This page offers prayers you can pray at a small group gathering, whether it meets in a living room, a classroom, a church basement or on a video call. Pray the main prayer aloud at the start of your time together, or read the shorter version when the group has already settled in. You can also use these words as a starting point and speak in your own language once you have found your footing.
Prayers for a Small Group Gathering
Lord, thank you for bringing us together tonight. Some of us came straight from work with tired shoulders and a full mind. Others came carrying news we have not yet told anyone, or a worry we have been turning over since breakfast. Quiet our hurry and make room for what you want to do among us. Help us to be honest here, so that we do not pretend to be stronger than we are.
Father, be present in the conversation as much as in the silences. Keep our words kind and our listening patient. Where someone is grieving, give them a safe place to say so without being rushed toward answers. Where someone is confused about what they believe, give the rest of us humility and gentleness rather than quick advice. Let no one leave this room feeling like a burden or a stranger.
Teach us to speak to one another with the same care we want from you. Keep what is shared here private and precious, and give us the courage to pray for each other by name when we part. Bind us together in love that lasts longer than this evening. We ask all of this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
A Shorter Version to Pray in a Moment
Lord, we are gathered in your name, and we ask you to meet us here. Slow our words and open our hearts. Help us to listen well to one another and to speak only what is true and kind. Hold each person in this circle, especially those who are hurting tonight. We trust you with what we cannot carry alone. Amen.
Scriptures to Pray Alongside
Matthew 18:20
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the middle of them.”
(WEB)
Read this before you begin, and let it remind the group that the gathering itself matters. Thank Jesus that he has promised to be present wherever two or three come together in his name, and ask him to make that presence felt in the room.
Psalm 133:1
See how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to live together in unity!
(WEB)
Pray this verse for the unity of the group, asking that differences in personality, opinion and history would not divide you. Ask God to make the time together a place where brothers and sisters genuinely enjoy one another.
Romans 12:15
Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep.
(WEB)
Use this verse when someone shares joy or sorrow. Ask God to help the group rejoice fully with those who rejoice and grieve honestly with those who grieve, without rushing past either.
Galatians 6:2
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
(WEB)
Pray this over the practical needs people bring, whether a job loss, a sick parent or a long season of loneliness. Ask the Lord to show the group how to carry one another’s burdens in specific, concrete ways.
Philippians 4:6-7
6 In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.
(WEB)
Pray this when anxiety fills the room. Invite everyone to lay their requests before God together, trusting that his peace can guard hearts and minds even while circumstances remain uncertain.
How to Pray This Prayer
Pray the main prayer near the beginning of your gathering, after a few minutes of greeting and before the main discussion or study. Sitting with hands open on your lap or resting on the table can help everyone settle. If the group is online, ask each person to unmute and say a short word of agreement after each sentence, so the prayer belongs to everyone rather than only to the leader.
Anyone in the group can pray the shorter version, and it works well at the close as well as the start. You might invite a different person each week to lead, or have the group pray it together in unison. Ask one person to write down the requests that come up during the time, so you can pray for them again at the next meeting.
A Blessing to Close
May the Lord bless each person who gathered here tonight and keep them safe as they travel home. May his face shine on them and give them peace in the hours ahead. May the friendship formed in this room grow deeper with every meeting, and may each one know that they are seen, known and loved.
