How to Remember to Pray: 10 Ideas That Really Work

It’s hard to start new habits.

I have had success in one area, though. I’ve stuck with my water aerobics class for almost a year. And now, it feels weird when I don’t go. I’ll be honest, it took about 6 months for me to get to this point. But I’m here, and now it’s part of my lifestyle.

It can be done.

The same is true when it comes to prayer. Most of us genuinely want to pray more—for our children, our grandchildren, and the people we love. We know it’s important, and yet some days we don’t pray at all. We don’t forget because we don’t care. Life simply fills our days with appointments, errands, phone calls, and distractions until another day slips by.

The good news is that remembering to pray doesn’t have to depend on having a perfect memory. Sometimes, all we need is a few gentle reminders built into our everyday routine. If you struggle to have a consistent prayer time, here are ten simple, practical ways to help prayer become a more natural part of your day, one small habit at a time.

Use Technology as Your Prayer Reminder

1. Try a Prayer App.

I know, I know. No one wants to deal with another app.

But prayer apps can actually be surprisingly helpful. Some simply send reminders. Others let you keep a prayer journal, track answered prayers, or join a community of believers who are praying together. Many also include Bible reading plans and Scripture to encourage you along the way.

If you’d like to explore a few options, this guide to the best Christian prayer apps compares several popular choices, including free and paid versions.

2. Use Your Smartphone to Help You Remember to Pray.

One reminder that has worked well for me is the Reminders app on my iPhone. I’ve created reminders to pray for each of my grandchildren, and at the times I’ve chosen, a notification pops up. Instead of relying on my memory, my phone reliably reminds me to keep my prayer commitment.

I want my grandchildren to live under God’s protection, and my phone prompts me to seek the Lord for their safety.

Leave Yourself Visual Reminders.

3. Keep Grandchildren’s Pictures in Your Bible.

Keep photos of your grandchildren tucked inside your Bible. Every time you open it for your devotions, those sweet faces become a reminder that’s hard to miss. If you don’t use a physical Bible every day, you could also keep a favorite family photo near your prayer chair or on your desk.

4. Sticky notes.

Write your grandchild’s name or the prayer situation and slap it up where you will see it. Then, as you move through your day, you are reminded again and again to whisper those quick prayers for your darling grandkids.

Post-it notes work for me because of the novelty. When the novelty of seeing the notes on the bathroom mirror wears off, I move them to the refrigerator or by the front door.

Sticky notes are inexpensive and easy to find almost anywhere—from Staples to the Dollar Store. You might even choose a different color for each grandchild.

5. Prayer Cards Can Help You Remember to Pray.

Prayer cards are another good visual reminder. Keep a small stack in your Bible, beside your favorite chair, or on the kitchen table where you’ll see them throughout the day. Having specific prayers already written out makes it easy to pray, even when you don’t know quite what to say.

If you’re looking for printable prayer cards, you’ll find several free sets on my Free Printables page. Pinterest is another great place to search for “free prayer printables.”

Download all 9 here.

6. Prayer Jar.

One of my favorite prayer jar ideas uses a Mason jar filled with popsicle sticks. Write one grandchild’s name or one prayer request on each stick. During your prayer time, simply pull out a stick and pray for whatever is written on it.

You can go wild decorating your jar. You can have a basket with pens and paper to jot down prayer requests. Here are some inspiring ideas.

You can decorate the jar as simply or as elaborately as you’d like. Keep a small basket nearby with extra sticks and a pen so you can add new prayer requests as they come up. After you’ve prayed over a stick, place it in the basket until the jar is empty. Then start again. Save the requests God has already answered!

This post here has fun ideas for decorating your jar as well as good ideas for seasonal prayer jars. So clever!

Attach Prayer to Your Daily Routine.

One of the easiest ways to remember to pray is to connect it with something you already do every day. Instead of trying to create a brand-new routine, let prayer become part of the rhythms that are already built into your life.

Choose a chair, a corner of the couch, or a small table where you regularly meet with God. Keep your Bible, journal, and prayer list there. Every time you walk past that space, it becomes a visual cue to stop and pray. Before long, simply sitting in that chair can put your heart in a prayerful frame of mind. Our surroundings often shape our habits more than we realize.

7. Remember to Pray before meals.

I feel like saying grace before meals is becoming less and less common. Let’s bring it back—and not just at Thanksgiving!

If you eat three meals a day, that’s three opportunities to lift your grandchildren’s names before the Lord. Even one short sentence like, “Lord, be with (grandchild’s name) today,” keeps prayer woven into your everyday life.

8. Assign days of the week.

Depending on how many grandchildren you have, you could dedicate one day each week to praying for one grandchild. Or perhaps Monday is for your grandsons, Tuesday is for your granddaughters, and another day is devoted to your adult children and their marriages.

You could even tell your grandchildren which day is “theirs.” Imagine how special it would be for them to know Grandma remembers to pray for them every Tuesday.

9. Pray at the Same Time Each Day.

If you have one or two grandchildren, you may find it easiest to set aside one regular time each day just for prayer. It could be at 9:00 each morning, during your afternoon coffee break, or right after lunch.

One daily habit I’m working on is to pray for each grandchild as I head to bed. I pray for their good night’s sleep. I pray for their family’s safety and for my own children’s marriage. It’s a nice way to wind down while placing my family members in God’s hands for the night.

10. Turn Waiting Time Into Prayer Time.

Sometimes, prayer doesn’t require finding more time—it often just requires noticing the time you already have.

How much time do we spend waiting every day? Waiting at a stoplight. Waiting in the doctor’s office. Waiting to pick up the grandchildren. Waiting to meet a friend for lunch.

Instead of reaching for your phone, try reaching out to God. Those little pockets of waiting may only last a minute or two, but they can become some of the sweetest moments of prayer in your day.

Remember when I said it took six months before water aerobics felt like part of my life? Prayer habits grow the same way. You don’t have to try all ten of these reminders to pray right away. Pick one that fits your personality and your daily routine. As you faithfully return to prayer, little by little it will begin to feel less like another item on your to-do list and more like a natural part of your day.

Since praying for your family matters to you, I invite you to join my email list and walk this prayer journey together.

More Ways to Pray for Your Grandchildren: