Prayer after failure

Loving Father,

This failure assaults my heart and my mind with accusations and doubts.

I confess that my errors and our lack of execution have led to this painful result.

I confess the sins of my flesh and the rebellion in my heart.

Please restore my mind, body, and emotions by Your infinite kindness and grace.

I will neither allow momentary failure to define me nor to defeat me.

Please restore my confidence and that of my teammates to recover, to train, to prepare, and to compete again.

I pray and trust in Jesus' strong name.

Amen.

Prayer for dealing with rejection

Father,

I feel the sting of being released by my team.

The separation from my teammates feels like death.

The exclusion from the team feels like personal rejection and failure.

Please speak peace to my heart and confidence to my wounded soul.

Renew my faith in Your providence and watchfulness.

Please guide me to new opportunities to fulfill Your purposes for my life.

I pray, trust, and commit my life into Your powerful and loving hands.

Amen.

Prayer for moments of transition

Unchanging and faithful Father in Heaven,

This process of changing teams, locations, uniforms, locker rooms, and more is never easy.

It is never comfortable nor predictable.

It is also never outside Your ability to guide and protect me.

Please give me grace to leave well and to exit wisely.

Please give me favor in my new assignment; with management and teammates, with team leaders and support staff.

I commit myself, this transition, and all that comes with it into Your powerful hands.

I pray and trust completely in Jesus' name,

Amen.

Prayer for the officials

Heavenly Father,

You have set every earthly authority in place to rule, to judge, and to protect.

Sports officials are no exception.

I pray that today's officials are full of wisdom and insight.

I pray that they respect the game, the players, and the coaches.

I pray that they arbitrate the game well and relate well to its other participants.

Please guard them from injury and help them to prevent injury among others.

May they find joy in this contest and may they experience the best that this sport has to offer.

Amen.

Prayer of praise in sport

Father,

I praise You for being the Almighty God, Creator of all things.

I praise You for creating men and women with the capacity to play.

I praise You for the privilege to creatively work.

I praise You for the ability to honorably compete.

I praise You for the love we have between teammates.

I praise You for the provision of coaches and support staff.

I praise You for the honor and respect we experience among our opponents and the officials.

I praise You for the thrills and anguish we feel in our souls as we train and compete.

I praise You for filling our lives with joy and fulfillment through sport.

You are worthy of all praise in the pool, on the floor, the pitch, the field, and in all places occupied by men and women of sport.

I pray and praise You in Jesus' marvelous name,

Amen.

Prayer for a pre-game meal

Our Father,

Thank You for providing this pregame meal for our team. 

We receive it from Your loving hand with gratitude and humility.

May it fuel our bodies, our minds, and our hearts to compete greatly.

Please enable us to prepare well and to compete in a way that honors You.

In Jesus' gracious and strong name,

Amen.

Prayer for a team meal

Gracious God in Heaven,

Thank You for your bountiful provision for us.

Thank You for this wonderful meal and for those who lovingly prepared it.

Please be our guest and dwell among us.

We commit ourselves, all that we have, and all that we are to You.

Please bless this meal; may it give us strength to compete powerfully and honorably.

In Jesus' strong and gracious name,

Amen.

Prayer for team travel

Father,

Please bless our travel today.

May our journey be safe, restful, and productive.

Please go before us on our way and be our rear guard as we travel.

Please grant us Your presence and allow us to commune as friends along the way.

We commit every moment and every mile of this journey to You.

In the name of Jesus we pray.

Amen.

Prayer prior to a moment filled with emotion and anticipation

Father,

My heart is full of emotion and my mind is clouded with anticipation.

The approaching events are full of pressure and significance.

Their importance brings anxiety and a flood of worried thoughts.

Please calm my mind and speak peace to my heart.

I will trust Your grace to carry me.

I will listen for Your voice of counsel.

I commit this day, its every moment, trial, and triumph to You.

In the name of the Prince of Peace I pray.

Amen.

Prayer while suffering from an injury

Father,

Thank you for all that comes with my life in sport.

I gladly receive from Your hand wins and losses, thrills and heartache, strength and injury.

I confess that this injury, its pain, and the prospect of rehab grieve my soul.

Please use every hour of treatment, rest, and rehab to restore my body.

Please restore my heart and my mind as well, returning me to compete again.

I commit all that I am and all that I have to this process of healing and restoration.

I pray and trust in the healing power of Jesus' name.

Amen.

Pre-game prayer

Almighty Father,

The hour for competition is upon us.

Please enable us to compete in a way that:

• respects our opponents

• honors the officials

• demonstrates love for our coaches and teammates

• and is pleasing to You.

Guard us from injury and foolish behavior.

We commit this competition to You, asking that You receive it as An act of worship.

We pray, commit, and compete in Jesus' powerful name.

Amen.

A Coach's Prayer for his/her Players

Father

 Thank you for the (men / women) I am privileged to coach.

Please enable me to teach, to lead, and to develop them well.

Empower my heart to love them extravagantly and to serve them selflessly.

Guard my heart from the errors of speech, practice, or attitude that would shame or manipulate them.

May I be Your agent of life transformation in each and all in my charge.

With a heart full of gratitude, I pray in Jesus' name,

Amen.

A Coach's Prayer

Gracious Father,

Thank You for calling me to coach (sport).

