Praying for My Enemies (Free Printable Guide)

When it comes to dealing with people who hate me or would seek to do me harm, Jesus has given me very specific (and radically counterintuitive) instructions. Rather than seeking revenge or comeuppance, Christ asks me to invest my time and energy in loving, blessing, and praying for my my enemies.

And guess what? He asks the same of you.

So, in case you need a little help getting started, today I’m sharing a brand new free printable prayer guide. This one is devoted entirely to Praying for Your Enemies. Best of all, these prayer points are all taken straight from God’s word, so you can be confident you are praying in accordance to God’s will, who tells us plainly that He does not wish “for any to perish, but all to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)

click to download “Praying for My Enemies” prayer guide

So, call to mind someone who has set himself (or herself) against you and pray along with me. You can click on any of the linked Bible verses below to view the Scriptural support for these prayers.

Praying for My Enemies

LORD, I lift up those who hate me or would seek to do me harm, humbly asking You to…

• Enlighten their eyes to the Truth

  There is no hope my enemies will ever come to the knowledge of the Truth unless You first open their eyes. By nature, men love darkness. Draw them to the light. Help me to shine brightly for Christ and reflect His character accurately to all who know me, including those who hate me. (Psalm 119:18; John 3:19-20; Matthew 5:14-16)

• Negate the effects of their bad influence

  Protect those who would suffer harm at the hands of my enemies. Better that a millstone be tied around their neck and them sink to the bottom of the sea than to cause a little one to stumble. Take whatever they plan for evil & use it for good in the lives of those they oppress or attack. (Psalm 59:1; Matthew 18:6; Genesis 50:20)

• Ensnare them in their own wicked schemes

  Let my enemies fall into the pit they’ve dug for others. Let the stone they positioned to crush the innocent roll back on themselves. Thwart whatever evil plans they’ve devised for the blameless. Frustrate their efforts, and cause their schemes to utterly fail. (Proverbs 26:27; Proverbs 28:10; Ecclesiastes 10:8; Job 5:12; Isaiah 8:10)

• Meet them in the depths of despair

  Once You’ve trapped my enemies in their own snares, do not leave them to wallow in despair. Have mercy on them, O LORD. You resist the proud, but give grace to the humble. Once You’ve effected such a heart change in my foes, draw near to them. Reveal Yourself to them in the pit. (Psalm 43:5; Romans 11:30-31; James 4:6)

• Inundate them with Your love

  Thank you, Jesus, for laying down Your life for me, even while I was still dead in my sins. I know I did nothing to earn or deserve the love You lavished upon me. I ask You to pour out that same love on my enemies. Use it to completely transform their lives. (Romans 5:6-8; Ephesians 2:1-5, 8-9; Romans 9:15-16; 2 Corinthians 5:17)

• Embolden Christians to extend grace

  Let us serve as the hands and feet of Christ, to meet to the needs of those around us, including our enemies. Help us to love our enemies, to do good to those who hurt us, to bless those who curse us, and to pray for those who mistreat us, just as You commanded us to do. (James 2:15-17; Proverbs 25:21-22; Luke 6:27-31)

• Set them free from enslavement to sin

  Apart from Your unfailing mercy, every one of us would remain entrenched in sin. LORD, free my enemies from Satan’s grip. Through Your lovingkindness, draw them to repentance. Call them. Save them. And use them for Your glory! (Colossians 2:13; Romans 6:17-18; Acts 26:18; Romans 2:4; 1 Corinthians 1:9; Psalm 85:9)

A wise man once said that the best way to defeat an enemy is to make him your friend. That is what God did for each of us, for while we were at enmity with Him, He wooed us, redeemed us, and adopted us as sons.

And if ever there were a way for us, by God’s grace, to convert our opponents into friends and fellow laborers, it would be by following the wildly counter-cultural instructions Christ laid out for us in the gospels.

So let’s start the process with prayer, and see where that leads us, okay?

Keep on Praying

Want more free printable prayer guides, like this one? You can check out our entire collection by following this link. And for more encouragement to “continue in prayer” (Colossians 4:2), check out the following related posts:

• Our Starting Point – a reminder that prayer works… and leads to work
• A Good Reminder – a challenge to pray hardest when it is hardest to pray
• The Secret – one of my favorite poems about prayer (because it’s so true!)
• Pretty Prayer-Themed Bookmarks – these will prompt you to pray when you feel like worrying
• Grace and Mercy Coloring Page – an exhortation to bring our prayers and petitions boldly before God’s throne