Prayer for Strength

Short prayers you can pray right now

When you are worn down, a few honest sentences are enough. God is not weighing your eloquence, and he is not waiting for you to feel stronger before you speak. Pray any of these slowly — more than once if you need to — or let them prompt words of your own.

For strength in weakness: Lord, my strength is spent and I have nothing left to give. Be my strength today. Hold me up when I cannot stand, and carry me through this hour. Amen.

For courage in fear: Father, fear is pressing hard against me. Steady my heart, quiet my mind, and go before me into what I dread. I will not be afraid, for you are with me. Amen.

For endurance in a long trial: God of patience, this burden has been heavy for a long time. Give me strength to keep going one more day, and hope to believe that you are still at work. Amen.

A traditional line, from the ancient prayers of the Church: O God, make speed to save me; O Lord, make haste to help me. Renew my strength, and let me run and not grow weary. Amen.

That last opening line comes from Psalm 70 and has begun the Church's daily prayer for well over a thousand years. Generations of tired people have prayed it before you; you are in good company.

More prayers for strength

If you want to stay a little longer, here are a few more — one drawn from Scripture, one from the historic prayer book of the English church, and two written plainly for this page.

A prayer drawn from Psalm 28:7 — Lord, you are my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in you, and you help me. When my own strength runs out, hold me in yours, and give my heart its song again. Amen.

The Collect for Grace, from the Book of Common Prayer (1662), prayed at Morning Prayer for centuries: O Lord our heavenly Father, Almighty and everlasting God, who hast safely brought us to the beginning of this day; defend us in the same with thy mighty power; and grant that this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all our doings may be ordered by thy governance, to do always that is righteous in thy sight; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For strength in illness (an original prayer): Lord Jesus, you know what it is to be tired in body. I bring you mine — the weakness, the waiting, the long nights. Give me strength for today only; I will ask again tomorrow. Stay near me, and let me rest in your keeping. Amen.

For a caregiver's strength (an original prayer): Father, I am carrying someone I love, and my arms are tired. Renew my patience, guard my tenderness, and give me strength to keep showing up without disappearing myself. Carry us both. Amen.

What Scripture says about strength

The Bible returns again and again to the promise that God strengthens the weary. One of the clearest is spoken through the prophet Isaiah:

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31, KJV)

Notice that the strength comes to those who wait — who keep turning back to God rather than relying only on themselves. Praying this verse back to God is itself a way of waiting on him.

The psalms say the same thing in the present tense: God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1, KJV) A very present help — not distant, not delayed until you have pulled yourself together, but present in the trouble itself.

Scripture is also honest that human strength genuinely fails. My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. (Psalm 73:26, KJV) The psalmist does not pretend his heart is fine. He admits it is failing, and leans his whole weight on God anyway. You are allowed to do both at once.

When Paul begged for a painful trial to be taken away, the answer he received was not removal but presence: My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9, KJV) Weakness, in other words, is not disqualifying. It is the very place God's strength does its work.

And Paul's famous line — I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me (Philippians 4:13, KJV) — was written from prison, about learning to be content in hunger and in plenty. It is not a slogan for winning; it is the testimony of a man being held together in hardship. That is the strength this page is asking for.

How and when to pray for strength

There is no wrong time. Many people pray for strength first thing in the morning, before the day's demands arrive, and again at night when weariness is honest and close. A short prayer whispered in the middle of a hard moment — in the car, in a hospital corridor, in the seconds before a difficult conversation — counts just as much as a long one.

Keep it simple. Name what is draining you — the illness, the grief, the conflict, the exhaustion — and ask plainly for what you need. Naming it matters: vague prayers keep God at arm's length, while honest ones let him into the actual room where you are struggling. Then sit quietly for a moment and breathe. Strength often comes not as a sudden surge but as the quiet ability to take the next step.

If words are hard to find, repeat a single line, such as Be my strength, Lord, in rhythm with your breathing. Returning to the same short prayer through the day builds a steady thread of trust — a way of staying connected to God without needing energy you do not have.

How to pray when you can't

Sometimes the reason you need strength is the same reason you cannot pray. You are too exhausted, too frightened, or too flattened by what has happened to form sentences. Christians have always known this state, and the tradition has prayers built for it.

The simplest is a breath prayer: a line short enough to ride on your breathing. Breathe in slowly on Lord, be my strength; breathe out on I have none of my own. Or simply breathe in on Lord and out on help me. No performance, no effort — just turning toward God at the pace of your own lungs.

Eastern Christians have prayed the Jesus Prayer this way for many centuries: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Repeated slowly, it asks for everything you need without requiring you to explain anything. When you cannot compose a prayer, you can still say a name.

