While you are growing in the Lord, you can—and should—pray for your husband’s spiritual growth. Here are two scenarios to consider in your marriage and as you pray.

1. What if my husband is not a Christian?

If your husband is not a Christian, then your first and foremost assignment is to pray daily for God to draw your beloved to Himself. I cannot urge you strongly enough to pray faithfully. It is entirely possible that you are the only person on the face of the earth praying for him. That means if you don’t pray for him, than probably no one is!

The Bible says, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:16). And the same is true of the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous wife. It avails and accomplishes much! 

Your assignment from God is to pray, to keep on praying no matter what, and to trust God.

And while you are praying for your husband, pray for God to send people to share their faith with him. Pray for someone to give him a book that shows him the way to Christ. That’s how Jim and I became a Christian couple.

One of the doctors Jim called on each month was a vibrant Christian, and he gave Jim a copy of a Christian book. Jim read the book for all the wrong reasons—he read it so if the doctor asked him about the book on his next sales visit, Jim could smile and say yes, he had read it and then politely and knowledgeably discuss it.

Who knew that book would turn Jim’s world upside down?

God is able to break through the hardest of hearts. He delights in showing people the way to know Him and experience His love and forgiveness. And prayer is your direct avenue to God. Each prayer you utter is from your heart to His.

2. What if my husband is a Christian?

If your husband is a believer, then don’t forget to pray for God to move him to want to grow as a Christian.

Remember that we are not called to nag our husbands to read their Bibles and be more committed to their spiritual growth. As a mentor told me when I was still a new believer, I am not to attempt to take on the role the Holy Spirit has in prompting and convicting my husband of his need to be growing in Christ.

And it’s true. As a wife, I am not responsible for my husband’s spiritual growth. But I am responsible to grow myself and to fulfill God’s commands to me to love and respect my husband, to be his helper and his number one encourager in all things (Titus 2:4; Ephesians 5:33; Genesis 2:18).

Put the Lord first in your heart each day, and He will give you the wisdom to be the kind of wife your husband needs. Remember, your job is to love your husband and to pray to God to change his heart. God's job is to do the changing—in His time and in His way.

Get more inspiration and prayer insights in 15 Verses to Pray for Your Husband.