The prayers printed below are taken from Tom White’s book Breaking Strongholds:
Father, I expose to you the _(name each specific sin)____ in my life. I cannot change these reactions. I confess this as sin. Forgive me. Cleanse me. Create in me a new heart, by your power, and renew a right spirit within me. In the name of Jesus, I renounce my rights to my __(name each sin specifically) . Remove from me, Lord, the root of irritation that keeps this sin alive in me. I reject the thought that I’ll never change. Spirit of God, I invite you to cleanse and control the _________in my life. Produce in me the power of self-control and gentleness by your Spirit. Lord, by the power of your Word, I renounce the notion that I’m resigned to being held in bondage to this sin. Change my heart O God, in the power of Jesus’ name.
Lord, you cared enough about me to choose me as your child. I affirm that your love for me is unconditional and unchanging. My own thoughts and feelings are deceptive. I reject the lie of rejection that demeans my personal value and robs me of the joy of my inheritance in your kingdom. I affirm that your plans for my life are for fulfillment and fruitfulness. I speak to the mountains of self-doubt, fear of people, and inferiority, and break your power over my mind and emotions. Father, I take refuge in you alone and submit my struggle to you. I resist the accusations of Satan in Jesus’ name that I don’t matter to you and I don’t have a place in your plan. Draw near to me. Heal my wounded heart, speak truth to my inner person, and free me through your love to be available for service to others.
Father, I thank you for the access I have to you through Jesus Christ, my High Priest. I choose in this moment to draw near to you. According to your promise, draw near to me. I acknowledge my need for greater grace. I ask you to touch my heart and fan into a flame the ember of love I have for you. Stir up the spark of commitment to your kingdom that already burns within. Father, give fresh light to my mind in understanding your truth. Give courage to my heart in following your ways.
Lord, I acknowledge my dependence on you. Open the eyes of your servant to see as you see. Anoint my lips to speak as you would speak. Grant your servant the authority of your Son to stand against the evil one and his workers, and to speak triumph over them in Jesus’ name. Impart to me your graces and gifts to fight and prevail in the battle for souls. Let nothing hinder the high and holy purposes you have for my life. Speak afresh to me. I long to hear your voice. Train my hands for battle, and assign me my place in your army. Teach me the ways of your Spirit, and lead me in the path of understanding for Jesus’ sake and for the cause of his kingdom. Amen
I expose all enemies of Jesus Christ operative against ___________. I sever you from Satan and any power above you. I remove your right to afflict_____, and proclaim your judgment under the hand of God. I weaken you with the blood of Calvary. In the authority of Jesus, I bind all spirits present together. I command you to go where Jesus Christ tells you to go by the voice of his Spirit, and by the voice of his servant now speaking.
(Stay close to God. Listen and learn what he wants to teach. If this process results in release and resolution, thank God and go on. If after it you do not feel clear or clean, then seek further help from a discerning fellow believer.)
Dealing with Generational Sin.
1. Recognize sources or entry points of possible oppression. Check for strongholds.
2. Pray according to the instruction of Leviticus 26:40, 42. Confess your own sins and those of your fathers, especially sins related to rebellion against God and hatred against others.
3. Deliberately forgive those in your ancestry who sinned.
4. Partake of the Lord’s supper. There is power released in the observance of communion. Reaffirm your commitment to the Lord and make a formal removal of ground claimed by Satan.
5. Pray with authority in Jesus’ name to separate your life and your children’s lives from the sins of former generations.
Heavenly Father, I confess the wickedness of my earthly father, his sexual sin and violent anger. I forsake and separate myself and my children from those sins. God, be gracious to me.
In Jesus’ authority, I now apply the power of the blood of Jesus to break all curses and consequences of evil that may have entered my family.
Prayer during Concentrated Attack
Heavenly Father, you are my refuge and my rock. You are in control of everything that happens in my life. I am your servant, called by your name. Thank you for giving me the helmet of salvation—my identity in your Son is secure. Nothing can separate me from your love. Thank you for forgiving and cleansing my guilt (confess any specific sin). I put on your breastplate of righteousness. Holy Spirit, search out and bring into the light any schemes of darkness directed at me. I take up the shield of faith to stand against the works of the evil one. I put on the helmet of salvation and the shoes of the gospel of peace. In Jesus’ name, I put on the belt of truth and use the sword of the Word of God: “Thereason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devils work.” 1 John 3:8 AMEN
Lord, your Word declares that you will shield and protect your children from the power of the evil one. You are El Elyon, the Most High God, sovereign Lord of all things visible and invisible. Everything is in your hand. I ask you, in the name of Jesus, to shield _____ with the presence of your Spirit. May your glory follow after _______ as a rear guard. Lord, be a refuge to ________. Support him or her with your everlasting arms, and drive the enemy away. Assign and send your holy angels to protect and deliver your servant from danger. I commend _____to your watchful care. I ask that no purpose of yours be thwarted by the interference of Satan and his forces. Father, in accordance with Jesus’ prayer, deliver ______ from all evil.
