If you are newly married, or about to be, these short prayers give you words to bring to God in the early days of your life together. Pray them in the morning before the day pulls you apart, in the evening when you are tired and grateful, or whenever you need to hand the marriage back to the Lord. You can read them aloud exactly as written or use them as a starting point and speak in your own words.
Short Prayers for a New Marriage
Lord, thank you for bringing us together. We did not arrive at this day on our own, and we do not want to walk into the years ahead on our own either. Teach us to listen well to each other, to speak with patience, and to forgive quickly when we get things wrong, because we will. Help us learn each other’s habits, fears and joys without rushing to judge them.
Father, we ask for humility in the small decisions as well as the large ones: how we spend money, how we spend our evenings, which family we visit first at Christmas. Keep us from keeping score. Give us the willingness to put the other person first when it costs us something, and the sense to notice when one of us is carrying more than we are saying. Guard our hearts against bitterness and our words against cruelty. Let our home be a place of peace, and let it reflect your faithfulness to us. Amen.
A Shorter Version to Pray in a Moment
Lord, we are new at this, and we need you. Help us be kind when we are tired, honest when it is hard, and patient when we disagree. Keep our love growing, and keep us close to you and to each other. Thank you that our marriage is held in your hands. Amen.
Scriptures to Pray Alongside
Genesis 2:24
Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother, and will join with his wife, and they will be one flesh.
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Pray this verse as a thanksgiving for the joining of two lives. Ask God to help you leave old patterns behind and to give yourselves to one another fully, trusting that he designed this union for your good.
Ecclesiastes 4:12
If a man prevails against one who is alone, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
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Use this verse to ask God to be the third strand in your marriage. Pray that he would strengthen you both when one of you feels weak, and that your bond would be harder to break because he is at its center.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
4 Love is patient and is kind; love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud, 5 doesn’t behave itself inappropriately, doesn’t seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; 6 doesn’t rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
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Read this passage slowly and let each quality become a request. Ask the Lord to form patience, kindness and endurance in you both, especially in the ordinary moments when love is tested rather than felt.
Ephesians 4:2-3
2 With all lowliness and humility, with patience, bearing with one another in love; 3 being eager to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
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Pray this verse over the way you speak to each other during conflict. Ask for gentleness, humility and a readiness to keep the peace, so that unity grows out of the way you handle disagreement.
Psalm 127:1
Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman guards it in vain.
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Bring this verse to God as an admission that your marriage cannot be built by effort alone. Pray that he would be the builder of your home, guiding your plans and steadying your work together.
How to Pray This Prayer
Choose a regular time to pray together, such as before bed or during a short walk after dinner. Sit close, hold hands, or rest a hand on your spouse’s shoulder while one of you reads aloud. Taking turns on the lines helps both voices be heard, and it reminds you that you are partners in this, not competitors.
If you are praying alone, keep the prayer somewhere you will see it, such as on the fridge or in your phone, so you can return to it when you are short on words. You might also invite a trusted friend, a mentor, or your church community to pray for your marriage, since others can lift up what you have not yet found words to say.
A Blessing to Close
May the Lord bless this marriage and keep both of you close to his heart. May he make your love steady, your home warm, and your partnership a quiet witness to his faithfulness, one day at a time.
