20 Opening Prayers Perfect for
Meetings, Church, and Events
Meg BucherWriter and Author
20198 Nov
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“Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in
your prayers for all believers everywhere.” Ephesians 6:18 NLT
Whether you are headed into a work meeting that needs guidance and wisdom
or are gathering as a small group or church, these opening prayers will set your
focus on God's will. These simple and short prayers will help you invite the Holy
Spirit into your heart and minds and bless your time together.
Instead of back-building worry and anxiety as we attempt to forecast an
unknown future, Paul begs us to “Pray about everything in every way you know
how!” (Ephesians 6:18 VOICE). Stop to consider what the situations of our daily
lives might look like if we paused to pray into them and about them more
feverishly. Whether you are starting a business meeting, church service, or family
event you can use these prayers to join together to ask God for guidance and
blessing.
Prayer can change our situation. It can move the heart of God. And I believe
sometimes prayer allows us to understand our situations, rather than affect the
outcome. Our hearts change as we seek God’s wisdom and Truth.
Download our free PDF of helpful Prayers for Guidance HERE. Save them to
your phone or print them to use before meetings and events!
King David, living in OT times, did not experience prayer the way we do today.
Yet, even He knew that true peace came only from God. In Psalm 3, as he faces
yet another terrifying and humiliating season of his life, he chooses to focus on
God’s character and faithfulness. “O Lord, how many are my foes! How many rise
up against me! Many are saying of me, ‘God will not deliver him.’ But you are a
shield around me, O Lord; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.” Psalm
3:1-3 NIV
Here are powerful opening prayers to help focus our efforts on striving for
the peace that transcends all understanding. Use them to begin asking God
to bless and guide your time together!
An Opening Prayer for a Meeting
Father,
Thank You for every seat that has been filled here, today. For each mind and heart that fills
the presence of this room, we thank You. Only You truly know what we are setting out to
accomplish today. We have an idea, a vision, hints, and daily instructions. We have talents,
abilities, and time to work. However, only You can see in perfect detail the end of every
beginning. Every project, every season, every life. Nothing is ever in vain, for even mistakes
and missteps are used for good.
Your righteousness transcends all our efforts and understanding. Forgive us for our pride.
The pride that puffs us up and the pride that threatens to unqualify us. Strengthen our
confidence in who You have made us to be. Set us free from comparison in order to work
together efficiently.
Bless this meeting today, all those present, as well as the lives of those we will encounter
afterward. Ready us to make every moment count. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
A Prayer of Gratitude
Dear God, Thank you for your amazing power and work in our lives, thank you for your
goodness and for your blessings over us. Thank you that you are Able to bring hope
through even the toughest of times, strengthening us for your purposes. Thank you for your
great love and care. Thank you for your mercy and grace. Thank you that you are always
with us and will never leave us. Thank you for your incredible sacrifice so that we might have
freedom and life.
Forgive us for when we don't thank you enough, for who you are, for all that you do, for all
that you've given. Help us to set our eyes and our hearts on you afresh. Renew our spirits,
fill us with your peace and joy. We love you and we need you, this day and every day. We
give you praise and thanks, for You alone are worthy!
In Jesus' Name, Amen. (Debbie McDaniel)
Image credit: ©Getty Images/Rawpixel
A Prayer to Open an Event
Father, Praise You for this event, and Your purpose for it. We know that when we gather
together, You always have a divine agenda. We love You for that, Father. That even when we
have done what You have asked, the results are so much greater than we ever could have
imagined. Even in failed attempts, You blow us away with Your faithfulness to provide what
we need.
Our prayer today is that Your will be done through this event. Take what we have prepared
and multiply our efforts as only You can. Steer our intentions to align with
Your righteous will. Remind us of Your faithful provision when our efforts fail us or fall short.
May all glory go up to You when we reach the finish line and climb over benchmarks.
Blanket us with Your peace today, Father. Keep us physically safe and guard our hearts and
minds from pride and selfishness. Keep love at the forefront of our minds today, and the
guiding light for all we set out to accomplish and celebrate. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
For the Spirit to Work
Dear Lord, as we rise to meet each new day, please let us be filled with Your spirit. Wherever
we go, let us spread love, joy, peace, goodness, and faithfulness. Let us desire to become
more like you and to worship you in all we do. Help us desire these things so much more
than the sin that entices us. Thank you for always going before us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Image credit: ©Pexels/fauxels
An Opening Prayer for Group Humility and Peace
Father, As we gather together, we praise You for this day and Your purpose for it. Reset our
agendas, as we sit in Your presence. For You assure us that where two or more gather in
Your name You are here. Recalibrate our intentions and refocus our hearts. Your will for our
lives does not always reflect our plans. Change them to reflect Your will. Help us to
understand that we don’t need full clarity to walk into the unique purpose You’ve inlaid in
our lives.
Lift our eyes to seek You first today, and always, surrendering our need to achieve,
understand, and be known. Shift our perspective to seek Your peace above all else. In every
situation we ponder in our daily lives, let the Holy Spirit translate Your commands. Give us
renewed strength and godly courage to obey You without questioning. Forgive us for
striving beyond our means, worrying, and forcing results.
