Prayer list template: 5 layouts to copy, with a filled-in example
A prayer list template is a page with columns for each request: who or what, the date you added it, what to pray, and when it was answered. The simplest has four columns: name, need, date added, answered. Below are five layouts to copy into a notebook, phone or spreadsheet (a basic list, a weekly rota, a categories list, an answered prayer log and a group list), how to write requests you can actually pray, a filled-in example, and how to keep the list from getting too long.
Template 1: the basic prayer list
Start here. Draw four columns on a page, or make a table in a notes app.
| Who / what | What to pray | Added | Answered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mom | Clear results from the scan on the 12th; peace while she waits | Nov 3 | |
| Jordan | A job offer; patience in the search | Nov 3 | |
| Me | Wisdom about the move | Nov 4 |
Each time you pray, read down the list and pray one or two sentences for each line. When something is answered, write the date and how in the last column, even if the answer was "no" or "not yet."
Template 2: the weekly rota (a day for each group)
Once your list passes about 15 names, praying for everyone every day gets long and rushed. A rota gives each group its own day, so every name is prayed for once a week, properly.
| Day | Pray for | Names |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Immediate family | |
| Tuesday | Wider family | |
| Wednesday | Friends | |
| Thursday | Church, pastor, small group | |
| Friday | Work, neighbors, school | |
| Saturday | The sick, grieving and struggling | |
| Sunday | Missionaries, your town, the world, leaders |
Urgent requests (surgery tomorrow, a job interview this week) go on a short "every day" line at the top until they're past. Our guide to a daily prayer routine shows how a rota fits into morning and evening prayer.
Template 3: the categories list
Some people like their list sorted by kind of prayer rather than by person. Use these headings, each with a few lines under it:
- Praise: who God is (one attribute a day: faithful, patient, holy).
- Thanks: specific things from this week.
- Confession: what you need to bring to God.
- Family: each person by name.
- Friends and church: names and needs.
- The sick and hurting: names, diagnosis or situation, dates.
- Work and money: decisions, colleagues, provision.
- The wider world: leaders, persecuted Christians, places in the news.
- Me: what you need this week.
This follows the shape of the ACTS prayer model (adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication), which keeps a list from becoming only requests.
Template 4: the answered prayer log
Keep this at the back of your notebook or as a second tab. It's the page you'll read on hard days.
| Date asked | Request | Date answered | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | Jordan: a job | Oct 28 | Offer from the second interview, closer to home than the first |
| Sep 15 | Healing for Aunt Ruth's hip | - | Still in pain; she says she feels less alone |
"I will remember Yah's deeds; for I will remember your wonders of old" (Psalm 77:11, WEB). Writing the "how" matters more than the date. Our guide to prayer journal benefits explains why this record is the part people value most.
Template 5: a group or church prayer list
For a small group, a Bible study or a church prayer team, add two columns: who shared it, and whether it can be shared further.
| Request | Shared by | OK to share? | Added | Update |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Safe travel to visit her son | Linda | Group only | Nov 2 | |
| Surgery on the 10th | Mark | Whole church | Nov 2 |
- Ask before you write. "Can I put this on the group list?" Some requests are for you alone.
- Date everything and clear old requests monthly, asking the person for an update first.
- Keep it short. One line per request. Details stay with the person who shared it.
How to write a prayer request you can actually pray
"Pray for Sam" is hard to pray for more than a sentence. A request is easier to pray, and to see answered, when it says what you're asking. Three tips:
- Name the need. Not "Sam" but "Sam: sleep, and a decision about the job by Friday."
- Add a verse when you can. "Sam: peace (Philippians 4:7)." Praying Scripture gives you words when yours run out. Our guide on how to pray for someone has Paul's prayers to pray by name.
- Pray beyond the problem. Add one line for the person, not only their crisis: their faith, their family, their joy.
| Vague | Prayable |
|---|---|
| Pray for Mom | Mom: clear scan results on the 12th; peace while she waits; that she sleeps |
| My marriage | Us: patience on busy evenings; a real talk this weekend; joy together |
| Work | Wisdom in Tuesday's meeting; kindness to Dan; provision if hours are cut |
| The world | Christians in places of persecution; leaders making war decisions; refugees this winter |
A filled-in example
Here's one person's Tuesday page from the weekly rota, written in about four minutes and prayed in about ten:
Tuesday: wider family. Every day: Mom's scan on the 12th.
