Prayer points with Scriptures · 22 points
Prayer Points for Missions and Missionaries
These prayer points for missions are for churches, missions committees, small groups and families who pray for missionaries and for the spread of the gospel. They cover God’s heart for the nations, workers for the harvest, missionaries on the field, their safety, support and families, people who have never heard of Jesus, and our own part through praying, giving, going and mission trips.
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20 (BSB)
Pray with a name and a face in front of you: a missionary your church supports, their latest prayer letter, a country or people group. Take one section at a time, read the verse aloud, pray the prayer, then add the specific requests the missionary has shared. A monthly missions prayer night can take one section at a time.
God’s heart for the nations
1Every nation before the throne
Lord Jesus, thank You that a multitude too large to count, from every nation, tribe, people and tongue, will stand before Your throne. Let that day shape our prayers, our giving and our plans now.
After this I looked and saw a multitude too large to count, from every nation and tribe and people and tongue, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands.
Revelation 7:9 (BSB)2Your glory among all peoples
God, let Your glory be declared among the nations and Your wonders among all peoples. Give our church a heart bigger than our own zip code, and stir us to care about places we may never visit.
Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.
Psalm 96:3 (BSB)3Forgiveness proclaimed to all nations
Lord Jesus, You suffered and rose again so that repentance and forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in Your name to all nations. Thank You that the gospel reached us; carry it on to those still waiting.
And He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and in His name repentance and forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.
Luke 24:46-47 (BSB)
Send out workers
4Workers for the harvest
Lord of the harvest, the harvest is plentiful and the workers are few. As Jesus told us to, we ask You to send out workers into Your harvest, from our own church and our own families.
Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest.”
Matthew 9:37-38 (BSB)5Here am I, send me
Lord, You still ask, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for Us?” Give us hearts that answer, “Here am I. Send me!” Whether You send us across the street or across the world, make us willing.
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying: “Whom shall I send? Who will go for Us?” And I said: “Here am I. Send me!”
Isaiah 6:8 (BSB)6Churches that send well
Holy Spirit, as You set apart Barnabas and Saul while the church worshiped and fasted, show our church whom You are calling. Help us pray over them, release them gladly and send them off well.
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” And after they had fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them and sent them off.
Acts 13:2-3 (BSB)7Messengers with good news
God, people cannot believe in the One they have never heard of, and they cannot hear without someone to tell them. Raise up and send preachers, translators, teachers and medical workers who bring good news.
How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
Romans 10:14-15 (BSB)
Missionaries on the field
8Open doors and clear words
Lord, open doors for the word for our missionaries. Give them clear words in a new language and culture, so that they declare the mystery of Christ plainly, as they should.
as you pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may declare it clearly, as I should.
Colossians 4:3-4 (BSB)9The word spreading and honored
Father, let the word of the Lord spread quickly and be held in honor where our missionaries serve. Deliver them from wicked and evil people, and keep them steady in places where not everyone welcomes the gospel.
Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may spread quickly and be held in honor, just as it was with you. And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men; for not everyone holds to the faith.
2 Thessalonians 3:1-2 (BSB)10Learning language and culture
Lord Jesus, help our missionaries learn language and culture with patience and humility, becoming all things to all people so that by all possible means some will be saved. Give them true friends among those they serve.
To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.
1 Corinthians 9:22-23 (BSB)11Not losing heart
Lord, when our missionaries are tired, lonely or discouraged far from home, keep them from losing heart. Though their bodies wear out, renew their inner selves day by day.
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.
2 Corinthians 4:16 (BSB)
Safety, support and family
12Safety in their coming and going
LORD, watch over our missionaries’ coming and going: on roads, flights and borders, in clinics and crowded cities. Guard them from all evil, preserve them body and soul, and bring them home safely when it is time.
The LORD will guard you from all evil; He will preserve your soul. The LORD will watch over your coming and going, both now and forevermore.
Psalm 121:7-8 (BSB)13Every need supplied
Father, supply every need of our missionaries according to Your glorious riches in Christ Jesus: monthly support, visas, housing and medical care. Use generous churches to meet those needs, as You used the Philippians to provide for Paul.
