Prayer points with Scriptures · 22 points
Prayer Points for the Presence of God
These prayer points for the presence of God are for believers who long to know God closely, intimacy with Him and not only information about Him, and for churches that want to seek His face together. They move from drawing near to God through Jesus, through longing for Him and abiding in Him day by day, to worship and stillness, honest prayer when He feels far away, and His presence in our homes and our church.
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
James 4:8 (BSB)
God’s nearness rests on His promise in Christ, not on what we happen to feel in a given moment, so these points ask and trust rather than chase an experience. Pray a section in a quiet morning time, with your prayer group or before worship on Sunday. Read the verse slowly, let the prayer become your own, then stay in silence for a minute before moving on.
Drawing near through Jesus
1A new and living way
Father, we could never come near You on our own merit. Thank You that by the blood of Jesus a new and living way has been opened for us. Help us draw near with a sincere heart and full assurance of faith, our consciences cleansed.
Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way opened for us through the curtain of His body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
Hebrews 10:19-22 (BSB)2Brought near by His blood
Lord Jesus, we were once far away, and now in You we have been brought near through Your blood. When I feel unworthy to pray, remind me that my nearness to God rests on what You did, not on how well I did this week.
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.
Ephesians 2:13 (BSB)3Access to the Father by one Spirit
Father, through Jesus we have access to You by one Spirit. What an open door: the Son brings us, the Spirit helps us, and You receive us. Let that make our prayers bolder, warmer and more frequent.
For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
Ephesians 2:18 (BSB)4Confidence at the throne of grace
God of all grace, we approach Your throne with confidence, not because we are strong but because we need mercy. Meet us with grace to help in our time of need: today’s worry, today’s temptation, today’s decision.
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16 (BSB)
Longing for God Himself
5Seeking Your face
LORD, my heart says, Seek His face, and Your face I will seek. Keep me from wanting only Your gifts, Your answers and Your help. More than anything You could give me, I want You.
My heart said, “Seek His face.” Your face, O LORD, I will seek.
Psalm 27:8 (BSB) · Pray this verse →6Thirsting for the living God
O God, as the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul longs for You. Where my thirst for You has dried up, stir it again. Let me come before You not out of habit, but because I cannot do without You.
For the choirmaster. A Maskil of the sons of Korah. As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul longs after You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, the living God. When shall I come and appear in God’s presence?
Psalm 42:1-2 (BSB)7Better is one day
LORD, one day in Your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. Rearrange my loves, so that time with You stops feeling like something I squeeze in and becomes the best part of my day.
For better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
Psalm 84:10 (BSB)8It is good to draw near
Lord GOD, as for me, it is good to draw near to You. When I see others prosper without You and envy creeps in, bring me back to this: nearness to You is my good, my refuge and the story I want to tell.
But as for me, it is good to draw near to God. I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may proclaim all Your works.
Psalm 73:28 (BSB)
Abiding with Him day by day
9Remaining in Jesus
Lord Jesus, You said, Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. I cannot bear any fruit on my own. Keep me joined to You through Your word, through prayer and through Your people, in busy weeks and slow ones.
Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.
John 15:4 (BSB)10The LORD always before me
LORD, I set You always before me. Bring me back to You through the hours of an ordinary day: on the commute, at my desk, in the kitchen. Because You are at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
I have set the LORD always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
Psalm 16:8 (BSB)11Your Presence going with us
LORD, as Moses prayed, if Your Presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here. We would rather stay where we are with You than move ahead without You. Go with us into every plan, and give us rest.
And the LORD answered, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” “If Your Presence does not go with us,” Moses replied, “do not lead us up from here.
Exodus 33:14-15 (BSB)12Clinging to You in the night
God, when I lie awake through the watches of the night, turn my thoughts to You. You are my help. Let me sing in the shadow of Your wings, let my soul cling to You, and let Your right hand uphold me until morning.
When I remember You on my bed, I think of You through the watches of the night. For You are my help; I will sing for joy in the shadow of Your wings. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.
Psalm 63:6-8 (BSB) · Pray this verse →
Worship and stillness
13Coming before Him with joyful songs
LORD, as our church gathers, let us serve You with gladness and come into Your presence with joyful songs. Keep our worship from becoming a performance or a routine. Let us sing to You, not only about You.
