By 7 HEALING PRAYERS FOR WHEN YOUR HEART IS BROKEN
By Jamie Rohrbaugh
Has your heart been broken? Has something terrible happened—or not happened—that feels like it has shattered your life in a million pieces?
If so, you are not alone. Jesus’ heart was also broken. He was battered, betrayed, abandoned, and rejected, but He emerged victorious. That’s good news for us, because it means we can emerge victorious when our heart has been broken too!
If your heart feels broken today, here are seven ways to pray for healing and restoration from the Lord:
1. Lord, help me to forgive as Jesus forgave on the cross.
As Jesus was being crucified, He prayed: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do,” (Luke 23:34). Can you imagine the pain He was going through? And yet, His heart was still to forgive.
If your heart is broken today, the first step to healing is to forgive. Jesus actually told us in Mark 11:26 that, if we will not forgive those who hurt us, our Heavenly Father will not forgive our sins either! That’s pretty serious, so it’s important that we stay “forgiven-up” and never let any unforgiveness creep into our soul—no matter how painful our situation is.
If you struggle to forgive, pray this:
“Father God, I’ve been struggling to forgive and let this go, but I know You can help me. Please give me a willingness to forgive the same way Jesus forgave those who murdered Him.
Change my heart, Lord, and help me to care more about obeying You than I do about holding onto anything that has been done to me. Help me to forgive completely and from my heart, Lord. Thank You. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.”
2. Restore unto me the joy of Your salvation and uphold me with Your generous Spirit.
After you have forgiven the people who hurt you, you can start down the path of healing. If your heart is broken, you might have lost your joy. But you know what? You don’t have to stay sad, depressed, or discouraged. The same way that God forgives your sins—by grace—is the same way He will also restore your joy. His healing, help, joy, and peace are all freely available to you by the blood of Jesus.
Pray this and ask Father God to restore your joy:
“Heavenly Father, in Jesus’ name, please heal my heart and fill me with joy again. You know I lost my joy because of the things that happened, but I have forgiven the people who hurt me. Now, Father, I need You to restore my heart.
Restore unto me the joy of my salvation, Father. Uphold me with Your generous Spirit. Strengthen and help me, Lord. Put the bounce back in my step, the smile back on my face, and the dance back in my feet.
Help me to rejoice always, Father, for this is Your will for me. Thank You, Father God, and I praise You for hearing and answering my prayer. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.”
3. Fill me with Your grace, which is sufficient for me. Make Your strength perfect in my weakness today.
God’s grace—His supernatural, undeserved favor and help—is available to you right now if you have made Jesus your Savior. Because you are His child, He stands ready, willing, and eager to help you! He’ll not only help you get through your day, but He’ll also help you emerge from your situation with victory.
If you need grace and help today, pray this:
“Father God, in Jesus’ name, thank You that Your strength and grace are available to me right now. Father, fill me with Your Holy Spirit. Fill me with Your grace. Make Your strength perfect in my weakness, Father. I know that I’m very weak in and of myself—but Your Spirit, who raised Christ from the dead, dwells in me. So raise me up, Lord. Take my weakness away and fill me with Your strength. Order my steps today in Your Word. Help me to stay within Your holy flow today, Lord, and make it easy. Thank You, Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.”
4. Help me to abide in Jesus, where there is fullness of joy.
So many times, when I have been sad or discouraged, I have found healing for my heart by going to the Lord in prayer or worship. I didn’t always understand why until I found Psalm 16:11, which says:
“You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
Isn’t that beautiful? In the presence of God is fullness of joy! Anytime you draw near to Him, you will find joy because He is joy. Maybe that’s why Jesus told us to abide in Him:
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me” (John 15:4).
“In the presence of God is fullness of joy!”
If you want to abide in Jesus, where there is fullness of joy, then pray like this:
“Heavenly Father, in Jesus’ name, please help me to abide in Jesus today. Help me to set my mind and keep it set on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Help me to cast down every high and lofty thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of Christ, and keep my eyes on Jesus—the Author and Finisher of my faith.
Father God, please help me to be aware of Your presence all day today. Help me to think about Jesus all day long. Like Jesus, help me to only say what You say and do what You do, and to keep Your commandments in all things.
Thank You, Father. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
5. Keep me as the apple of Your eye. Hide me under the shadow of Your wings.
Years ago, I was crying out to the Lord during a particularly difficult time in my life. I was under so much stress that I didn’t want to face my day. I felt completely helpless, broken, and utterly discouraged.