And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19 (BSB)14Missionary kids and marriages
Father, even at the farthest sea Your hand guides and holds missionary families. Hold their children through moves, new schools and goodbyes, and protect their marriages under the strain of ministry.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle by the farthest sea, even there Your hand will guide me; Your right hand will hold me fast.
Psalm 139:9-10 (BSB)15Rest on furlough
Lord Jesus, You called Your tired disciples to rest a while. When our missionaries come home on furlough, give them real rest, a warm welcome, and churches that care for them instead of wearing them out.
And He said to them, “Come with Me privately to a solitary place, and let us rest for a while.” For many people were coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.
Mark 6:31 (BSB)
People who have never heard
16Where Christ is not known
Lord, raise up workers who aspire to preach the gospel where Christ is not yet known: unreached peoples, closed countries, and villages with no church and no Bible in their language.
In this way I have aspired to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.
Romans 15:20 (BSB)17Eyes opened, from darkness to light
Lord Jesus, open the eyes of those who have never heard, so that they turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, and receive forgiveness of sins through faith in You.
to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those sanctified by faith in Me.’
Acts 26:18 (BSB)18Every tongue and nation
Lord Jesus, You are worthy, for by Your blood You purchased for God people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. Bless Bible translators, and let every language hear of Your love.
And they sang a new song: “Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
Revelation 5:9 (BSB)
Our part: praying, giving, going
19Faithful in prayer
Lord, make us like Epaphras, always wrestling in prayer for others. Help us keep our missionaries’ names before You week after week, not only when there is a crisis.
Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends you greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, so that you may stand mature and fully assured in the full will of God.
Colossians 4:12 (BSB)20Fellow workers through giving
Father, help us support those who go out for the sake of Your name, so that we become fellow workers for the truth. Make our missions giving faithful, cheerful and generous.
For they went out on behalf of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers for the truth.
3 John 1:7-8 (BSB)21Mission trips
Lord, go before our mission team. Make them humble learners and helpful servants, keep them safe and healthy, and bring them home to report all that You have done and how You opened a door of faith.
When they arrived, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them, and how He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.
Acts 14:27 (BSB)22Witnesses where we live
Holy Spirit, You make us witnesses close to home as well as to the ends of the earth. Give us courage and warmth to share Jesus with neighbors, coworkers and international students from other nations who now live among us.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Acts 1:8 (BSB)
A closing prayer
Lord of the harvest, thank You that the gospel reached us. Send out workers into Your harvest. Keep our missionaries close to You: safe, supplied, encouraged and fruitful. Open doors for the word and open eyes to see Jesus, in every tribe and tongue and nation. Make our church faithful in prayer, generous in giving and willing to go wherever You send. For the glory of Your name, Amen.
Pray with a voice
Short prayers with a voice to pray along with, each drawn from one passage.
Questions
What should I pray for missionaries?
Start with what Paul asked churches to pray for him: open doors and clear words (Colossians 4:3-4), boldness (Ephesians 6:19-20), the word spreading and rescue from wicked men (2 Thessalonians 3:1-2). Add their practical needs: health, safety, finances, visas, language learning, their marriage and children, and the people they serve. Their latest prayer letter will tell you what they need now.
How can our church pray for a mission trip?
Pray before the trip for unity, humility, health and the people the team will serve. Pray during it for safety, open doors and rest, ideally using updates the team sends home. Pray after it for lasting fruit among the people they met and for the team to keep serving at home. The church in Antioch heard a full report when Paul and Barnabas returned (Acts 14:27).
What is an unreached people group?
Missions organizations use the term for an ethnic group without enough followers of Jesus to reach the rest of their own people without outside help. Joshua Project, for example, counts a group as unreached when fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians and fewer than 5% are Christians of any kind. Paul described his own aim as preaching the gospel where Christ was not known (Romans 15:20).
More prayer points
Every verse on this page is quoted word for word from the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), which its publishers dedicated to the public domain. Copy, print and share these prayer points freely with your church.