Ideas for praying with a toddler?

Since this is a toddler, who doesn't yet understand all of the complexity of religion, and the idea of being saved (remember that Jesus said baptism should only be done when a person is fully mentally capable and wants to make the commitment to follow him), you should do it like you are talking to an IMAGINARY FRIEND. That way the child can use their imagination to understand god, and not have to necessarily understand how god goes about listening and granting prayers.

i would pray with the little one just like you pray. start with praise, worship, thanksgiving, lifting up others, and asking for guidance. that sort of thing. teach him the habit of a silent time after prayer for listening to the Lord. teach him also that the Bible says we should pray without ceasing. in other words, besides a set apart prayer time, we can and should talk with the Lord all day, every day. choose some Bible verses about prayer and read them together before praying. God bless you.

there's an old song i remember by Cheryl Keagy, not sure if that's how to spell it, but it was called "little boy on his knees" and was about a mother teaching her son to pray and follow the Lord. absolutely beautiful. i'll see if i can find a link.. just a moment

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMo6CN_IPo0

When my children were younger, I found a cute children's prayer book in either a secular bookstore or a Catholic one. One of the prayers in it is "I see the moon and the moon sees me. God bless the moon, and God bless me".

You could take nature walks and thank God for the beautiful nature that you see.

You don't have to do anything "formal" at this age. Just be very basic and let the child know that God loves him!

Talk about things that concern the toddler and/or his family. I will not suggest any "formula" prayers because all prayers are supposed to come from the heart, like Jesus did. (Hebrews 5:7) Jesus said, "When praying, do not say the same things over and over again." (Matthew 6:7) With that being said, it was not Jesus' intent for us to repeat the "Lord's Prayer" verbatim; rather, he gave us an idea of the things we should pray for. (Matthew 6:9-13) So you can take phrases from that prayer but them in your own words. Moreover, just speak from the heart. Of course, it is best to offer thanksgiving and praise along with your petitions or requests. (Philippians 4:6, 7) One question though: You say that you have him cross himself when he prays so he learns to address his prayers to God, but is that necessary? In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus said to address Jehovah, our Father in heaven, by word. He didn't say that we should cross ourselves. And what purpose would that serve? If Jesus died on the cross, why would you want to make a figure on yourself of the very thing that was used to kill Jesus? If Jesus was killed by a gun, would it make sense to draw an invisible gun over yourself every time you prayed? Anyway, the best thing you can teach the boy is to address his Heavenly Father by name - Jehovah - and to ask his prayers in Jesus' name. (John 14:6) Lastly, I suggest the book, "Learn from the Great Teacher". It's based on the scripture at Luke 18:16 where Jesus said "Let the young children come to me." It's very kid-friendly because it has an abundance of colorful pictures, provides discussion points for you and the child, and is easy to read. Some of the chapters therein are: "Obedience Protects You", "Jesus Teaches Us to Pray", "A Lesson on Being Kind", "Is it Right to Fight?", and "Children Who Make God Happy". I've read the book and I think you will thoroughly enjoy it because it will be a great help to the young boy. If you want the book, you can receive it free of charge just by requesting it from Jehovah's Witnesses in your area.

"Over the years, my personal style of prayer has more and more become just setting my worries before God, bringing up people or situations I'm particularly praying for without specifically asking for anything or using many words, and then sort-of 'listening'. I now feel quite weird and presumptious asking for things."

I like that form of praying.

The bible says God's will for us is better than anything we can ask or think

The Lords Prayer is Our Model

You are great

We follow You

Take cares of our needs (you know what they are)

forgive us

and march us into your glory

Don't over stress prayert, God knows what you need. Pray for is for you to know what God wants

i commend you for praying with your child. it takes a good strong parental figure to add prayer to a child's life. just seeing you pray is a witness to him. children mock their guardians in many ways. it sounds like you're doing a pretty good job of working with your toddler & prayer. you can talk to God just like you do anyone else. He will listen to prayers in the name of His Son. we as parents & guardians will stand before God & give an account of EVERYTHING we do, & everything we do or don't teach our children. i always used the prayer "now i lay me down to sleep..." &"God bless mommy, daddy, etc." as your child grows, you can move from the repetitions prayers to more heart felt prayer. children do not doubt the existence of God, therefore they usually enjoy praying. i'm glad to see another mother/father figure who has put there trust & faith in Jesus Christ to save your soul.

