The Power of a Praying Wife: Week One

A few months ago my husband and I returned from our church leadership retreat. I felt burdened to pray for my husband more following that weekend, that we as the wives of our church leadership team should pray for our husbands more. I pray for Joe daily but I felt God saying "you need to pray for him in a deeper way". I purchased this book "The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian a few weeks ago (everything bolded in the deep red is from this book. I am only taking but a small part from her chapters. I recommend adding this book to your library!). As I read the beginning, I felt as if it was written for women who may be struggling in their marriage. It has hard to read some of the words coming from a failed marriage and now living in a dream marriage. However, the deeper I read into this book, the more I knew that the key areas of a man's life as identified in these chapters and the "power tools" of scripture Stormie gives us will indeed make stronger even the best marriages-such as the one I live in (thank you God!). So, for my married friends, I feel a need to post this.


Each week I will post for you a topic a day to pray for your husband. Don't just pray it once. Pray it all throughout your day. Write it on a 3X5 card and place it where you will see it frequently and be reminded to pray for him. Then pray all of them over the weekend as a review. If you have time, journal your thoughts on each topic. Your husband doesn't need to know what you are praying...this can be between you and God but keep your eyes open for blessings and answered prayers in these areas. As we all know and have come to learn, some answers do not come immediately so be patient. Persevere in this love act of praying for your man. As you do so, you will notice your own heart change and if you thought you couldn't love him more than you do...you will! So here we go...


Day one: His Wife

His wife? You? Why? Because as Stormie puts it "One of the greatest gifts you can give your husband is your own wholeness. The most effective tool in transforming him may be your own transformation". Before you approach God asking Him to change your husbands imperfections and possible irritating habits, you must first ask God to change you, to change your heart towards your husband if it is not where God would have it and to reveal any sin you might have in your life, especially in regards to your husband. OUCH! "Our goal must not be to get our husbands to do what we want, but rather to release them to God so He can get them to do what He wants." So how might you pray today? Taken from Stormie's prayer and Galatians 5:23 & 23:

Lord, help me to be a good wife. I fully realize that I don't have what it takes to be one without Your help. Take my selfishness, impatience, and irritability and turn them into kindness, long-suffering, and the willingness to bear all things. Take my old emotional habits, mindsets, automatic reactions, rude assumptions, and self-protective stance, and make me patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled. take the hardness of my heart and break down the walls with Your battering ram of revelation. Give me a new heart and work in me Your love, peace, and joy. I am not able to rise above who I am at this moment. Only You can transform me."

Day Two: His Work

If there is one thing our husbands need when it comes to work it's the the ability to find balance. Some of you have husbands who are over achievers and may never be home as they climb the ladder of success. Others may find their husbands unemployed and are dealing with the emotional and financial baggage that comes with that. From Stormie's prayer and the books of Romans and Psalm, today lets pray:

Lord, I pray You would bless the work of my husbands hands. May his labor bring not only favor, success, and prosperity, but great fulfillment as well...

Give him strength, faith, and a vision for the future...

Look over his work and may he bring You into every aspect of it...

and show me what I can do to encourage him.

May he not be lagging in diligence [but] fervent in spirit, serving the Lord (Rom. 12:11). Let him be like a tree planted by the streams of Your living water, which brings forth fruit in due season. May he never wither under pressure, but grow strong and prosper (Ps. 1:3)

Day Three: His Finances

Money has a powerful grip in the making of a man-it can effect his view, his mood, and his overall well-being. We need to help our husbands in this area by praying that God will help him and you to get a grip on God's will for your life in the way of finances. this in turn can prevent a few sour moments in your marriage. As Stormie stated "Your prayers will certainly help protect your husband from unnecessary struggle and loss." This day we pray....

Lord, help us both to be good stewards of all that You give us, and walk in total agreement as to how it is to be dispersed...show me how I can help our finances and not decrease them unwisely. Help us to remember that all we have belongs to you, and to be grateful for it. I pray that my husband will not be anxious about finances, but will seek Your kingdom first, knowing that as he does, we will have all we need (Luke 12:31). For through you Lord, are all my supplies and needs met according to Your riches (Phil 4:19).

Day Four: His Sexuality & His Affections

We are hitting a top priority here in our man's life. Stormie stated "There is probably no more important means of fulfillment for a man, and no area where he is more vulnerable". Sexual immorality is very much alive and well. Pornography and all the other temptations that they face, sometimes on a daily basis, has ruined many marriages. Praying for the safety of our marriage and the protection of our intimacy is necessary...

Lord, bless my husband's sexuality and make it an area of great fulfilment for him. Protect us from apathy, disappointment, criticism, busyness, unforgiveness, deadness, or disinterest. I pray that we make time for one another, communicate our true feelings openly, an remain sensitive to what each other needs. May our relationship be continually new and alive. Make it all that You created it to be. May we glorify God in our body and in our spirit, which is Yours Lord (I cor. 6:20). Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being (I Cor. 10:24).

Day Five: His Temptations

The temptations I mentioned earlier deserve a full day. Temptation comes in all forms. Whether big (such as a sexual temptation) or small (taking home something from the office that is not his), it is a sin of the same value in God's eyes. We are tempted daily and and we need Godly strength to walk righteously. Today we pray for our husbands righteousness...

"Lord, I pray that you would strengthen my husband to resist any temptation that comes his way. Make him strong where he is weak. Help him to rise above anything that erects itself a stronghold in his life. May he say, "I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it will not cling to to me (Ps. 101:3). I pray that my husband will not be broken down by the power of evil, but raised up by the power of God. Establish a wall of protection around him. Fill him with your Spirit and flush out all that is not of You. Help him to take charge over his own spirit and have self-control to resist anything and anyone who becomes a lure.

May we pray with a heart sincere for loving our husbands more, not changing them. I hope this series will be a blessing to you, your husband and to our marriages. I would love to hear how this goes for you is you decide to try this prayer walk of love for our husbands!

In Him~MrsJoeB