How to Pray When You Don’t Know What to Say

What are we supposed to do when we don't know what to pray? Just make it up. Well, that doesn't seem sincere. Not say anything at all. Well, that feels awkward. And we certainly don’t want to stop praying. So today, I’m sharing 7 ways to pray when you’ve run out of words and don’t know what to say. Enjoy!

My husband and I often debate on who talks more in our relationship, me or him. I'd say he talks more. And he says, I talk more. He usually wins this debate by pointing out the fact that I do talk for a living as a speaker, YouTuber, and Bible teacher.

I have many opportunities to talk and I usually always have something to say.  Still, there are times, although very few, where I don't have anything to say and I find myself speechless. 

When it comes to our relationship with God, we may find ourselves in a similar situation in our prayer time. Sometimes we have all the things to say and other times not knowing what to say at all. What do we do when we don’t know what to pray?

Here are 5 ways to keep praying when you find yourself at a loss for words, and you don’t know what to say. 

1. Pray God’s Word

The first thing I want to encourage you to do is to pray God's Word. Praying God's word simply means looking to the Bible to find the language you need for your own prayer life. Here's what that looks like:

Choose a scripture in the Bible and read it. Ask yourself:

• What promise does this scripture give for me to believe? 
• What lesson does this scripture give for me to learn?
• What command does this scripture give for me to follow? 

Then you're going to want to use that promise, lesson, or command that you pulled out of the scripture to guide your prayer. So you'll pray for the faith to believe the promise, the wisdom to live by the lesson, or the strength to follow the command.

The scriptures then provide the framework for your prayer. So let's put this into action and use an actual example. Let's look at Philippians 4:6 which reads:

So in this scripture, I see a command and a promise. The command is do not be anxious. This is not a suggestion, but a command: do not be anxious. Instead, we are commanded to pray and remain thankful. 

We also see a promise attached to the command. When I choose not to become anxious, I'm promised the peace of God. So we have two things. We can pray for the strength not to be anxious and the grace to experience God's peace, when we choose instead to pray and be thankful.

So your prayer may sound like this: 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that I do not have to live with anxiety. I pray for a mind to remember, to pray and be thankful. Instead of being anxious, I pray for strength to trust You and not anxiety. I thank You for the peace You grant when I choose faith over fear. In Jesus' name, I pray, Amen. 

I hope you can see by now that this scripture then serves as the outline or framework for your prayer, thus giving you words to pray you may not have had otherwise. 

The benefits of praying God's word are many. For one, praying His word reminds us of His truth. It grants us access to the power we need to live out what we learn when we study the Bible and it ensures we are truly praying for what God desires for us.

2. Pray by the Spirit

The next step we can take to pray when we don't know what to say is to pray by the spirit. A few weeks ago, my husband's grandfather passed away and this really hit my husband hard. He was visibly and deeply hurt by this loss. As I was cooking dinner one night, my daughter expressed that she didn't like seeing her dad so sad. She said, I want to say something to him, but I don't know what to say. Those sincere and innocent words from my daughter served as a reminder that sometimes the words just aren't there.

I told her that it's okay to feel that way. Sometimes you don't have to say anything; a hug will do.

When it comes to our relationship with God and we find ourselves at a loss for words, it's okay. In times like this, we can pray by the spirit.

Listen to what the Bible tells us in Romans 8:26-27:

I love that the Bible tells us that we don't always know what to pray and you know, prayer isn't always about saying all the right things, as we've mentioned before.  Much of prayer is about being in God's presence. God understands that sometimes we won't have the words and that's why he has gifted us with the holy spirit to intercede on our behalf. When we place our faith in Christ. I know I've personally experienced times where I've been so hurt or so overwhelmed that when it was time for me to sit down and pray, only tears came out.

But you know what? God understands that too. Our prayers may not always be nice words, neatly strung together to form proper sentences and paragraphs. Sometimes our prayer will be our cries and moans to God. It may be us praying in our prayer language and we let the Spirit lead.

As God’s beloved filled with His Holy Spirit, He knows the deepest longings of our hearts, that our mouth sometimes can't formulate the words to say.

3. Ask for Prayer.

The next thing we can do when we don't know what to pray is to ask for prayer from someone else. Sometimes we need help and that is okay. It's okay to allow someone else to give us their strength. I have a trusted friend that when I'm in desperate need, I call or text and ask for prayer. Sometimes I don't even need to tell her exactly what's going on. I simply send a quick text asking for prayer, and I know that she will.

One week last year specifically, as I recovered from a severe injury and was under some of the most brutal spiritual attacks of my life, I reached out to my friend Shade and she would text me prayers. She would give me her words when I didn’t have any. This is what it looks like to cover one another in prayer. To pray for our sister and give them our words when they don’t have the strength to pray themselves.

4. Prayer Journaling 

When you don't know what to pray, I may suggest a prayer journal.  The formal getting on your knees and praying with verbal words isn’t the only way to pray. Maybe when you write, it's easier to process what you want to say and your prayer may come more easily for you in written format. This is also a great way to record your prayers and it affords you the opportunity to look back at previous prayers and thank God for how you can see Him moving in your life, and answering your prayers, a sure encouragement to help you want to keep praying. 

5. Pray for someone else.

If you feel you simply have run out of things to pray for, pray for someone else. I am sure that those in your family or community need prayer. Actually, the Bible instructs us to pray for others. James 5:16 says:

1 Timothy 2:1-2 tells us to pray for our leaders:

After the apostle Paul instructs believers to put on the full armor of God in Ephesians 6:10, he then tells them to pray for one another. He says in Ephesians 6:18:

6. Make a gratitude list.

Praying is not all about saying the right things and making the perfect requests. Much of prayer is our thanking God for all He has done in our lives. When we take time to just be grateful, we can turn that into a prayer. When we think of how blessed we are and not only what God has already done for us, but also what He will do for us, we don’t run out of words to say when it’s time to pray. 

7. Listen

Prayer is a two way street. It is us talking to God and Him also talking back to us. We are not called to hold the entire conversation. Running out of words to pray does not mean we need to stop praying, but might be a sign that it’s time to listen. You have the ear of the Father and He does want to hear from you through prayer, but He also wants to speak to you as well. Ensure your prayers include time to hear from Him.

If you've ever felt inadequate because you felt like you didn't have all the right words to say when you pray, I hope that today's video serves as a reminder that God's not looking for perfect and lofty words. He's looking for sincere hearts with the desire to connect with him. Whether that looks like crying your heart out, writing down your prayer or asking someone else to pray for you, please know God is pleased and He hears. We may run out of words, but God never runs out of love for us. So let's keep seeking Him in prayer no matter what that looks like. 

Now I’d love to hear from you, Beloved. What do you do when you’ve run out of words to pray? Let’s encourage one another in the comments. 

Before you go, I want to invite you to download my free 5-day prayer guide so you can put into practice what we’ve learned today about prayer and see how just like breathing, prayer can become a natural life-giving part of your everyday life. Simply click the free resources link in the description of this video. 

For even more Beloved encouragement, be sure to join the Beloved Women app, by downloading our app in the Apple or Google Play stores, or visit belovedwomen.tv for unlimited videos to grow your faith, learn God’s Word, and encourage your soul with your Beloved sisters all over the world.