Only You know what lies ahead. You are our good Father, just and righteous. Though our
circumstances will be unfair from time to time in this life, You are always our unwavering
protector and shield (Psalm 3:3). Keep the words of King David fresh in our minds, and
renew our hearts to the tune of Your truth.“I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the
Lord sustains me.” Psalm 3:5 NIV Let Your peace rain down on us today, as we seek You
more than anything else. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Against Evil and Temptation
Father God, we praise you for your love and faithfulness towards your children. We praise
you for being a perfect, holy, trustworthy God that is bigger than all the evil we experience
here on earth. We ask that you give us eyes to see when evil is before us, hearts to hate evil
and the desire to flee from its presence. We ask that you would not lead us into temptation,
but deliver us from evil and draw us closer to yourself. We ask for the long-expected Jesus
to come quickly and make all things new. We ask these things His precious name. Amen.
(Beth Ann Baus)
Image credit: Unsplash/Jack Sharp
A Prayer for Group Peace and Understanding
Father, As the events of the day continue to unfold, we seek Your clarity and Your peace. We
know You are with us and for us as we gather together to seek Your counsel. Scripture
reminds us the more we seek You the more we will find You. Lead our surrendered hearts to
the path of Your peace today.
Come fully into our situation, both as a group and individually. And sort out the muddled
feelings and distorted thoughts that plague us. Cover us with a blanket of honesty and
patience that is not of this world.
Holy Spirit, translate our desires and pleadings, and may we understand the faithful
response of our great Father. Jesus walked the earth to explain so much to us, and to save
us from eternal suffering. Yet, on this earth He promised us that we would encounter much
pain.
Struggling for solutions amidst differing personalities can seem impossible. Thankfully, we
are not expected to be perfect. Thankfully, we’re told in the Bible that we will all fall short.
So, as we sit here today, let us release the bind of blame in exchange for accord. Help us to
endure disagreement and strife with godly courage and love. Grant us peace in knowing we
are pursuing Your purpose for our lives. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
A Prayer of Blessing
Dear God,
Thank you for your great love and blessing over our lives. Thank you that your favor has no
end, but it lasts for our entire lifetime. Forgive us for sometimes forgetting that you are
intimately acquainted with all of our ways, that you know what concerns us, and you cover
us, as with a shield. We ask for your guidance so that we might walk fully in your blessing
and goodness today. We ask that your face would shine on us. That you would open the
right doors for our lives and for our loved ones, that you would close the wrong doors and
protect us from those we need to walk away from.
Establish the work of our hands and bring to fulfillment all that you have given us to do in
these days. We pray that you would make our way purposeful and our footsteps firm out of
your goodness and love. Give us a heart of wisdom to hear your voice, and make us strong
by your huge favor and grace. In Jesus name, Amen. (Debbie McDaniel)
Photo credit: © Getty Images/Rawpixel
To Stand Firm
Dear God, We thank you that you hold the victory over sin and death in this world. We
thank you for your redemptive work you’ve done in our lives. We thank you for freedom
and the hope you bring.
Your word says to “stand our ground,” and that’s what we will do, in the power of your
Name. The enemy has no control over us, and we bring your word of Truth as weapon
against his schemes. We know that we do not fight alone, for you are constantly at work on
behalf of your children, shielding, protecting, strengthening, exposing deeds of darkness,
bringing to light what needs to be known, covering us from the cruel attacks we face even
when we’re unaware.
We ask that you would give us wisdom and discernment to recognize the schemes of the
enemy in our lives and to stand strong against his work. We ask that you would remind us
to pray, constantly, for all believers. We ask that you would help us to stay alert in a dark
world that tries hard to make things look “not so bad.” We ask that you would equip us to
be salt and light, that we would be loving and gracious, yet unyielding to sin.
We ask that you help us to remember to put on your armor daily, for you give us all that we
need to stand firm in this day. We thank you that though you remind us in your word that
the whole world lies under the power of the evil one, you are still far greater and we have
overcome, because you have set us free.
We thank you for your truth, “no weapon formed that is formed against you will prosper,”
and that you tell us this is our “heritage” in you, our inherited blessing, place of possession,
and gift straight from your hand. We love you Lord. We need you. We stand together in
your great and powerful Name. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. (Debbie McDaniel)
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Rawpixel
To Renew Our Minds
Lord, help us to study and apply your Word to our lives each day. Help us make this a
discipline of the mind and heart, empowered by Your Spirit, transforming us each day more
and more into your likeness. Help us have self-awareness of when we’re falling into
temptation and turn quickly back to you. Thank you for your tender mercy and love, ever
leading us onward. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen!
A Prayer to Prepare
Father in Heaven, Abba, Yahweh, who delights in His children. Jesus, Messiah, who calls us
friends. Holy Spirit, gift from above and constant companion. Glory be to the One True,
Triune, God! You know when we are lost, Lord. You found us, heaped in our own
motivations and confused by worldly principles. You rescued us, defeating death on the
cross and rising to sit at the right hand of the Father in heaven. Your reach into our everyday
lives, our messy circumstances, forever changes us.
