10 Powerful Prayers for Lent

　　Find the best prayers for Lent as we embark on the 40-day journey to Easter Sunday! The Lenten season developed as part of the historical Christian calendar and is typically celebrated by Catholics, Orthodox Christians, and some mainline Protestant churches that follow a liturgical calendar.

　　Although its format has varied throughout the centuries and different cultures, the basic concept of Lent remains: to open our hearts to God's refining grace through prayer, confession, fasting, and almsgiving as we anticipate Holy Week. Lent traditionally lasts forty days, modeled after Christ's forty-day fast in the desert, and ends on Good Friday. In the Western Church, Lent officially begins with a reminder of our mortality on Ash Wednesday.

　　Prayer is an important part of Lent as it is the main source of communication to God. As you meditate on the sacrifice of Jesus, these prayers for lent will help you verbalize your faith!

　　Download your FREE copy of our 40-Day Lent and Easter Devotional - filled with daily Scriptures, reflections, and prayers for the Lent season.

　　

Praying and Fasting for Lent

The Biblical practice of fasting can be found in both the Old Testament and the New, with Moses (Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 9:9-18), Elijah (1 Kings 19:8), and our Lord (Matthew 4:2) all participating in 40-day fasts. Fasting is a way of denying ourselves the excesses and distractions of life so that we might be more aware of the Lord's voice. It is also a way of disciplining yourself, strengthening your "spiritual muscles," so to speak so that when temptations arise in life, you are already used to saying "no" to your desires. And finally, fasting is also a way of participating, in a small way, in the sufferings of Christ and can be particularly powerful when accompanied by prayer and confession.

　　

10 Prayers for Lent

Here are ten prayers you can use for Lent and Scriptures to help you during a time of reflection and repentance:

　　

1. Lent Prayer for Strength and Guidance

Lord God Almighty, shaper and ruler of all creatures, we pray for your great mercy, that you guide us towards you, for we cannot find our way.

　　And guide us to your will, to the need of our soul, for we cannot do it ourselves. And make our mind steadfast in your will and aware of our soul’s need.

　　Strengthen us against the temptations of the devil, and remove from us all lust and every unrighteousness, and shield us against our foes, seen and unseen.

　　Teach us to do your will, that we may inwardly love you before all things with a pure mind. For you are our maker and our redeemer, our help, our comfort, our trust, our hope; praise and glory be to you now and forever.