More than job, occupation, or hobby; for me coaching is a life calling.

I consider my coaching staff, players, and support personnel to be family.

I commit myself to the pursuit of Your divine purposes in each and all.

I commit myself to competing in a Christ - honoring way that brings the best out of my team and our opponents.

I commit this day, all its challenges, responsibilities, and blessings to You.

With a full and expectant heart I pray in Jesus' strong name,

Amen.

Prayer for the spouse of a competitor

Father,

Thank you for gracing my life with such a spouse as mine.

Thank you for his/her patience with the hours and hours of training.

Thank you for his/her support of my life calling in sport.

Thank you for his/her understanding of my travel and long hours.

May I be faithful to choose my spouse over competing priorities.

May I be conscious of his/her needs and my responsibilities.

May we both find joy and fulfillment in our life together.

I pray and confirm my commitment to my spouse in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Prayer after a satisfying performance

Father in Heaven,

Thank You for this most satisfying experience in (sport).

I know I was surrounded Your presence throughout the contest

I am pleased with the results, but find more satisfaction in the teamwork and joy I experienced.

I sense Your hand in the preparation and in the competition..

Thank You for my rich and fulfilling life in (sport).

Amen.

Prayer for Competition on the Sabbath

Father, 

My life in (sport) requires that I compete today.

I agree with You that the Sabbath is holy and rest is important to godly living.

I will give my all to this day's sporting experience and will give You my all in Sabbath rest tomorrow.

Thank You that I may rest in relationship with You.

Amen. 

Prayer of confession

Merciful Savior, 

I confess that my behavior today was not pleasing to You.

I confess my lack of self-control and my foolish actions.

I confess that my speech was sinful and my attitude was selfish.

Please cleanse me from guilt and purify my sullied conscience.

I trust in Your mercy to forgive and Your grace to restore me.

Amen.

Prayer for one's opponent

Father,

Thank you for the provision of a worthy and challenging opponent. 

May we each compete honorably and in a way that demonstrates dignity and respect.

May we each experience the best of (sport) today. 

Amen.

Prayer after a bitter defeat

Father,

Losing like this is painful and leaves a bitter taste in our mouths.

Failures like this threaten to rob us of the joy and satisfaction we love about (sport).

Please restore our hearts, our bodies, and our minds. 

Help us learn from this defeat and return to compete again.

Please restore to us the passion for and fulfillment of our lives in (sport).

Amen.

Prayer of thanksgiving for sport

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for (sport). It engages my body, my mind, and my spirit in pursuit of victory, joy, and fulfillment.

Thank You for allowing me to sense both Your presence and Your pleasure as I compete.

Amen.

Prayer for an injured teammate

Father,

My teammate is injured and I confess my shock, fear, and utter helplessness.

Please minimize his pain, heal his body, and restore him to compete again.

Please be very near to him in these moments of alienation and fear.

I commit my teammate; body, mind, and spirit, to Your lovingkindness.

Amen. 

Bed time prayer the night after competing

Merciful Father,

Thank you for this day's competition.

I commit the results into Your hands as a sacrifice of love. 

I confess my weakness and sin as revealed by today's contest.

I abide in Your grace and mercy.

Thank You for a worthy opponent, loving teammates, respectful officials, and wise coaches.

Please allow my mind to rest, my body to recover, and my spirit to be at peace.

Amen.

Post-game prayer

Father,

Thank you for today's competition.

Thank you for energizing my effort, renewing my mind, inhabiting my spirit, and receiving my effort as an act of worship.

I confess the sin You revealed as I competed.

I release the results, my performance, and tonight's rest and recovery to Your gracious care.

Amen.

Prayer for emotional self-control

Father, 

Please empower me with control over my emotions as I compete.

By Your Spirit, enable me to overcome every factor that would lead to a loss of emotional self-control.

I commit every emotion I will experience to Your wise guidance and ask that You guard my heart from foolish reactions.

Amen.

Prayer for renewed strength

Almighty Father,

My legs feel rubbery and my back is sore. 

My arms hang down and my shoulders slump.

Please infuse me with Your strength.

Please restore power to my body, mind, and spirit.

You are the strength of my life and my portion forever.

I commit all that I am and all that I have to You.

In Jesus' strong name I pray,

Amen.

Bed time prayer the night before competing

Gracious Father,

As I anticipate tomorrow's competition, please enable me to rest well, to awaken refreshed, and to trust You with tomorrow's results.

I am well prepared and thankful for my life in (sport).

I commit my life and this night's sleep into Your watchful care.

Amen.

Prayer for Christ-honoring competition

Father,

Thank You for creating me with a powerful spirit, a strong body, and a growing mind.

Thank You for providing a competitive and honorable opponent for this contest.

Thank You for providing wise coaches, just officials, and helpful support personnel.

May we each and all compete in a Christ-honoring way.

May we each and all experience the best (sport) has to offer as we compete.

May we each and all have a profound sense of your presence and pleasure in every moment of the competition.

I pray in Jesus' strong name.

Amen.

Prayer for the consecration of sport

Almighty Father,

Thank you for (sport).

(Sport) is a beautiful and valuable part of Your creation.

I commit this day's experience in (sport) to You and ask that You receive it as a holy and acceptable offering.

(Sport) is our reasonable act of worship as we offer our bodies in Your service .

Amen.