Not one day of our lives is more or less important. No one person more or less loved. In
Your perfect way, You hold the world in balance and our souls in tune. You hear every voice,
every prayer, every cry, and every shout of praise, simultaneously and always! Your ways are
not our ways, but oh, God… please lead us in Your purpose for our lives.
Let Your glory, Light, and Living Water flow from our lives. May all who know us feel the love
You have for all …and the care in which You save the lost. Jesus, in Your Powerful Name we
pray, Amen.
To Embrace and Enjoy Life
Father, Help us to embrace and enjoy the life you’ve given us to live. We are not accidentally
here on earth! Each day we awake to breathe, you faithfully meet us with purpose. Holy
Spirit, faithfully nudge and reminds us that we are children of God, freed from the chains of
sin by Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, and resurrection and assertion to heaven where He is
seated by the Father. Bless our minds to remember and embrace the freedom, hope, joy
and peace we have in Christ. In Jesus name, Amen.
An Opening Prayer of Confession
Gracious Lord, give us the courage to seek forgiveness. Remind us that confession is never a
mistake; it frees us from the chains of the enemy. We know we cannot hide our hearts from
you. Help us to let go of our bitterness and fear, and purify us with the knowledge that you
have taken away every sin. In your name, Amen.
photo credit: GettyImages/Rawpixel
An Opening Prayer for Atonement
Heavenly Father, We are all your children, and you love us in a way we can hardly fathom.
Help us to see past the issues that divide us, and see one another with eyes free of hate. We
have sinned. We have struck at our brothers and sisters with malice in our heart. We have
made enemies of others while claiming to be your disciples. Help us to atone for these sins,
and remember to love our neighbors and we love ourselves. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
To Aim Hearts Toward God
Dear Lord, Thank you that the teachings in Scripture are still relevant to our lives today. Your
Word is “alive and active.” We ask that the Holy Spirit please open our eyes so we may see
anything that is hindering our relationship with you.
Reveal things, people, or attitudes of our hearts that no longer nurture or nourish our walk
with you. Please forgive us for the idols we place above you. Forgive us for not honoring
you with our whole heart.
Forgive our half-hearted devotion and misplaced affections. Continue to guide us and teach
us the truth of your Word. May we not harden our heart when we hear your voice, but rather
circumcise those things of our heart that you’re asking us to remove.
May we become more righteous in your eyes. Thank you for your power and strength of
the Holy Spirit to begin opening the eyes of our heart so our devotion can be solely on you.
We love you, and praise you and your majesty. In Jesus’ Name, Amen (Alisha Headley)
Photo credit: ©GettyImages/Justin Kendra
To Be Unshakeable
God, help us. Where we are weak, make us strong. Where we are wavering, help us lay our
anchor down. May we find strength through knowing you hold us. We no longer need to be
held down by the world's claws. May we believe you are so believable we see your hand in
our everything. May we so fall into your arms of grace, so we never feel the pangs of
condemnation rip us apart. That is not you. And, truly, we want nothing that is not
associated with you - it will only leave us empty. God, you are one that leaves us on full. Not
once, but all the time. God, give us you. Increase our faith; make us into fighters who don't
back down. May we know, strongly, you are what we need to run after. You are the answer
to everything. You are the only way. Tie down our heart into you. Amen. (Kellie Balarie)
To Find Fulfillment in God
Heavenly Father, please help us find fulfillment in your presence. Help us to live in such a
way that our actions serve as a reflection of your own grace and mercy. Teach us to seek
first your Kingdom, in a life that brings glory to your name. Amen.
A Prayer to Glorify God after Group Success
Father, We are here today to celebrate great success! In a world full of chaos and calamity,
we are embracing a moment of triumph in Your name and for Your glory. Once again, we
have experienced the miracle of Your sustenance, as King David so appropriately penned
in Psalm [Link] “You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine
abound.”
Father, our hearts, the very center of our humanity and our souls, are filled by You. In
extreme emotion, this indescribable feeling is even more pronounced. We are aware that we
could not see this great success come to fruition without the individual purpose You have
put in each person here today. Thank You for bringing us together to accomplish this great
feat for Your glory, though the odds were stacked against us as they often are.
Guard our hearts from pride and selfish gain as we celebrate today. Let it fuel our faith in
You as our provider and our sustainer. Filler of our hearts. May all glory for our
achievements go up to You today and always. In Jesus’ Name, Amen
For God's Design
Father, I thank You for our sameness. I thank You that we are brothers and sisters by Your
design. May that truth shape how we view others, but first, may it shape how we view
ourselves. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. (Matt Chandler)
photo credit: ©GettyImages/Molchanovdmitry, Video credits for audio, video, photos: Soundstripe, Storyblocks, LightStock,
ThinkStock
Meg writes about everyday life within the love of Christ on her
blog, [Link] She is a stay-at-home mom, freelance writer, blogger, and
preparing to release her first book, “Friends with Everyone.” She resides in Northern Ohio
with her husband of eleven years, two daughters, and their Golden-doodle.
