Teens are at such a wonderful stage when they are ready mentally for young adult life but don’t have all the responsibilities that come with adulthood. It’s a great time for developing new skills and growing new habits. Our 30 Day Prayer Challenge for Teens is a wonderful way to help your student build a habit of prayer.
Give your teenager our teen prayer challenge printable and invite him or her to participate in a life-changing, habit-training event that could very well change a life forever. Prayer changes things! A life of prayer is a powerful gift.
The 30 Day Prayer Challenge for Teens
I’ve published a free printable to go along with this prayer challenge. This will help keep your teenager on track with his or her prayer journey. You can grab the printable using the form at the end of this post.
How the Prayer Challenge for Teens Works
Our prayer challenge printable has a checklist with thirty different prayer activities. These activities are organized by prayer format. A short explanation of each prayer type is included. The activities can be completed in order or out of order. Whatever way your teen wants to approach this challenge is perfect.
The challenge can be completed in exactly thirty days or spread out over ten weeks, with activities completed on three days per week. Or any combination of those two extremes! If you or your teen have an Instagram account, we hope you’ll tag us in challenge photos!
What You Need for the 30 Day Prayer Challenge for Teens
You don’t need much to pray! You can use a prayer journal and fancy pens if you choose, but really prayer is just between you and God. Having a specific place to pray and meet with God can also be a powerful way to increase focus and keep your time free from distractions.
Ideas for Prayer Journal Prompts
Prayer Formats Used for the Teen Prayer Challenge
The Lord’s Prayer
For this prayer format, you simply follow the format of The Lord’s Prayer. In the passage where we read about the Lord’s Prayer the disciples specifically ask Jesus “Lord, teach us to pray.” His powerful response is found in Matthew 6:5-15. Read the entire passage. Here is the prayer He prayed.
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. (this last phrase is not found in all manuscripts:)
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
Notice that He begins with praise, asks for God’s will to be done, makes requests for daily needs, asks for forgiveness, requests protection, and ends with praise again.
Read more about following the format of The Lord’s Prayer in your prayer life here.
A.C.T.S Prayers
In this case, A.C.T.S. is an acronym for these four words: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication. You can pattern your prayers in this format. Here’s what each word means.
Adoration. Focused purely on God, this section of your prayer is all about praising Him.
Confession. Talking to God about the things you’ve done wrong is incredibly healing and freeing. The truth will set you free. In this section of your prayer time, spill the beans.
Thanksgiving. Now, more specifically praise God for the things he has done in your world, your home, your life, and your church. Give thanks.
Supplication. Finally, end your prayer with humble requests you bring before His throne.
Read more about the A.C.T.S prayer format here.
The P.R.A.Y Method.
The P.R.A.Y format for prayer is an acronym for these words: Praise, Repent, Ask, and Yield. This one is super easy to remember. Here’s a closer look at each word.
Praise. Honoring God for who He is and for what He has done.
Repent. Admitting your wrongs at the feet of your Savior.
Ask. Bringing requests to God.
Yield. Quieting your heart to listen.
Read more about the P.R.A.Y Format here.
The Hand Prayer Model
With this model for praying, each finger on your hand represents someone to pray for. This method helps you expand your prayers beyond your own personal needs. Here is what each finger stands for in this prayer method.
Thumb: The people closest to you.
Index Finger: The people who point the way.
Middle Finger: People in authority.
Ring Finger: People in need.
Little Finger: Yourself and your needs. It’s so easy to get caught up in prayers for the things that overwhelm us such that it is easy to forget to pray for others. So our own needs are placed on the little finger to remind us to emphasize others. That doesn’t mean it is wrong to pray for our own needs — it is in fact very Biblical to do so.
You can read more about the Hand Prayer Model here.
The T.R.U.S.T. Format
This acronym format for praying stands for these words: Thanksgiving, Remember, Unburden, Surrender, and Trust. It is based on the prayer of Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20.
Thanksgiving. Give God glory for all that He has done for you and those whom you love.
Remember. Honor God’s faithfulness with praise.
Unburden. Ask God for help with the burdens you’ve been carrying.
Surrender. Accept God’s will and the answers He gives to your prayers.
Trust. Verbally acknowledge your trust in God and His power.
You can read more about the T.R.U.S.T. format here.
Prayer Challenge for Teens Activities
The Lord’s Prayer Activities
Hallowed Be Your Name. Research and find four or five names for Jesus. Write them out. Pray these names specifically and praise God for the attribute each name represents.
