Prayer For Expectant Fathers
God, our Father
Bless these men,
that they may find strength as fathers.
Let the example of their faith and love shine forth.
Grant that we, their sons and daughters,
may honor them always
with a spirit of profound respect.
Let us praise those fathers who have striven to balance the demands of work, marriage, and children with an honest awareness of both joy and sacrifice.
Let us praise those fathers who, lacking a good model for a father, have worked to become a worthy and virtuous father.
Let us praise those fathers who, by their own account, were not always there for their children, but who continue to offer those children, now grown, their love and support. As well, let us pray for those fathers who have been wounded by words and actions of their children.
Let us praise those fathers who, despite marital discord, have remained in their children's lives.
Let us praise those fathers whose children are adopted, and whose love and support has nurtured a thriving life.
Let us praise those fathers who, as stepfathers, freely choose the obligation of fatherhood and earned their step children's love and respect.
Let us praise those fathers who have lost a child to death, and continue to hold the child in their heart.
Let us praise those men who have no children, but cherish the next generation as if they were their own.
Let us praise those men who have "fathered" us in their role as mentors and guides.
Let us praise those men who are about to become fathers; may they openly delight in their children.
And let us praise those fathers who have died, but live on in our memory and whose love continues to nurture us.
Heavenly Father,
you entrusted your Son Jesus,
the child of Mary,
to the care of Joseph, an earthly father.
Bless all fathers
as they care for their families.
Give them strength and wisdom,
tenderness and patience;
support them in the work they have to do,
protecting those who look to them,
as we look to you for love and salvation,
through Jesus Christ our rock and defender.
Amen.
Heavenly Father,
Today we ask You to bless our earthly fathers
for the many times they reflected the love, strength, generosity, wisdom and mercy that You exemplify in Your relationship with us, Your children.
We honor our fathers for putting our needs above their own convenience and comfort;
for teaching us to show courage and determination in the face of adversity;
for challenging us to move beyond self-limiting boundaries;
for modeling the qualities that would turn us into responsible, principled, caring adults.
Not all our fathers lived up to these ideals.
Give them the grace to acknowledge and learn from their mistakes.
Give us the grace to extend to them the same forgiveness that you offer us all.
Help us to resist the urge to stay stuck in past bitterness,
instead, moving forward with humility and peace of heart.
We ask your blessing on those men who served
as father figures in our lives
when our biological fathers weren't able to do so.
May the love and selflessness they showed us
be returned to them in all their relationships,
and help them to know that their influence
has changed us for the better.
Give new and future fathers the guidance they need
to raise happy and holy children,
grounded in a love for God and other people -
and remind these fathers that treating their wives
with dignity, compassion and respect is
one of the greatest gifts they can give their children.
We pray that our fathers who have passed into the next life
have been welcomed into Your loving embrace,
and that our family will one be day be reunited in your heavenly kingdom.
In union with St. Joseph,
whom you entrusted with Your Son,
we ask Your generous blessings today and every day.
Amen.
We give our thanks, Creator God, for the fathers in our lives.
Fatherhood does not come with a manual, and reality teaches us that some fathers excel while others fail.
We ask for Your blessings for them all and forgiveness where it is needed.
This Father's Day we remember the many sacrifices fathers make for their children and families, and the ways--both big and small--they lift children to achieve dreams thought beyond reach.
So too, we remember all those who have helped fill the void when fathers pass early or are absent; grandfathers and uncles, brothers and cousins, teachers, pastors and coaches and the women of our families.
For those who are fathers, we ask for wisdom and humility in the face of the task of parenting. Give them the strength to do well by their children and by You.
In Your Holy name, O God, we pray.
Amen.
Dear Father,
I know you see your beloved one, your beloved son gazing for the first time into the eyes of a little soul who will one day call him daddy. I know you see him and rejoice with him as tears brim in his eyes and as he holds that little one close and as his heart expands in every direction. I know you see how he tenderly brushes his newborn's cheeks with just the tips of his fingers and plants soft, gentle kisses on baby's forehead. I know you see how he marvels that the tiny being whose kicks he used to see bump up and down from his wife's belly is here, is touchable, tangible, real. Thank you for giving him this sweet, sweet gift that suddenly puts the whole world into perspective.
I know you see your son as he tries his hardest to be a good partner for his wife in these early days. I pray that you can equip him to be her strength physical and emotional as she navigates through the labyrinth of postpartum recovery. Fill him with supernatural patience, kindness, and understanding as he sees a side of his wife, his new mama-bear wife, that he has never known before now. Give him endurance through the long nights and the ability to encourage his wife in just the right way. Equip him to be her biggest cheerleader.