Prayer for the Protection of Children
Father, you alone are my refuge, my strength, my fortress. I ask you to honor your Word and be a refuge to my family. I ask you, through Jesus’ intercession, to grant to us your sovereign protection from evil. Show me any sin or disobedience that robs me and my family of your protection. Show me, Holy Spirit, anything that grieves your blessing in our lives. I entrust my children to you. They are your gifts to me. I ask you to surround ____with your presence, and to shield him or her from Satan’s power. God, shed your light upon your servants, bathe us with the joy of your redemption. Cover _-with the power of the blood of your Son. I askyou, Father ,to expose and destroy schemes of the enemy planned against _____ and to assign your holy angels to guard and protect him or her, according to your perfect will. Lord Jesus, thank you for praying for our protection. By faith I receive your protection for my family.
Prayer of Cleansing (room, home, business, etc.)
Lord I claim this place for your purposes. I stand on the truth of your Word: “The scepter of the wicked will not remain over the land allotted to the righteous” (Ps. 125:3). I believe you have given me this place. I dedicate it to you, and ask you to fill it with your holy presence. I separate myself from any iniquity that has occurred here in past times. I apply the power of Jesus’ blood to remove any desecration of God’s name in this place. I ask you, in Jesus’ authority, to set watching angels around this property, protecting your servant from the work of the evil one. (if hotel or motel, add: Father, I ask for your holy presence and holy angels to linger here, to touch the lives of those who inhabit the room after me. Bring conviction to their hearts, and draw them to seek after you.
I stand on the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, whose name is above every name, to weaken the power of evil in this place. Through the blood of Christ, I remove all desecration of the name of God that was prompted either by human or demonic beings. I command all enemies of Jesus Christ that have access to this place or who may be here now to leave. Go now where you are ordered to go, by the voice of the Holy Spirit. I claim this property for the kingdom of light. I order all darkness to flee in the name of Jesus the King.
Lord Jesus, you have called and equipped me to follow you and do your will. I submit to you. In my affliction, I ask you to convict me of any sin that allows the arrows of Satan to buffet me. I am willing and ready to repent of anything that gives the enemy a place. I ask you to reveal areas of ignorance or fear that may have given the enemy entrance and opportunity. Lord, search out, expose, and break the power of all schemes of Satan that have been sent to me. I seek your face—I call to you. Hear and answer my prayer, and deliver me from this trouble. I ask you to turn this evil into good.
Satan, I raise my shield of faith against you and resist you with the sword of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God that proclaims your judgment as a false god, an accuser and tormenter of the sons of the Almighty. I announce your works in my life (and in the life of my family, team members, disciples, etc.) destroyed. Through the power of the blood of Jesus Christ, I refuse and break all evil curses, hexes, vexes, spells, incantations, rituals, psychic powers, or works of witchcraft sent to defeat or destroy my life and ministry. I resist all demonic powers sent to me from ____________ (identify any witch, shaman, chief, leader, etc.). I command all powers of evil to return immediately to the source from which you came. In the name of Jesus, I speak blessing on ____________( the one who has cursed you). I sent the Holy Spirit to you to convict you of your sin, and draw you into the light. I call you to turn from your sin and turn to the mercy of the living God.
Father, I call to you in Jesus’ name on behalf of _______. In your mercy, Lord, I ask you to search out and expose any unconfessed sin in __________’s blood ancestry that gives the devil any advantage. I take legal authority in Jesus Christ to forsake this sin (be specific if possible, hate, murder, witchcraft, incest) and to separate _______from Satan’s accusation. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s works. I proclaim the works of the devil exposed and destroyed in ______’s life. (Watch child for peace. If there’s a manifestation, command the spirit to depart. Close by speaking a scriptural blessing on the child.)
