, may Your Holy Spirit continue to work in his life to bring him to remorse and repentance for his sin, and to bring him back to living according to Your Word. Amen.

Prayer for Setting Boundaries
Gracious Father, my son is rebelling, and I ask for Your wisdom in parenting through this chaotic time. Help me to be clear in my expectations for his behavior and the consequences for breaking rules. Help me to guide him with truth and love, and may my words and actions be based on Your Word, so that I am setting a credible example of right behavior. Bring him to the point of honoring his parents and others in authority. Amen.

Prayer for Angry Attitude
God of Peace, our son has drifted into communicating with us in a negative way. He’s arguing, withdrawing, and displaying an attitude of anger and resentment. Father, You know how much we desire peace in our home. Please help us to respond to him gently and communicate our care for him. Help us to be authentic and consistent. And restore peace within him and between us, we pray. Amen.

Prayer for Son Who Has Gone Astray
God of Mercy, my son has gone astray – please lead him back. Help me to know the difference between helping him and enabling him in irresponsible behavior. Help me to respond appropriately when he is rude, manipulative, or demanding. Lord, I entrust him to Your care. I lean on You and Your grace. Draw him to Yourself and out of this season of straying. Amen.

Prayer for Poor Decisions
Everlasting Father, I’m frequently dismayed by the poor decisions my son is making. He’s wasting his potential and his opportunities and derailing a healthy and productive life. Help me remember that it’s never too late for redemption. Help me to know when to offer constructive suggestions and when to just be quiet. Help me to demonstrate firm limits but at the same time exhibit unconditional love and support. Amen.

Prayer for a Son with Addictions
Faithful One, I bring to You my son who has succumbed to addictions. I feel so disappointed and frustrated. When I am communicating with him, help me avoid being accusing or judgmental or critical. Help me to know when and how to appropriately intervene. Help my son to realize the negative consequences of his substance abuse. Show me how to assist him to get the help he needs. Amen.

Prayer for Son Who Has Abandoned His Faith
Living God, my son has left the faith in which we reared him. He has no commitment to You, no interest in church or the scripture, and no sense that Your Word should direct his morality. Help me to lovingly and respectfully show him how important You are in my own life. May he come to know You as his Living God, relevant to his life and the source of all his needs. Amen.

Prayer to Bring My Son to His Senses
Gracious God, I come to You in intercession for my son who has strayed into a lifestyle of drugs and alcohol and other vices. Bring him to his senses, I pray, and enable him to see the emptiness of it all. Bring some Christians into his path who demonstrate a lively and joyful faith, and will intrigue him to return to the faith of his childhood. May he come to that intersection in his life and turn toward You. Amen.

Prayer for the Impossible
Lord of the Ages, I come to You asking the impossible for my son. He has strayed far away from us, far away from You, and into a life of immorality and danger. It seems he is without hope, but with You all things are possible. Help me to encourage him and to love him, and to release him into Your hands to convict his heart and to create a hunger and thirst for You. Amen.

Prayer for Son to be Drawn to the Truth
Divine Protector, I am brokenhearted and baffled by the destructive decisions my son is making. Lord, I pray that my son will see Jesus clearly, as He actually is, and let him be drawn to the truth. Lord, help me to keep the communications open, to let him know he is loved – by me, and more importantly, by You. May Your love draw him back. Amen.

Prayer for Son’s Redemption
O God, my Kinsman-Redeemer, I pray for the redemption of my son. I am disturbed that he is destroying his life, but help me to be gentle, even when I am dismayed by his behaviors. Even in my sorrow, may my words and actions be driven by hope, rather than anger. Help me find ways to effectively encourage him from Your Word, and may he see Your joy in my life. Amen.

Prayer to Break down the Wall
O Holy One, my son is determined to go his own way and spend all his time with people that are encouraging him to embrace a new way of life – a lifestyle that doesn’t line up with Your Word. He’s bent on pursuing his own way. Help break down this wall that has come between us. Help me embody Your love and character toward him, so he is drawn to You. Amen.

Prayer to Do a Work in My Son’s Life
Righteous Lord, I bring my son before You, asking that You would do a work in his life. He is turning his back on us and getting involved in harmful and dangerous friends and activities. Help me to carefully and considerately communicate with him, sprinkling Your Word and truth into our conversations at opportune times. Help him know that in spite of the issues that divide us, I still love him, and You love him even more. Amen.

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