Dear God give your son everything he needs to parent this child's unique heart. Maybe this baby will grow up to be just like him same interests, same vices, same personality bents. But if this child is very different, give him a heart that desires to know this little one and what makes them tick, what makes their heart sing, what fills their eyes with tears. Set his heart ablaze with exactly all the ways he needs to customize his life's approach to parent this little one's heart. Help him to see just how important it is to be a safe place for that child's heart to land.
I pray that this man will be the best father he can be to this new little one. I pray that he will draw from the goodness in all the strong male figures he has known and be the best version of himself for this little person. I pray that he will not be discouraged if his own father did not lead well or live worthy of emulation, but that he will know he can walk apart from what he saw growing up. I pray that he knows that he can look to You as the ultimate example of a strong, just, loving, and sacrificial father. Equip him to be the father he desires to be, the one his child needs him to be.
I pray Lord that you would give him the humility to recognize that, apart from you, he cannot lead his family well. I ask that he would seek what is best for his wife and child through prayer, through wise counsel, and through what You reveal as he spends time in Your word. Father, you tell us that your word will never return void and so I pray that this man will fill his mind with your truths, with the scriptures that will be the very sword with which he will battle the enemy, the one who seeks to swallow his family up into the darkness of this world. Motivate him and equip him to build his paternal foundation on the solid rock that will not be moved.
Father God, the world tells us that more and bigger and busy is better. Give your son the wisdom to know when to say no to more work hours, to more activities, to one more night out with the guys. Give him wisdom and discretion with his time because babies don't keep. And give him wisdom and discretion with his finances for the good of the future of his sweet new baby and dear wife. Equip him with eyes to see that sometimes, oftentimes, small, quiet, and modest are the best ways to live.
And, above all Father, in this broken world that is cruel and unforgiving at times, give this new daddy comfort in what your Child has given so that his child can be promised an eternity of perfection and peace. Give this father faith and trust in you, that you have a plan for his baby, and one that guarantees the title of best. Help him to live in a way that is mindful of the life after life so that it can be modeled for this child in his care. Give him eyes to live in light of eternity and let all the peripherals to fall into perspective because of it.
I pray these things in your Son's name, Amen.
Oh God,
I praise you for the blessing parents with children and for the joy, as well as heartache that they bring to our lives.
Lord, I pray that you would prepare (father-to-be) to accept fatherhood with open arms and to give him conviction to raise the baby in a Godly way.
Give him the endless patience that is needed with new babies and help him to be the leader and provider for his children.
I pray that you would send the Holy Spirit to help him with the unknown territory that comes with having a new baby.
Help him to be the greatest helper to his expecting wife and to be strong for her and help her through her delivery.
Lastly, Father, I pray that would wrap your arms around the baby and bring him/her safely into this world.
Thank you, Lord.
For I pray these things in your heavenly and precious name - Amen.
Dear Heavenly Father,
I come to you today to lift up (name) in his time of need. Thank you for the impending fatherhood that waits just months away for him. Thank you for blessing him and his wife with a child.
Lord, please saturate his mind and heart with your abundant peace. Help him to feel your presence and guiding hand. Forgive him when anxiety, fear, and doubt begins to creep into his heart. I pray that he would give all of his concerns to you, Father.
Help him to be attentive to the needs of his wife during the pregnancy and after the birth. Prepare him for the delivery of his child and help him to step up to the plate when she goes into labor. Please show him the beauty of seeing his child coming into this world. I pray for a safe delivery.
Please place in him a strong desire to pray with his wife and be the spiritual leader he needs to be over her and his children. Give him the wisdom to be the kind of leader you desire in him.
Grow his desire to know you and become closer to you.
I pray Father that you would light the path that is before him to be a good father to his child. Help him to be a Godly example for his family and be able to raise his children according to your teachings. I pray for the salvation of his unborn child. Lord, please claim the heart of this child and lead them to you so they may have everlasting, eternal life.
Sometimes, new fathers get shoved to the side when the baby is born. Father, I pray that this does not happen to him. Create a sense of inclusion with everyone that celebrates the new baby.
Please don't let his manly pride become an obstacle in being gentle in his care for the new baby.
Show him that it's ok to change a diaper, to show emotion, and to fully take in this new life he now holds in his arms.
I pray that this same softness continues on through his child's life.
Thank you, Father, for him, for his unborn child, and for his wife. For I pray these things in Jesus' name, Amen.