Bedtime Prayers for Kids and Families

Bedtime prayers for kids and families offer a great opportunity to end each day with gratitude and focus on God.

At bedtime in our house, we spend some time reading a devotion and ending with a bedtime prayer. We’ve been through Lego devotions, Bible graphic novels, and Bible studies for kids and families. Our typical bedtime prayer is an extemporaneous prayer where we name something that we are grateful for and then ask God for what we need.

There are all kids of bedtime prayers that are perfect for kids and families, from traditional prayers, the Lord’s prayer, rhyming prayers, bedtime blessings, and short and simple bedtime prayers.

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Bedtime Prayers for Kids and Families

There are a wide range of bedtime prayers that are perfect for kids and families, from extemporaneous prayers that allow you to say what’s on your mind, to classic prayers like the Lord’s prayer, rhyming prayers, bedtime blessings, and short and simple nighttime prayers.

Here is a collection of all kinds of prayers that you can add to your family’s bedtime routine.

Our Basic Bedtime Prayer Formula

Our family’s bedtime prayer is an extemporaneous prayer, reflecting on the things that we are grateful for that day, the things we need help with, and the people we want to bring close to God. Here is our basic bedtime prayer formula. This prayer is great for encouraging gratitude and reflection at the end of the day.

Dear God,
Thank you for _________________ (each person names something that they are thankful for).
Please help us to get enough rest and be ready for tomorrow. Please ______________ (each person names something that they want help with, are worried about, a person they want to pray for, etc.).
Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.

You can also substitute “trespasses” for “sins”.

Before the Ending of the Day

This is a beautiful hymn attributed to St. Ambrose and translated into English in 1852. It makes a lovely bedtime prayer.

Before the ending of the day,
Creator of the world, we pray.
Your grace and peace to us allow
and guard and keep your people now.

From evil dreams defend our sight,
from all the terrors of the night,
from all deluding thoughts that creep
on heedless minds disarmed by sleep.

O Father, this we ask be done
through Jesus Christ, your only Son,
whom with the Spirit we adore
forever and forever more. Amen.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
     He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
 Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

 You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
 Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.
Amen.

A Collect for Night Prayer from The Church of England

Visit this place, O Lord, we pray,
and drive far from it the snares of the enemy;
may your holy angels dwell with us and guard us in peace,
and may your blessing be always upon us;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

A Simple Prayer from Psalms

Into your hands I commit my spirit;
    deliver me, Lord, my faithful God. (Psalm 31:5)
Keep me as the apple of your eye;
    hide me in the shadow of your wings. (Psalm 17:8)
Amen.

Nighttime Blessings

Bedtime blessings are short prayers or affirmations that you can speak over your child. The biggest difference between a prayer and a blessing is that a prayer asks God for something, while a blessing declares a truth about someone. Here are a few bedtime blessings that you can speak over your children.

To make your blessing personal, speak your child’s name at the beginning of the blessing. You can also lay your hand on your child’s head or shoulder as you speak the blessing.

May you know that you are loved by God and by your family. May you know that God is watching over you during the hard times and always.

May you know that you are blessed. And may you trust that God is in control, even when we can’t see the end of the story.

May God bless you and keep you, may he make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you, may he turn his face toward you and bring you peace. (Numbers 6:24-26)

May God bless you and keep you. May God be kind and gracious to you. May God give you peace tonight and every night.

You are a beloved child of God. May you grow in faith and in confidence as you grow into the person that God has made you to be.

May the peace of God, which is bigger than anything we understand, fill your heart and your mind, and may you know God’s love always. (Philippians 4:7)

Rhyming Bedtime Prayers for Kids

If you want a bedtime prayer that will stick in your child’s memory, then choosing a rhyming prayer is a great idea. Below, you’ll find some classic rhyming prayers and some prayers based on hymns that you can add to your family’s bedtime routine.

Dear Father in heaven, look down from above (a hymn by V.E. Bee)

Dear Father in heaven,
Look down from above;
Bless papa and mama,
And those whom I love.

May angels guard over
My slumbers, and when
The morning is breaking,
Awake me.
Amen.

Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep

This classic bedtime prayer has a few different versions.

Now I lay me down to sleep.
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
May God guard me through the night,
And wake me with the morning’s light. Amen.

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
May the angels watch me through the night
And keep me in their blessed sight. Amen.

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I should live another day,
I pray the Lord to guide my way. Amen.

Now the Light Has Gone Away (a hymn by Frances R. Havergal)

Now the light has gone away;
Savior, listen while I pray.
Asking Thee to watch and keep
And to send me quiet sleep.

Jesus, Savior, wash away
All that has been wrong today;
Help me every day to be
Good and gentle, more like Thee.

Let my near and dear ones be
Always near and dear to Thee.
O bring me and all I love
To Thy happy home above.
Amen.

Father, We Thank Thee (by Rebecca J. Weston, 1885)

Father, We thank thee for the night,
And for the pleasant morning light;
For rest and food and loving care,
And all that makes the day so fair.
Help us to do the things we should,
To be to others kind and good;
In all we do, in work or play,
To grow more loving every day.
Amen.

.Lord in Heaven

Lord in heaven, hear my prayer,
Keep me in your loving care.
Be my guide in all I do.
Bless all those who love me, too. Amen.

A Nighttime Blessing

Lord,
You bless us as we rest
Restore us as we sleep
You care for us as we drift off
And make our dreaming sweet.

You are the safest place
You are the God of Grace
Forgiven, loved and held by you
Is each small seed of faith.

You know our thoughts and feelings
You see our deep desires
You understand our weariness
And catch each tear we cry.

You walk beside us every day
You are a constant friend
You stay with us all through the night
On you we can depend.
Amen.

Short Good Night Prayers

These short bedtime prayers are perfect for when you want something short and simple. Choose your favorite and say the prayer as a family before your kids go to sleep.

A Short Evening Prayer (from the Anglican compline service)

May the Lord Almighty grant us and those we love a peaceful night and a perfect end. Amen.

An Evening Prayer for Peace (from Augustine of Hippo)

O Lord God, grant your peace to us, for you have supplied us with all things — the peace of rest, the peace of the Sabbath which has no evening; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen. 

Jesus, Tender Shepherd (a hymn by Mary Duncan)

Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me;
bless Your little lamb tonight;
through the darkness please be near me;
watch my sleep till morning light.
Amen.

Bedtime Prayers for Little Ones by Max Lucado is a great book for families with young children.