Grandpa: strength after the fall, someone to visit him. · Aunt Ruth: hip pain, and that she isn't lonely. · Cousin Mia: first year at college, good friends. · Uncle Joe: healing between him and Dad. · Ben and Kate: the new baby, sleep.
Answered this week: Mia found a church near campus.
Where to keep your prayer list
| Format | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Notebook | Focus, the answered log, reading back | Not with you when someone asks for prayer |
| Notes app | Always with you; easy to add and move names | Distractions on the same screen |
| Spreadsheet | Long lists, group lists, sorting by date | Can feel like admin, not prayer |
| Index cards | One card per day of the rota; fits in a Bible | Easy to lose |
Many people keep the list on their phone and a separate paper journal for the prayers themselves. Our prayer journal template has page layouts that pair with any of these lists, and our prayer journal for men guide has a five-line page with a single "Ask" line.
How to pray through your list in 10 minutes
A list is only useful if you pray it. Here's a simple order that fits a 10-minute prayer time and keeps the list from feeling like a roll call.
| Minutes | Do |
|---|---|
| 0–1 | Be still. Read one verse, such as "Continue steadfastly in prayer, watching therein with thanksgiving" (Colossians 4:2, WEB). |
| 1–2 | Praise and thanks: one thing about who God is, three things from yesterday. |
| 2–3 | The "every day" line: urgent needs, one or two sentences each. |
| 3–8 | Today's group from the rota. For each name: thank God for them, pray their need, pray one thing beyond the need. |
| 8–9 | Yourself: what you need today. |
| 9–10 | Look at the answered column. Write any new answer. Close with the Lord's Prayer or a short amen. |
If a name brings nothing to mind, pray a line of Scripture over them, such as Numbers 6:24–26: "Yahweh bless you, and keep you. Yahweh make his face to shine on you, and be gracious to you. Yahweh lift up his face toward you, and give you peace" (WEB). Our guide on how to pray when you don't know what to say has more ways in.
Some people pray the list aloud, quietly, which helps them slow down. Others pray it on a walk with the list on their phone. Either way, it helps to pray it at the same time each day, so it becomes part of your routine rather than one more task.
Keeping the list alive
- Add names the moment you're asked. When someone says "pray for me," add them before the conversation ends. Better: pray with them right then, then write it down.
- Prune once a month. Move answered requests to the log. Ask people how things are. Remove what's resolved.
- Tell people you prayed. "I prayed for your scan this morning" is a short text that means a lot.
- Don't let length become guilt. If you can't get through the list, move to a rota. Praying for five people well beats skimming fifty.
- Keep it with your prayer time. The list lives where you pray: in your Bible, by the coffee maker, as your phone's first note.
If you'd like help praying through it, our free day 1 guides ten minutes of prayer with a time to pray for others by name: play day 1 free.
Common questions
What should be on a prayer list?
Family, friends, church, the sick and grieving, work, the wider world, and yourself. Add praise and thanks so it isn't only requests.
How do I organize a long prayer list?
Use a weekly rota (template 2): each group gets a day, urgent needs go on an "every day" line until they pass.
Should I keep a list of answered prayers?
Yes. It's the part of a list people value most later. Write how it was answered, including "no" and "not yet."
Is there a free printable prayer list template?
Every layout here is free to copy by hand or into a document you print. No download or sign-up needed.
Is a prayer list biblical?
Paul told churches he prayed for them by name and often (Romans 1:9, Philippians 1:3–4), and Samuel called it sin to stop praying for his people (1 Samuel 12:23). A list is a way of keeping that promise.
Copy template 1 or 2 into a notebook today and add five names. If you'd like a daily prayer to go with it, answer a few questions to build your 40-day prayer plan. More in our prayer guides.
Sources
Scripture: World English Bible (public domain), eBible.org. Pages read for this guide: Flourishing Mama, "How to Pray Confidently with a Simple Written Prayer List"; Stacey Pardoe, "How to Live More Intentionally with a Prayer List"; Template.net, "Prayer List Template".