Serve the LORD with gladness; come into His presence with joyful songs.
Psalm 100:2 (BSB) · Pray this verse →14Bowing before our Maker
LORD our Maker, we come to worship and bow down and kneel before You. Give us reverence along with our joy, and let our hearts bow even when our knees cannot.
O come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.
Psalm 95:6 (BSB) · Pray this verse →15A quieted soul
Lord, help me still and quiet my soul, like a weaned child with its mother. I bring so much noise into prayer. Teach me to rest in You without needing to fill every silence with words and requests.
Surely I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with his mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me.
Psalm 131:2 (BSB)
When God feels far
16How long, O LORD?
LORD, sometimes we pray like David: how long will You hide Your face from me? Thank You that You welcome honest prayers. When I cannot sense You, keep me talking to You instead of walking away.
For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long must I wrestle in my soul, with sorrow in my heart each day? How long will my enemy dominate me?
Psalm 13:1-2 (BSB)17Near to the brokenhearted
LORD, You are near to the brokenhearted, whether they feel it or not. Draw close to the grieving, the betrayed and the depressed in our church. Let us be near them too, with meals, visits and patient listening.
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the contrite in spirit.
Psalm 34:18 (BSB) · Pray this verse →18Nowhere beyond Your reach
God, there is nowhere I can go from Your presence: not the heights, not the depths, not the farthest sea. Even there Your hand will guide me and hold me fast. Thank You that I cannot drift beyond Your reach.
Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there. 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 139:7-10 (BSB)19Nothing can separate us
Father, neither death nor life, neither the present nor the future, nor anything else in all creation can separate us from Your love in Christ Jesus our Lord. On the days I feel nothing, let me stand on this.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:38-39 (BSB) · Pray this verse →
His presence in our homes and church
20Making Your home with us
Lord Jesus, You promised that if anyone loves You and keeps Your word, the Father will love him, and You will come and make Your home with him. Make our homes places where You are loved and obeyed, in ordinary moments as much as in family devotions.
Jesus replied, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
John 14:23 (BSB)21A dwelling place for God
Lord, You are building our church together into a dwelling place for God in His Spirit. Fit us together, old and young, newcomers and longtime members, and let our gatherings be marked by Your holiness and Your love.
In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him you too are being built together into a dwelling place for God in His Spirit.
Ephesians 2:21-22 (BSB)22With the humble and contrite
Holy God, You dwell in a high and holy place, and also with the humble and contrite in spirit. Keep our church lowly before You, and restore the spirit of the lowly and revive the hearts of the contrite among us.
For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in a high and holy place, and with the oppressed and humble in spirit, to restore the spirit of the lowly and revive the heart of the contrite.
Isaiah 57:15 (BSB)
A closing prayer
Father, thank You that through Jesus we can draw near to You, and that You draw near to us. We do not ask for a feeling; we ask for You. Keep us in Christ through every ordinary day, quiet our souls before You, hold us fast when You seem far away, and make our homes and our church a dwelling place for You by Your Spirit. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Pray with a voice
Short prayers with a voice to pray along with, each drawn from one passage.
Questions
What does the Bible say about the presence of God?
God is present everywhere (Psalm 139:7-10), yet Scripture also speaks of drawing near to Him. Through Jesus, believers have access to the Father by one Spirit (Ephesians 2:18) and can enter His presence with confidence (Hebrews 10:19-22). The Spirit dwells in His people (1 Corinthians 3:16), and Jesus promised His disciples, “I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20).
What if I don’t feel God’s presence?
You are in good company. Psalms 13, 42 and 88 were written by believers who felt far from God and kept praying anyway. God’s nearness rests on His promise, not on our feelings (Hebrews 13:5). Keep reading Scripture, gathering with your church and praying honestly. If a long season of heaviness will not lift, talk with your pastor and see a doctor as well. If you are thinking about ending your life, call or text 988 in the US.
How can I live aware of God’s presence through the day?
Start small. Set the Lord before you (Psalm 16:8) with a short prayer when you wake, at meals and at bedtime. Pray briefly as you go, as Paul told believers to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Keep a verse on a card or your phone, and end the day by thanking God for the places you saw His care.
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.