Your Kingdom Come. Pray both for the building of Jesus’ Kingdom here on earth, and also for the second coming of Christ and the final Kingdom in heaven. The Greek word for this concept is Maranatha which translates “Come quickly, Lord Jesus.” Are you in a place where you can pray this prayer? Pray about both of these concepts today. If you are not ready to pray “Maranatha.” instead simply ask God to help you be ready.
Your Will Be Done On Earth. Pray about God’s will in the world, in your country, in your home, and in your personal walk with Jesus. Ask Him to accomplish His perfect will in you.
Give Us This Day. Pray for the daily needs you have or see in life and in your community or church.
Forgive Us Our Debts. Ask God to show you where you have sinned and owe Him a debt, which has been covered by Jesus. Also, ask Him to show you where you need to forgive others.
Deliver Us From Evil. Consider the temptations you’ve noticed in your life this week and pray for deliverance from each one.
Thine is the Kingdom. Praise God for His Glory and His many attributes as the Savior of the World and the Only King Forever. Research attributes of God, write them out and praise Him for those you find.
Put It All Together. Pray through all for components of the Lord’s Prayer.
A.C.T.S Prayer Activities
Adoration. Spend time in prayer today praising God for who He is and what He has done in the world.
Confession. Focus your prayer time today on confessing sins that have been bothering you. If you cannot think of any, ask God to convict you of sins in your life you need to shed.
Thanksgiving. During your prayer time today, spend time saying Thank You. Be specific and thank God for the things He is doing or has done in your life and the lives of those you love.
Supplication. We can bring our requests to God with confidence. What are the needs that are causing you stress? Bring them to Jesus in your prayer time.
Put It All Together. Pray through all for components of an A.C.T.S. prayer.
P.R.A.Y. Prayer Activities
Praise. In this format, we combine praising God for who He is (His names, attributes, and amazing acts in the world) and praising God for what He has done in our own lives. Make a list of the things you praise God for.
Repent. Confession is good for the soul. We confess not because God doesn’t know, but because our truthful admission and “turning” from sin brings freedom and healing so that we can move forward. Bring to Jesus the sins in your life that haunt you or taunt you.
Ask. Physical and spiritual needs are very powerful forces in our lives. They guide decisions, add stress, and influence behavior. Rob those things of their power by bringing them to Jesus. Make a list and cross them off one by one symbolically expecting God to provide for your needs.
Yield. It is so hard to “be still and know that I am God.” yet that is exactly what God has asked us to do. We need to sit in stillness yielding to His Lordship in our lives and listen for His answers to prayer. Spend five or ten minutes in silence with Jesus.
Put It All Together. Pray through all for components of a P.R.A.Y. prayer.
Hand Prayer Model Activities
Thumb: Pray for the people closest to you. Your family, friends, and people in your church family.
Index Finger: Pray for the people who point the way. Your pastors, teachers, counselors, and mentors.
Middle Finger: Pray for people in authority. Government leaders, church leaders, community leaders.
Ring Finger: Pray for people in need. Missionaries, the poor in your community, those in slavery, and those being persecuted.
Little Finger: Pray for yourself and your needs. What are the things that worry you and bring stress to your life? Pray about those things.
Put It All Together. Pray through all for components of a Hand Model Prayer.
T.R.U.S.T. Prayer Activities
Thanksgiving. Make a list of blessings from God and say thank you for each one.
Remember. Praise God for His faithfulness in your life and throughout history. Make a list of examples to include in your prayer.
Unburden. List specific burdens that are weighing you down and pulling you away from time with Jesus. Give those burdens over to Him in prayer.
Surrender. Praise God for answers to prayer, even when those answers are not what you wanted. Make a list of things to surrender to Him.
Trust. Write down things you can trust God with and verbally acknowledge your trust in God and His power over those things in your prayer time.
Put It All Together. Pray through all for components of a T.R.U.S.T. prayer.
30-Day Prayer Challenge for Teens Printable
Grab the Teen Prayer Challenge printable below, download it, and print one copy for each of your teens taking the challenge. It has the complete challenge checklist and a description of each challenge activity. Spice it up a bit! Invite local teens from your homeschool coop or friends to participate with you, share ideas, and perhaps enjoy the various prayer activities together.
Try our other 30-Day Challenges for Teens