Prayer for Conversion of Unbelievers
Father, I bring to you my burden for _____________. I claim him or her for salvation. Lord, it is your desire that _______not perish. Holy Spirit, make Jesus known to ___________. Stir within this person the desire to seek salvation and convict him or her of sin. Lord, soften any resistance to the truth, and plant seeds of the word in this person’s mind and heart. Lord, break his or her will. Make this person desperate for you. Bring ___________ to the end of himself or herself. Lord I ask you to break Satan’s power in ________’s life. Spirit of Jesus silence and subdue the voice of the enemy. In the authority of Christ, I weaken any strongholds in ___________’s life. Holy Spirit, move in your power to separate away from this person the influence of unclean spirits, and stir him or her to repentance. I bind the power of any spirits of confusion and unbelief that blind the mind. Lord, enable him or her to hear your Word with clarity. Send someone they can hear from to share a word of testimony. In Jesus’ name, Amen (If a person makes a decision to receive and follow Jesus, it is wise to close the doors to Satan’s prior influence, once and for all so the new believer is rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought into the kingdom of the Son and inherits the assurance of eternal identity in Christ. But unless the power of Satan is broken, a convert may still face some real hassle. In conjunction with a prayer of repentance, a severing of Satan’s influence should also occur. Use discretion with this prayer—it may not be necessary. For most folks, the main bondages are those of sin and self.)
Father, thank you for your gift of salvation. Thank you for setting me free and for delivering my life from darkness. I forsake all sin that may have given Satan a foothold in my life. I close all doors opened to his influence and separate my life from the fallen principalities and powers. I dedicate my life—body, soul and spirit, to you. I place myself on your altar of service. I ask you in Jesus’ name to remove from my life the lingering presence of evil and to fill me with your Spirit.
Satan, I forsake you as a false god, a liar, a deceiver. I affirm Jesus as my Lord. I close the doors of your influence in my life, and overcome you with the blood of Jesus. I resist you and command you and your forces to leave me—go where Jesus Christ commands you to go.
(Ask first: Why did you walk away from Jesus? What happened when you dropped back? Are there specific issues, hurts, unanswered questions, broken relationships, disappointments in a church or pastor that provoked your departure from the faith? (Seek root feelings, then trust God for answers)
Lord, I bring ________to you. Only you can know his or her heart. I cannot make ________change--only you can. I pray you would open his or her up and help ____________to see what has made him or her walk away from you. Give me understanding to see those things as well. Holy Spirit, convict _______of sin and stir up the desire to be right with you. Make __________ sick of sin. Do whatever you need to break his or her will, yet I ask you would be gentle. Bring an experience into ____’s lifeto encourage a return to you.Father, in Jesus’ name, I subdue the influence of the enemy in ______’s life. I ask you to separate him or her from the lies and enticements of Satan. God, free ________-from this blindness. Shake him or her to his or her senses. Demonstrate the discipline of your love, yet do it in mercy. I praise and thank you for the work you are going to do in ____’s life. In Jesus’ name, Amen
The above prayers taken from Tom White’s book Breaking Strongholds.
An Alternative Prayer to Remove Generational Curses, Demonic Bondage, Witchcraft and Word Curses
O gracious and loving Lord., I repent of my sinful behavior.Please bring to my mind right now those sins which are grieving your heart.Lord, I am sorry. I repent and turn from my sinful ways. Forgive me and hear my prayer. I choose to forgive all those who have sinned against me.I choose to forgive myself for those things I have done in the past. And I choose to forgive you, Lord, for anything that I have been holding against you. I confess the sins of my forefathers, known and unknown. I now renounce, break and loose myself and my family from all hereditary curses and from all demonic bondages placed on us as the result of sins, transgressions and iniquities through my parents or any ancestors. Satan, you have no right to my life and no power over me. I belong to God and will serve only Him. By the authority of my Lord Jesus Christ, I break the power of every evil curse that has come upon me. I command every demon of curse to leave me now and never return, including generational curse spirits, personal transgression curse spirits, witchcraft curse spirits, and spoken word curse spirits. I want to live for Jesus. Fill me with your Spirit and anoint me once again for service. Thank you Lord for cleansing me from all unrighteousness and sin. In Jesus’ name, AMEN
The following prayers are taken mostly from Joan Hunter and Michael Hinson’s book How to Heal the Whole Man.
Father; I confess I have been living for myself. Now I am finally willing to give my whole life to you and confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord and that I am now the servant of the Lord. No longer will I live for myself, but I will live for Christ from this day forth. I confess my sins and ask that they be removed from me and put on the cross of Jesus Christ. (Take time now to confess these sins.) I know this is the beginning of a journey with You that will continue through eternity. I (your full name) give you 100% of my heart and confirm my covenant of forgiveness of sins and healing from every sickness and disease with Jesus who is raised from the dead and now lives in my heart.