Prayer is a very serious issue in the Bible stories!

Jeremiah 11:14 "DO NOT PRAY for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them, BECAUSE I* (*God) WILL NOT LISTEN WHEN THEY CALL TO ME IN THE TIME OF THEIR DISTRESS.

HOLOCAUST! The Jewish Bible God’s order to Christians still stands FIRM today to “PRAY FOR EVERYBODY” except for the JEWS! There is hardly a record of any group of Christians that were “praying” for the Jews during their Nazi HOLOCAUST! Christian America refused to provide asylum to Jews fleeing the HOLOCAUST!

Romans 9:11-15 Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad–in order that God's purpose in election might stand: not by works but by him who calls–she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” Just as it is written: “Jacob* (*Israel) I loved, but Esau* (*Arabs) I hated.” What then shall we say? IS GOD UNJUST? NOT AT ALL!* (*No bull crap! Saint Paul says so! Judeo/Christianity believes that the Arabs are descendants of Esau) For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.

The Bible writers claim that “God” is “no respecter of persons.” We all know that sh*t just happens! The “free will” idea is what the Preachers use now in their trade! That is why some Christians do not favor Palestinians unless they would convert to Christianity! The Jews wrote the HOLY stories in the Bible to favor Israel and especially their Clergy! Christians expect continued Palestinian unrest! If the Palestinians convert to Christianity there is no guessing of what would happen. Christian favor for Israel may be put on hold because the Jews don’t seem to be converting to Jesus according to Christian rules.

Malachi 1:4 Edom* (*Esau = Arabs) may say, "Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild the ruins." But this is what the LORD Almighty says: "THEY MAY BUILD, BUT I WILL DEMOLISH. They will be called the Wicked Land, A PEOPLE ALWAYS UNDER THE WRATH OF THE LORD* (*Christians know that the Arab countries are filthy rich in oil only because their Muslim God Allah is not playing by the same Bible rules!).

Isaiah 45:7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and CREATE EVIL: I the LORD* (*NOT SATAN, but the Almighty Bible God) do all these things* (*AND LOVE TO BRAG ABOUT IT!).

Job 42:11 Then came there unto him* (*Job. He is the TOP MASOCHISTIC SAINT in the OT Bible stories! Christianity doesn’t call them “Saints” because “SAINT” is a CHRISTIAN title! Nobody ever heard of “SAINT ABRAHAM” or “SAINT MOSES.” The earlier Bible writers made the JEWS into a “HOLY” and “RIGHTEOUS” people while the latter ones patronized the “SAINT” idea!) all his brethren, and all his sisters, and all they that had been of his acquaintance before, and did eat bread with him in his house: and they bemoaned him, and comforted him over ALL THE EVIL THAT THE LORD* (*NOT SATAN, BUT GOD!) had brought upon him:

BTW… After GOD had ALL of JOB’S SONS killed in a silly story on whether the Devil would dissuade Job from worshipping God, GOD REWARDED JOB with a new set of 7 SONS AND 3 MOST BEAUTIFUL GIRLS IN THE WORLD –Job 42:15! God the Son Jesus Christ is also known to promise big rewards for following him like 100-fold salary increase and so on! No poor moron Christian ever placed a complaint knowing that fairy Heaven is the best reward they can get!

Mark 10:28-30 Peter said to him, "We have left everything to follow you!" "I TELL YOU THE TRUTH,"* (*this time is NO BULL CRAP FOR SURE!) Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children * (*Christians are instructed total neglect and rejection of any child support and alimony!) or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a HUNDRED TIMES as much in this present age* (*RIGHT NOW!) homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields and with them, persecutions* (*from former abandoned spouses and children in need… spiritually speaking, of course!) and in the age to come, ETERNAL LIFE (The Bible writers never failed to point the carrot hanging from a string at the end of the stick!)

yes, stop shoving your religion down someone else's kid's throat! Do his parents know you are forcing him to pray . do his parents know you are doing that?