The short answer
Tell God honestly where you feel weak, ask for strength for today rather than for the whole road, and hold on to his promise: “He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has no might.” (Isaiah 40:29). A prayer for strength can be one sentence long. The seven prayers below are for different kinds of hard days.
A short prayer for strength
For the moment your strength runs out, in a hallway, a parked car or a hospital waiting room.
Lord, I have nothing left, and I need you. Give me strength for this hour, not for everything at once. Help me take the next step, and then the one after that. Amen.
A prayer when you’re worn out
Isaiah wrote to people who felt forgotten by God, and he promised a strength that is renewed, not used up: “but those who wait for the LORD will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run, and not be weary. They will walk, and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31).
Everlasting God, you never grow tired, and I’m so tired. I’ve been running on empty for too long. Renew my strength the way you promised. Teach me to wait for you instead of pushing harder on my own. Give me rest where I can find it, and strength where I can’t. Amen.
A prayer for strength in hard times
When life falls apart, the psalms don’t ask you to pretend it hasn’t. They point to where strength comes from: “The LORD is my strength and my shield. My heart has trusted in him, and I am helped.” (Psalm 28:7).
Lord, this season is hard, and some days I don’t know how I’ll get through it. Be my strength and my shield. When I’m afraid, help me trust you. When I can’t see a way forward, show me just enough for today. Thank you that I don’t walk through this alone. Amen.
A prayer for courage
After Moses died, Joshua had to lead a whole nation into a land full of enemies. God didn’t tell him to believe in himself. He told him who would go with him: “Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9).
Lord, I’m about to face something that scares me. Give me courage, not because I’m strong, but because you are with me wherever I go. Steady my voice and my hands. Help me do what is right, even if it costs me. Amen.
A prayer for strength for someone else
Paul’s prayers for his friends often asked for strength on the inside, the kind no one else can see: “that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that you may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person” (Ephesians 3:16).
Father, I pray for someone who is struggling. You know what they’re carrying. Strengthen them on the inside, where no one else can reach. Give them rest, good friends and hope for tomorrow. And show me how I can carry part of the load with them. Amen.
A prayer for strength in grief
Grief takes your strength in ways you don’t expect: you can’t sleep, can’t eat, can’t think straight. Psalm 73 admits that both body and heart give out, and names what remains: “My flesh and my heart fails, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (Psalm 73:26).
God, I miss them so much, and some days the grief takes everything I have. Be the strength of my heart when mine fails. Hold me in the moments I can’t stop crying, and in the moments I feel nothing at all. Thank you for the time we had. Carry me through today. Amen.
For more, see our Bible verses for grief.
A prayer for strength against temptation
Paul promised the church at Corinth that no temptation comes without a way out: “God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able, but will with the temptation also make the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Lord, you know where I’m weak, and you know what pulls at me. When I’m tempted today, show me the way out, and give me the strength to take it. Remind me that I’m not the only one, and that it’s never too late to turn back. Thank you for your forgiveness when I fail. Amen.
Bible verses to pray for strength
These are short enough to pray on their own, or to hold on to through the day.
- Nehemiah 8:10. “Don’t be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” Said to people who wept when they heard God’s law read aloud, after years in exile.
- Psalm 119:28. “My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word.”
- Psalm 138:3. “In the day that I called, you answered me. You encouraged me with strength in my soul.”
- Isaiah 41:10. “Don’t you be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you.”
- Psalm 27:14. “Wait for the LORD. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the LORD.”
For more, see our full list of Bible verses about strength, and what Paul really meant by Philippians 4:13.
Common questions
What is a short prayer for strength?
One sentence is enough, such as: Lord, give me strength for this hour. Many of the Bible’s own prayers for strength are that short. Nehemiah, rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls with enemies trying to frighten the builders, simply prayed, “But now, strengthen my hands.” (Nehemiah 6:9).
Who in the Bible prayed for strength?
Many people did. Elijah was so worn out that he asked to die, and God sent an angel with food and let him sleep. Then he went on “in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights” (1 Kings 19:8). Paul prayed again and again for his friends to be strengthened (Ephesians 3:16, Colossians 1:11).
Why do I still feel weak after praying for strength?
In the Bible, strength often comes as enough for the moment, not as a feeling of being strong. Paul wrote that “though our outward person is decaying, yet our inward person is renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16). Keep praying, and take the next small step.