Father, I have sinned. I confess my sin(s) of (insert the sins you committed). I repent and turn from this. Forgive me of this sin. I also choose to forgive every one of those who have sinned against me. Father, I choose to forgive (insert the name of the people who sinned against you). What they did was sin. Take this sin from them and place it on the cross of Jesus and on the Day of Judgment I will not hold this sin against them. Even now they are free. Father, bless them.
Father, I have not acted in accordance to your nature and I am upset with myself for these actions. They are sin. I repent and I will no longer continue to act this way. Father, take this sin from me, place it on the cross of Jesus Christ and separate it from me. Forgive me of this sin and forgive my fathers of this same sin as well in Jesus’ name.
Father, I understand that you do not forgive sin, but you do forgive people who sin. I understand that you separate the sins from those who confess and repent of those sins. The Bible confirms that Jesus bore my confessed sins on the cross and that He no longer holds them against me. I also understand that no one but Jesus deserved forgiveness and that you will forgive me of my sins with the same measure of mercy and grace that I choose to forgive others.
Father, I choose to forgive (insert name). What they did to me is sin. Take this sin from them and put in on the cross. And on the Day of Judgment when I stand before our throne, I will hold no accusation against them. Father, I ask you to bless them in Jesus’ name.
Father, I have not applied the faith you have given me. I have allowed doubt and unbelief to enter in. I confess this as sin and choose to turn back to you. Forgive me this sin in Jesus’ name.
Father, I have disobeyed your word and your plan for my life. I repent and turn back to serving you alone. Forgive me this sin and place it on the cross of Jesus Christ. I am your servant from this day forth.
Prayer to Cast Cares on the Altar
Father, I am carrying the burdens of my relationships and circumstances. I choose to lay down all my cares, all my worries, all my fears, all the things I cannot change on our altar. Father I lay my spouse on your altar. I lay my children on your altar. Father I lay (name the circumstances that you can’t change) on your altar. You are my supply and you alone can move in my circumstances. I give these to you and trust you with them in Jesus’ name.
Prayer of Repentance for Selfish or Wrong Motives
Father, I repent of my selfish pride and wrong motives in healing and caring for others. I confess that my eyes move from you to me, thinking I had something to do with it. Forgive me, Lord and continue to use me for your glory and your glory only.
Prayer for Repentance for Judgment and Condemnation
Father, I understand Your Word says you will judge me with the same measure I use to judge others. I also know by your word that I will be condemned with the same measure that I use to condemn others. I know it is correct to judge things as right and wrong according to your Word, but only you know the motives and the intent of another’s heart. Father, I have judged others and have condemned them. This is sin, and I repent of this sin and ask you to separate this sin from me in Jesus’ name and put it on the cross of Jesus Christ.
Father, I willingly lay down on our altar all the conditions that I was expecting you to meet. I (insert your name) choose to give 100% of my heart to you from this day forth. I will be your servant and you will be my God in Jesus’ name.
I willingly lay down all the conditions that I am expecting my spouse to meet on the altar of God. I (your full name) choose to give 100% of my heart to (your spouse’s full name) from this day forth.
Father, I know your word says to say things that edify, build up, correct and confirm (1 Thessalonians 5:11, 2 Timothy 4:2). Words of condemnation, slander, complaining, griping, and gossip or accusation are not of you. They are sin (James 5:9). Father, people have said words about and against me that were sin. I choose to forgive them of their sin and on the Day of Judgment I will hold no accusations against them. Even now they are free and I bless them in Jesus’ name. And Father, I have said words about (insert name) that did not edify, did not correct, and did not confirm. I take responsibility for these words. They are sin. I choose to repent of them and only say words that bless (insert name) from this day forth. I take responsibility for those words. I renounce those words in the name of Jesus and I ask you to separate me from this sin in Jesus’ name and to put in on the cross of Jesus.
Prayer to Break Ungodly Covenants
Father, I understand that sexual intercourse is the sign of the marriage covenant and that you call the marriage covenant holy (Matthew 19:6). I know your Word states that sex outside of marriage is sin (Matthew 15: 19-20). I also understand that by Your design I have entered into covenant with every person with whom I have had sexual relations.
Father, I renounce the ungodly covenant made with (insert name or names). This was sin and I renounce it as such. Separate this sin from me, place it on the cross of Jesus, and break this covenant I made off of me and my household. I also renounce any other ungodly covenants I have made as well, in Jesus’ name.