As I prayed, Psalm 17:8-9 came to mind. This passage says:
“Keep me as the apple of Your eye; hide me under the shadow of Your wings, from the wicked who oppress me, from my deadly enemies who surround me.”
As I prayed, I suddenly saw a mental picture of myself, tucked up under the wings of a giant bald eagle. The eagle represented God, and I could see His wings covering me. He was hiding me from the world while He looked around with sharp, golden eyes—keeping watch over my life while I hid in Him.
On that stressful day, this mental picture brought me instant peace and calm. My anxiety fled, and my racing thoughts stilled. My stiff, stressed-out backbone crumpled as I simply received comfort and peace from the Lord. It made all the difference in the world.
“If your heart is broken, you probably feel the need for rest, peace, and protection.”
This picture of what Psalm 17:8-9 might look like still means the world to me today. Is God an eagle? No, of course not! However, He does compare Himself to that magnificent bird several times in Scripture. And, the picture that I saw that day in my mind’s eye has stuck with me all this time. Every time I think of it, I sense again how safe I felt under His wings. I feel how warm it was there, and how I could hear Father’s heart beating in His chest as I snuggled up under His wings.
Beloved, if your heart is broken, you probably feel the need for rest, peace, and protection—just like I did. If you do, the Holy Spirit is ready to comfort you right now.
Pray this with me:
“Heavenly Father God, I come to You in Jesus’ name. Lord, I need You. Please keep me as the apple of Your eye. Hide me under the shadow of Your wings. Shut out the oppressive thoughts and situations I am facing, and help me to be aware only of Your presence.
Father God, please help me to sense the warmth and safety that only You provide. Holy Spirit, fill me with Your peace, and comfort me. Thank You. Amen.”
6. Create in me a bright heart.
In Psalm 51:10, David cried out in agony to God: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” The word that is translated “clean” comes from a Hebrew root word that means “bright.” He was asking for a pure, clean, bright heart!
I love the thought of a bright heart. When my heart has been broken, things feel dark around me. Sometimes, when the pain gets too bad or feels too close, even the light inside me feels like it has darkened.
But you know what? We who once walked in darkness can now see a great light: Jesus (Matthew 4:16). JESUS is our great light! When we cry out to Him in our time of need, He will fill us again with the light of His Spirit.
If your heart is broken, Jesus will restore your hope and give you a clean and new heart. He will take away your old heart—that heart which has been broken, scarred, and battle-wounded—and give you a fresh heart. The new heart He gives you is bright and strong. When He gives you a new heart, you will sense the light of His presence within you!
If you need a bright, healed heart, pray this with me:
“Father God, in Jesus’ name, please create in me a clean heart. Renew a right spirit within me. Take away my old, broken heart of stone, and give me a new, bright heart. Take away my old spirit and fill me with Your Spirit. Fill me with Your light, Father, and create in me a bright heart. Thank You, Father.”
7. Reach deeper in me than I can reach, and heal me.
Every one of us has places in our heart that we cannot reach. Jeremiah 17:9 says that our hearts are deceitful and we cannot even know our own heart!
But, you know what? King David knew the solution. In Psalm 139:23-24, he wrote, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Romans 8:27 also tells us that Father God searches our heart. This passage says: “Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”
If God can search our heart and know it, then He can help us in places and ways that we cannot reach! He can reach down into your heart, ever-so-gently revealing causes and effects, inner hurts, sins we never knew were there, and more! He, and He alone, knows us well enough to get to the root of the issues we are facing. So only He can bring us total healing.
“If your heart has been broken, only the Lord can truly heal you.”
Would you like your good, kind, loving, gentle Father to do surgery on your heart, so you can be totally healed from the pain that ails you? If so, pray this with me:
“Father God, I ask in Jesus’ name that You would search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts and anxieties. See if there be any wicked way in me; and if there is, get it out and lead me in Your way everlasting!
Reach down deeper in me than I could ever reach, Lord—all the way to the bottom of my heart—and do whatever You need to do to heal my heart completely. Thank You, Father.”
If your heart has been broken, only the Lord can truly heal you. However, we have His promises that He WILL do so! Claim the Scriptures above in prayer today, and let the Holy Spirit minister to you.
Do these prayers help you today? If so, leave a comment below!
