Praying for your child while pregnant, waiting to adopt or with a baby

It's never too early to begin praying for your child. Here we have ideas to help you pray during pregnancy and birth, or while you are waiting to adopt, and in those early years.

In this video Anna shares how she prayed for her baby before he was born, involving others and creating places for people to share their prayers and thoughts for her baby.

Helena Whitwell, a Christian doula, loves to help people connect with God during pregnancy and prepare for birth and becoming parents with God by their side. As part of our launch event in 2021 for our book  ‘Babies and Toddlers: Nurturing your child’s spiritual life’, Helena shared about guided prayer in pregnancy and what prayer might look like as a tired new parent:

And finally, here are four steps to help you catch from God before your child is even born or has joined your family and then throughout the first days into their childhood and beyond. Find somewhere you won’t be distracted – a night feed or a quiet five minutes is ideal – and try these four steps.

1) Ask God a question

This can be as broad or specific as you like. Ask it out loud, in your head or write it down. Here are some ideas of questions you might like to ask to get you started…

• Is there anything you want to tell me about my child (use their name if you know it) today?
• What will their character be like?
• What words describe them?
• Which Bible character will they be like?
• Is there a Bible verse that will be significant in their life?
• What is their part in your plan?
• What about them, makes you smile?
• Which gifts have you given them?

2) Wait for a response

Just as you get ready to catch a ball that is being thrown at you, be prepared to receive whatever God has for you. Session 5: Catch explains all the different ways that we learn from the Bible that God might speak to you. Be aware of any feelings in your body and any pictures or words that pop into your head. Don’t dismiss something if it doesn’t make sense at first. Ask God why and see if that explains any more.

Remember that God never contradicts himself, so if you see or hear something that doesn’t line up with what you know about him from the Bible, do go back and check with him. You can explore more about discerning what is from God and what isn’t in this post. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t feel like you catch anything. If this is a new skill for you, it can take time and practice to feel comfortable with it. Leave it and try another day or ask someone you know who is used to hearing from God to help you.

3) Record it somewhere

Sometimes catching is just for the moment but it can also be a great encouragement for the future. Even if you’re not sure what was catching from God and what was just your own thoughts, write it down and keep it safe. Sometimes it takes weeks or months of catching before you start to see a theme or pattern emerging.

You could do this in a searchable app like Evernote or in a journal or baby book. For my children, I set them up an email address that I will give them the password to when they’re older. I can send a quick message from my phone or type something more detailed on the computer and send it to them. That way the date is already on it and it’ll be easy to search for in the future.

4) Get others involved

If there are other people in your life who you trust like your child’s godparents, friends from church or family members you can ask them to catch for your child too. Each of my children has a WhatsApp group with their godparents where we share prayer requests and they share anything they catch from God for the child. Make a note, just as you have with your catching. You’ll be amazed how often different people’s catching, links together or confirms each other. Some churches have a time of catching for God at a child’s baptism or dedication service, you can ask if this is an option where you are.