Last Updated on October 25, 2023 by Emma
Poverty is a big situation. It’s not just about not having money, or having enough money. It can be startling to hear someone who has a job say something like, “If I wasn’t so poor, I could . . .” Often we can fool ourselves that “poor” equates to not having the money we want to get what we want. Poverty is way more encompassing than that.
I would encourage you to do some research. Find out who serves the poor and marginalized in your city and go talk with them. Let yourself be okay with not knowing so you can be open to receiving real information and not rely on worn-out stereotypes. Please be open to how God wants to grow you in your sense of compassion.
With a new mindset, you will find that you can pray for people who are poor or oppressed with a deeper understanding and greater empathy.
Prayer is a powerful way to show our love and support for people who are marginalized. When you pray for them, you are asking God to intervene in their lives and to bring them hope and financial stability. You are also asking God to provide them with the resources they need to get back on their feet.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5.7, NIV).
I’d like to suggest some tips to help you as you pray for people who are living in poverty.
Pray for their financial needs. You can pray for them to have low-cost housing, free medical care, or to obtain a decent-paying job.
Pray for their physical needs. You can pray for them to be healthy, and have housing, access to enough food, and proper clothing.
Pray for their emotional needs. This might include things like dignity, comfort, and hope.
Pray for stability in their situation. This could include things like not being manipulated or oppressed by people who have power over them.
When you pray for people who are poor or marginalized, you are showing them that you care about them and that you believe in their ability to overcome their circumstances. Some may need more assistance than others, but no one needs to be left alone. You are also putting your faith in God to work in their lives.
If you are interested in finding solutions to the cycle of poverty in your community, there are many organizations that can provide you with opportunities to do so. It will mean investing some time to do this. Take advantage of the chance to further live out your faith!
Please know that you are not alone in your prayers for the poor and marginalized. There are many people who care about them and want to help. I invite you to share your prayer journey in the comments section below, or let us know how we can pray for you. Keep on praying!
Short Prayer For The Poor
Lord God, I don’t feel as if I’ve ever been poor, but I have sometimes felt like I didn’t have enough. I’m not sure how to pray for poor people, but I feel led to do so. I don’t know how to solve the big problem of poverty, but I do pray for the people in my community who cannot make ends meet and have to make choices about what bills to pay or not. I know you hear my prayer and for that I am encouraged. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.
Prayer For The Poor And Marginalized
Dear God, I pray for people who are marginalized in our city. They live on the margins, just barely making it, one paycheck away from financial crisis and then the spiral into poverty. I pray that they can be guided by you into a more stable financial situation.
I pray for the bureaucracy that makes life hard for these folks to be lessened. I pray for them to get a raise and to have protection from people or companies that would seek to take advantage of them, or keep them down. Let your justice be theirs, O God. I ask this in the name of Jesus, Amen.
Prayer For People Who Are Oppressed
Dear God in heaven, I get so upset when I see people being oppressed for the sake of greed or power. Many of these people are already living under the weight of poverty and because they don’t really have a voice, there are people who try to take advantage of them–they oppress them and keep them down.
I pray against any such oppression. One of the prophets prayed for “justice to roll down like waters,” and I pray for that water to be mighty, washing away manipulation of the poor. Give people who are under such a burden to have hope in you. Help them see a way to be clear and have a pathway forward. Guide them where they need to be and be safe. In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.
Prayer For People Who Are Poor Due To Loss Of Job
Dear Lord God, I wish that there were jobs for anyone who needed one. I know that in our region, there have been many layoffs and now there are people who were on the financial margin without jobs. They are facing a quick slide into poverty because they lost their job. They do not have a buffer in their bank account.
I ask that you help these folks find another, good-paying job soon, so they won’t have additional stress and worry in their lives. I pray that you provide for them in the meantime, as only you can. May they continue to place their hope in you. I pray this prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, the Provider, Amen.
Prayer For People Who Are Poor Because Of Gambling
God, for some reason I have come into contact with some people who are poor now because of their gambling. They do not have proper housing and they don’t have enough money to cover all of their expenses. They once did, but it’s all gone–gambled away on bad bets and then more bad bets. They kept thinking they were going to get lucky.
I pray for mercy, Lord, as they got into this situation because of their own very bad decisions. I pray they will accept the responsibility of that so they can begin to work on getting back to financial health and stability. I pray that they will seek help about their gambling. May you help them change their mindset about all of that. I ask this in the name of Jesus.
Prayer For People Who Are Poor Due To Addiction
Father God, I know the grip of addiction, in any form, can literally suck the life out of people. I come to you tonight to pray for people I know who are so chained to their addiction that they have no money for gas, rent, or most anything else–they just sink every dollar they have into their addiction.
I realize I can’t really help them until they come to the awareness that their life is a mess and they can’t do anything without your power in their lives. They have to let go of the addiction. I pray that they will have a powerful “come-to-Jesus” moment so they can start on the road to recovery and financial stability. I don’t want them to die in their addiction, Lord. Hear my prayer through Jesus, Amen.