Lament is prayer too. Nearly a third of the psalms are cries of complaint, and Scripture keeps them on purpose: How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me? (Psalm 13:1, KJV) If what you have for God right now is anger, confusion, or how long — bring exactly that. Honesty before God is not a failure of faith; in the Bible, it is one of faith's oldest forms.

And when even that is too much, Scripture says the praying is not finally up to you: the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities... the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. (Romans 8:26, KJV) A wordless sigh, offered in God's direction, is heard as prayer.

Praying this with others, or over someone

Strength is one of the easiest things to ask other people to pray for, because you do not have to explain everything. A simple message — I'm running on empty, would you pray for strength for me this week? — invites real help without demanding a full account. Letting others carry you in prayer is not weakness; it is how the body of Christ is meant to work.

If you are praying over someone else — a sick friend, a weary spouse, a child facing something hard — keep it plain and warm. A hand on the shoulder, if welcome, and a few sentences: Lord, give them your strength today. Hold what they cannot hold, carry what they cannot carry, and let them know they are not alone. Amen. Using the person's name makes the prayer land. You do not need to fix anything with your words; you are simply standing with them before God.

One gentle note: if your strength has been gone for a long time — the kind of depletion that looks like deep exhaustion, hopelessness, or depression — talking with a doctor or counselor is not a detour from faith but an act of wisdom. Prayer accompanies good care; it was never meant to replace it.

How different traditions pray for strength

Christians across traditions all bring weakness to God, but the habits differ, and borrowing from them can help when your own words run out. Catholics often turn to the psalms of the Liturgy of the Hours, which open daily with that same ancient cry, O God, come to my assistance; O Lord, make haste to help me — and many also ask Mary and the saints to pray alongside them, the way you might ask a trusted friend.

Orthodox Christians reach for the Jesus Prayer, often prayed slowly on a knotted prayer rope, letting repetition do what concentration cannot. Anglicans and Lutherans lean on the set prayers of the Daily Office — collects like the Collect for Grace above — trusting words the Church has tested for centuries to carry them when their own fail.

Reformed Christians have historically prayed and sung the psalms themselves, finding in them permission for every register from praise to protest, while many evangelical and Baptist believers pray extemporaneously — talking to God plainly, in their own words — and store up memorized verses like Isaiah 40:31 or Philippians 4:13 to reach for in the hard moment. None of these is the right way; they are different doors into the same room.

Praying for strength with Bosko

You do not have to carry it alone, and you do not have to pray it perfectly. If you would like company in prayer, Bosko offers a quiet space to pray for strength — daily Scripture readings, a guided prayer library, and an AI companion grounded in your Christian tradition that can pray with you and point you to verses when your own words run dry. Whether you have five minutes or thirty seconds, it meets you where you are.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good short prayer for strength?

Try: Lord, I am weak; be my strength today. Hold me up when I cannot stand, and carry me through this hour. Amen. Short, honest prayers are enough — God hears the heart behind them, not the word count. If even that feels like too much, a single repeated line such as Be my strength, Lord counts fully as prayer.

Which Bible verse is best for strength?

Isaiah 40:31 is a favorite: they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength. Psalm 46:1 (God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble), Philippians 4:13, Psalm 73:26, and 2 Corinthians 12:9 (my strength is made perfect in weakness) are also widely prayed. Reading one slowly and praying it back to God in your own words is a simple, ancient practice.

What psalm is for strength?

Psalm 46 is the classic psalm for strength — God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalm 28 (the LORD is my strength and my shield), Psalm 73:26, and Psalm 121 (I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills) are also prayed often. When you feel abandoned rather than just tired, Psalm 13 gives you honest words for that too.

How do I pray when I feel too weak or distressed to pray?

Keep it to a few words repeated with your breathing — Be my strength, Lord — or pray the ancient Jesus Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me. Lament is also real prayer; you can tell God plainly that you are angry, empty, or afraid. And Romans 8:26 promises that when you have no words at all, the Spirit prays for you. A sigh turned toward God is heard.

Can I pray for strength for someone else?

Yes. Name the person and ask God to uphold them: Lord, strengthen my friend in this trial; hold what they cannot hold, and let them know they are not alone. Amen. If you are with them, praying those words aloud over them — simply and briefly — can be a great comfort. Praying for others is a deep act of love, and Scripture urges it constantly.

When should I pray for strength, and is it okay to keep asking?

Anytime — morning before the day begins, night when you are tired, or right in the middle of a hard moment. And yes, keep asking. Jesus explicitly taught persistent prayer, and returning to God again and again is not nagging or weak faith — it is trust. Many people find that asking daily, for that day only, is exactly the rhythm the prayer is meant to have.