This prayer is for a missionary, someone who has left home to serve God in another place, often across a language, culture, or ocean. It is meant for the moments when you want to lift that person up but are not sure where to begin. Pray it at your kitchen table, during a quiet walk, or on the day a prayer letter arrives. You can read it aloud exactly as written, or use it as a starting point and speak more personally as your heart leads.
Prayer for a Missionary
Lord, thank you for sending this servant into a place that is new, hard, and full of people who need to hear about you. We ask that you go before them into every unfamiliar street, market, and clinic. Give them rest when they are worn out, and steady their hands when the work feels too large. When they are lonely for family, remind them that you have not left them, and let them feel the nearness of your presence in ordinary moments.
Protect them and their family from harm, sickness, and discouragement. Open doors for the gospel that no one can shut, and soften the hearts of those who have not yet listened. Give them the right words in a language they are still learning, and give the listeners ears to hear. Provide for their daily needs, for food, housing, funds, and wisdom, so that their attention stays on you and on the people you have called them to love. Keep their faith strong and their joy fresh, even when results come slowly. We trust you with the outcome. Amen.
A Shorter Version to Pray in a Moment
Father, watch over the missionary we are thinking of right now. Go with them through the day ahead, give them strength for what is in front of them, and keep them close to you. Open the hearts of the people they serve, and let your truth take root there. Comfort them where they are far from home, and bring them safely through whatever lies ahead. Amen.
Scriptures to Pray Alongside
Isaiah 52:7
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
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Pray this for the missionary’s feet, that they would carry good news into places where it has not yet been heard. Ask God to make their steps beautiful in his sight, even when the road is long and dusty.
Matthew 28:19-20
19 Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I commanded you. Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
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This is Jesus’ own commission to the disciples. Pray that your missionary would remember they are not sent alone, and that the risen Lord is with them in every season of the work.
Psalm 121:7-8
7 The LORD will keep you from all evil. He will keep your soul. 8 The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in, from this time forward, and forever more.
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Use this psalm to ask for protection as they come and go. Pray that the Lord would guard their going out and their coming in, both now and for the years to come.
2 Corinthians 12:9
He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Most gladly therefore I will rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest on me.
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Missionaries often feel their weakness most keenly. Pray that they would discover the sufficiency of God’s grace right where they feel least able, and that his strength would show clearly through their limits.
Romans 10:14-15
14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in him whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher? 15 And how will they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the Good News of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!”
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Paul connects sending with hearing and believing. Pray that the people your missionary serves would have someone to hear from, and that the messengers God sends would be welcomed with gladness.
How to Pray This Prayer
Choose a regular time to pray for your missionary, such as during your morning coffee or before you go to sleep. Keep a note with their name, their country, and their current needs, and update it when a letter or message arrives. Many people find it helps to pray with an open map or photo of the place in front of them, so that their prayers stay concrete.
You can also invite others to pray with you. Share the prayer with a small group, your church’s mission committee, or your family, and ask them to pray on a set day each week. Some people like to write out a short verse on a card and place it where they will see it while working. Whatever rhythm you choose, keep praying faithfully, because your missionary is counting on the support of those who stayed behind.
A Blessing to Close
May the Lord bless and keep the one he has sent. May he make his face shine on them in the places where they serve, and give them peace that goes beyond understanding. May they be encouraged by the prayers of those who love them, and may they know that they are never far from the heart of God.
