Stop Praying for Your Husband

Why would I say sop praying for your husband?

I keep seeing all these pins on Pinterest that promise to help me pray for my hubby in 1,001 different ways. 

But I’ve prayed  for my husband for years. 

I prayed he would be a shining light for Christ, be a patient father, have success at work,….1,001 prayer requests.  

And God has worked – I’ve seen mountains moved.  But that all changed last month. 

I quit. 

I quit praying for my husband and now pray with him.

Praying together is something we talked about for a long time.  One of us would look at the other and say, “I really think it would be nice if we prayed together.”  

“I’d like that too,” the other would reply. 

And we did pray together… occasionally. 

As much as I wanted to make it a habit, it just felt awkward.  I felt like I was back in middle school, all pimple faced and self-conscious.

I love God.

I love my husband.

So why was praying as a couple just so hard? 

I want to be a light for Christ and boldly proclaim His name to others, yet I couldn’t even sit with Husband and pray! 

“What kind of a Christian am I?” I began asking myself.

How we began praying together

So how did we actually make the leap and make daily prayer together a habit?

Don’t forget how Husband and I like to spend our date nights. One of those religious inspirations we like to watch helped that prayer come into our lives.

I didn’t want to say anything, feeling awkward again, but I grounded myself in the truth of my husband’s total acceptance and said, “Let’s pray together.”

And we did. 

Right then, right there.  No waiting for a better time, but jumping in head first. 

That awkwardness crept in again, but we prayed anyway. 

And we did it the next night (still awkward). 

The next (just a smidge less awkward). 

And we’ve been doing it every night since.

Our prayer times have slowly lost some of the awkwardness.  I’d be lying if I said it is all angels singing and alleluias now, but it has definitely become more enjoyable.

Those prayers have born much fruit in our relationship with God and with each other.

Struggling to get your man on board? You may want to read my answer to a reader struggling with this very thing.

7 reasons to begin praying with your husband

You defeat the Devil. 

Who do you think was whispering the lies that prevented us from praying together? Who creates that awkardness around something so natural?

You make yourself vulnerable to one another. 

Isn’t that a lot of what marriage is about?  I find it attractive when Husband makes himself vulnerable in front of me.  It shows that he trusts me enough to let his guard down.

You gain confidence in your marriage and spouse. 

Letting my own guard down every night and being accepted by my husband reminds me how blessed I am to have such a wonderful man and a beautiful marriage.

You learn your spouse’s heart.

As we pray, we open up our inner selves. I learn about what is weighing on Husband’s heart and what brings him joy.

You hear one another’s prayer for each other. 

I know my husband has always prayed for me, but actually hearing myself being lifted in prayer is so strengthening and comforting.  It really is about loving each other in the little things.

Your prayer life will grow. 

Praying together means you will pray more and that is an extremely good thing!  You may just learn a thing or two from the way your husband prays.

You grow in your ability to pray with others. 

If you can’t pray with your husband, how do you expect to pray with others?

Still too awkward?

There really is an imaginary hump to jump over when you start praying together. 

Make it easy on yourself and begin with some rote prayers like a simple Our Father or how about taking up the Rosary in a Month challenge as a couple?

We’ve also found it helpful to use the prayers of the Church to guide our prayer time together.

Evening prayer with it’s praise, adoration, thanksgiving, contrition, and petition makes a beautiful springboard for vocal prayer as a couple. (We use the Magnificat for this.)

When all else fails, pray about praying together.  Bring your hesitations to God and He will transform your heart.

You will be rewarded.  Your joint prayers will frustrate the devil and bring a smile to Jesus’s face!

So are you ready to make that leap of faith and start praying with your husband? 

If you want to grow in your faith more you’ll enjoy these posts:

Busy Mama’s Guide to Learning about Catholicism

How to Start Praying with Your Husband

Loving Your Husband in the Little Things

Perfect Date Night In

10 Books that Shaped my Conversion to the Catholic Church