7 Kingdom Prayers for Our Nation and the World
A few years ago, a friend challenged me to change how I prayed. She shared her journey of learning to pray kingdom prayers in addition to praying for her personal needs.
This way of praying has radically shifted my focus. The need for God’s people to rise in a global prayer movement has seldom been more apparent. Today, I’m sharing seven kingdom prayers to pray over our nation and our spheres of influence. Be sure to read to the end of today’s post for a free eBook to guide you in seven days of praying for our world.
7 Kingdom Prayers for the World
Matthew 6:10 reads: “Thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.”
Jesus’ words lead us to consider: Just what does it look like to pray for his kingdom to come on earth?
Undoubtedly, part of this prayer includes shifting from self-focused prayers to world-focused prayers.
Reverend Newman Hall wrote: “Man’s worship, apart from revelation, has been uniformly characterized by selfishness. We come to God to either thank him for benefits already received or to implore still further benefits: food, raiment, health, safety, comfort . . . . we seem to go toward God, but, indeed, reflect upon ourselves.”
What Are Kingdom Prayers?
Most of us spend far too much time praying for our needs and our comfort. We move toward God, but we reflect mostly upon ourselves. This isn’t to say that we should never pray for our needs, but when we only pray for our personal needs, we miss out on the opportunity to align our hearts with God’s heart for the world around us.
How do we shift our prayers to kingdom prayers?
Let’s begin by establishing the definition of God’s kingdom.
The Greek translation for kingdom is basileía. Basileía refers to the rule of a king, precisely the rule of Christ. When Christ came to earth in the flesh, the kingdom was established. The kingdom continues to thrive when hearts surrender to Christ’s Lordship in this age. It will be fully established when Jesus returns to establish the new earth.
Kingdom Prayers for Our World
With this in mind, here are seven kingdom prayers that align with God’s will.
1. Pray for God to ignite your personal faith.
Revival begins within individual hearts. If we don’t encounter God in our quiet moments of prayer, we most likely won’t be filled with the Spirit to ignite his kingdom in our communities.
If we don’t encounter God in our quiet moments of prayer, we most likely won’t be filled with the Spirit to ignite his kingdom in our communities. #prayer #revival Share on XJesus reminds us to seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness and everything else will follow (see Matthew 6:33).
Pray for God to ignite the fire in your personal faith. You cannot give the world what you have not first received for yourself.
(Click here today for a powerful tool to help you fan the flame of passion for God.)
2. Pray for your local church body to seek God’s face.
In Psalm 27:8, David calls out to the Lord, “When You said, ‘Seek My face,’ my heart said to You, ‘Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.’”
Let’s pray for our local church communities to seek the face of the Father. When the local church body encounters the life-shaping presence of God, entire communities are transformed by the ripple effects.
Programs are an important part of helping people draw near to God. As we prepare our programs, let’s pray that we will not become so focused on programs that we stop pursuing the heart of God. Pray for your local church, and all the churches in your region, to seek God’s face and pursue him in relationship.
3. Pray for your community to acknowledge the need for Christ’s lordship.
We live in a culture of self-sufficiency. Most of us struggle with the call to submit to Christ’s complete lordship over our lives. We insist on being our own bosses and establishing our own kingdoms.
When we pray for our communities to acknowledge a need for Christ’s lordship, we are praying for broken and contrite spirits, weary from the struggle of making our own paths. We are praying to collectively see a need for a Lord and Master.
4. Pray for our nation to humble itself, pray, and seek God’s face
Second Chronicles 7:14 reads: “If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
Just as God was ready and willing to hear, forgive, and heal the children of Israel, he waits for us to return to him as a nation.
Pray for our national leadership to see a need for Jesus and draw close to him with soft hearts. Pray for humility, and pray for our nation’s leaders to long for the powerful presence of God.
5. Pray for the gospel message to reach the ends of the earth
Before his ascension to heaven, Jesus declared these words: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
We pray for God’s kingdom to come when we pray that the message of Jesus will reach beyond our communities, our nation, and to the ends of the earth.
Pray for the workers who are bringing his message to the ends of the earth. Pray for soft and open hearts to receive salvation through Christ.
6. Pray for a great hunger for God.
We pray for God’s kingdom when we pray that others will become hungry for the presence of God.
Pray that the comforts of this world will fail to satisfy.
May we acknowledge that our deepest longings can only be filled by God. Pray this for yourself and for the world around you.
7. Pray that God’s people will burn brightly for his glory.
When God’s people burn for him, their lights change the world. Pray that the global church will rise up and glorify God, burning brightly in this world and drawing hearts into God’s love.
We serve a God who wants to partner with us in bringing his kingdom to this broken world. May we be God’s vessels in our homes, workplaces, communities, and beyond. May this movement begin with prayer.
Calling All Parents and Grandparents!
As the parent of two sons and a daughter, I have a heart for helping parents develop deeper relationships with their children and with God. Our kids, ages 7, 12, and 16, share this vision. They have helped me write three family devotionals for parents or older relatives to read with the children and teens they love. I also recently released a teen devotional called Anchored, designed to help teens learn key biblical narratives and apply them to their lives. You can find these books here or read more below. 
Mother-Daughter Devotionals by a Mom and Daughter
Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith is written for girls ages 7-12. It includes 60 devotions with Scripture, conversation starters, and a shared journaling section for moms and daughters after each devotion. I wrote this book with the help of our daughter, Bekah, when she was eleven. Find this one-of-a-kind shared devotional here.
Heart to Heart: A Mother-Daughter Devotional With 50 Devotions for Teen Girls is for teenage girls ages 13-20. It includes 50 devotions, each with a shared journaling section to help moms and daughters connect through writing. This is a great book for moms who want to communicate about awkward topics—like dating, sexuality, peer pressure, and more—but don’t know where to start. Bekah and I will help you right here.
Devotions for Boys by Boys
God’s Warrior: Devotions for Boys Who Want to Grow in Courage and Strength helps young boys, ages 5-13, learn what it means to trust God and become strong warriors for his kingdom. Now, more than ever, our world needs men who are willing to boldly carry God’s love into the world. I wrote this boys’ devotional book with our two young sons, Aiden and Caleb, ages six and eleven! You’ll enjoy their honesty as we teach boys how to be strong warriors for the Lord. Find this life-changing devotional book here.
These Books Are Free on Kindle Unlimited: God Wants to Heal, Restore, and Refresh You
God wants to work in your life to accomplish what you’ve been unable to do through willpower alone. He also wants to help you establish a rhythm of meeting with him daily as you trust him with the hard parts of your life. Click here to explore two books that will guide you: Be Still and Trust and Lean Into Grace. They are free on the Kindle Unlimited program and for sale in print.
Download Your Free Devotional Here
Set Free: Let God Do What You Cannot explores ten realms in which most of us need God to work in our lives and bring deliverance. We’ll talk about finding freedom from fear, worry, insecurity, bad habits, emotional pain, and more. This short online devotional will bless you as you let God accomplish what you’ve been unable to achieve through willpower. Get your download for free with promo code GRACE or for a donation of 3.99 here. Thank you. This small gift helps keep this ministry running.
I also offer a library of free online devotional eBooks for free. I invite you to explore the collection right here!