Prayer For People Who Are Poor Because Of Divorce
Dear God, it hurts my heart when I see a marriage end in divorce. I know there are many reasons and I don’t know the whole situation. I pray especially for people who are not in a situation of poverty because of a divorce. Whatever they had is now gone in the settlement.
They are facing something they’ve never faced and they may think there is no hope now. Help them see a way forward by your Spirit. Help them get over the ending of their marriage and the life they once had. Enable them to see that you have a plan for their life that will be healing and bring wholeness. I pray this for them through Jesus, Amen.
Prayer For People Who Are Poor Due To Bankruptcy
Dear God, I pray for people who are now in bankruptcy because of crushing debt. They made one faulty decision and then began making further choices that compounded the negative consequences in their bank accounts and savings and investments.
I bring them to you in prayer. I know that they have made financial mistakes, but I also know that you are a God of forgiveness and grace. I believe that they can come out of their circumstances with acceptance of responsibility and a lot of hard work. You can help them get back to financial peace. Bankruptcy is not the end of everything, just a setback.
I pray that you would forgive them for their mistakes. I pray that you would give them the strength to turn their lives around. And I pray that you would give them the hope that they can have a solid financial future. I pray this in the name of Jesus, Amen.
Prayer For Poor People Due To Hard Breaks In Life
Dear Lord God, I am aware that there are some people who are without proper financial resources because of hard breaks in their life. They face daily difficulties, and I ask that you would be with them and help them to overcome these obstacles. They didn’t choose this life and yet I think many may not know how to get themselves out of this deep pit of poverty.
I pray for resources and guidance to be readily available for them, so they can have hope that their current situation is not all there is to their life. I pray they can recover and rebound to a better life with the money needed to live in stability, and not in fear. In the name of Jesus, I pray, Amen.
Prayer To Break The Cycle Of Poverty
Father God, I do not know all the things that contribute to poverty in my community or in society at large. I know it’s not just about jobs alone. I pray that the cycle of poverty that people find themselves in could be broken. If all a person knows is “being poor,” they may not have the mindset that there is anything else possible for them.
I pray against this despondency. I pray against the forces of oppression that contribute to keeping poor people poor. I pray for there to be key leaders and legislators who will enact laws to help pave a path for people to live with dignity and not in the shadow of continued poverty, generation after generation. On their behalf, I bring this prayer to you through Lord Jesus, Amen.
Prayer For Poor People To Overcome Poverty
Lord, I come to you today to pray for the people in our area who are living in poverty. This includes not having enough money, substandard housing, oppressive interest rates on loans they have, and “red tape” they have to battle through to get certain benefits due them.
I pray that folks will be strengthened by your Spirit on a daily basis. Help them and guide them to battle through the poverty they face and to overcome it. It only takes a couple of things to fall into place, Lord.
A decent-paying job can move them a step forward, and then their benefits finally come through and they have some financial breathing room. May poverty be overcome and no longer be a part of their reality soon. I pray this in the name of Jesus, Amen.
Prayer For Poor People Who Are Hungry
Lord God, forgive me for whenever I have said “I’m starving,” or something similar, just because I hadn’t eaten in the last four hours. I confess that I don’t really know what it means to be hungry. You have provided for me so that I have access to food any time I want it.
I know there are many in our community who do not know that reality. I pray for the people who are hungry in our city. The child who counts on the meals at school each day to be their food for the day. The folks who depend on churches and other organizations to run “soup kitchens” or food pantries in order to get some nourishment.
I pray for the hungry to know fullness in their belly. I pray for the hungry to be fed. I pray for the hungry to not have to be hungry anymore because You have provided for them. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?” (1 John 3.17, ESV).
Prayer For Poor People Who Are Sick
Dear God, I don’t really understand how we can have so much great medical care in this society and yet there are people out there who are sick and cannot get the treatment or medicines they need because they don’t have enough money or have insurance.
There are people making choices about whether to get the prescription medication they need for their condition or pay their utility bill. I pray that the financial inequity that some sick people face be fixed and alleviated. I pray that poor people who are sick will be treated as humans and not as a number on an invoice. I pray this in the strong name of Jesus, Amen.
Closing Thoughts
It can be easy to just group “the poor” as a group, and not see each person living in poverty as a fellow human being, with a background and a story to tell. May your heart be open as you pray to see “them” as individuals, as people just like you, just in different circumstances.
If you are not sure exactly what to pray, then at least one of these prayers will be of use to you. One of the best things you can do is educate yourself for the many reasons and scenarios for why someone may not have enough money to make ends meet. Embrace the challenge enlarging your perspective and mindset.
These 13 focused prayers for people who are poor are here to help you as well. Let them be a tool to focus your mind and heart on the issues they face on a daily basis. Allow God to move in your heart with a deeper empathy and understanding for the oppressed and the poor. Such people are not to be ignored, for Jesus told us that they would always be present.
“The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me” (Mark 14.7, NIV).
I would also encourage you to use prayers for people who are homeless, and prayers for hard times. This website exists to help you grow closer to God through prayer, so mark it as a favorite and return here often. You can search through hundreds of prayers about many different issues and scenarios you face in life.