Prayer for Drinking Husband

A husband and a wife are expected to be morally upright; to have good ethics, upright conduct, and a healthy lifestyle. Being married entails responsibility and maturity. Prayer for Drinking Husband post addresses how to look at this situation and how to ask God to help you as you deal with your husband’s drinking problem

When your husband gets addicted to drinking alcohol, there is a risk to you and your children’s safety. Your husband’s addiction may even cause trouble and unrest in your home. One of the first things to do is to pray for your husband’s condition.

How to pray for my husband to stop drinking? 

You can certainly do something to help your husband stop drinking. You can pray for him, taking note of these nine things to pray for:

1. Pray for him to consider his health

Your husband’s health is in jeopardy because of his addiction. He might get an illness as a result of his alcoholism.

Paul was disciplined with his body [ No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. 1 Corinthians 9:27 (NIV) ]. Pray for your husband to be serious about his health. Ask God for your husband to think about the effects of his drinking on his health and take the necessary action.

2. Pray for him to think of you and your children 

Drinkers can become selfish and uncaring toward others, even their families. The evil one may use drinking to get your husband to think only of himself and not be concerned with you and your children.

The Christians were taught to consider the welfare of others  [ not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. Philippians 2:4 (NIV)]. Pray for him to consider his family’s welfare, especially your children’s. Request God for your husband to give up drinking for you and your children’s well-being.

3. Pray for a solution to his problems

There are reasons men drink, and two of these are stress and problems. When your husband is stressed or troubled by a problem, he will tend to drink more.

In this passage, Jesus invites people to go to Him and to take a rest in His presence [Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 (NIV) ]. Pray for him to be able to solve his problem with the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the help of God. Ask God for your husband to rest in Jesus. Request for God to send people to help your husband with whatever concerns he has.

4. Beseech God for discipline and self-control

Another person may have influenced your husband to drink. He may have a drinking buddy who is constantly encouraging him to drink. 

God provides a way out of any temptation [ 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NIV) ]. Pray that your husband will be motivated to overcome and resist temptation. Beseech God for your husband to be self-controlled and not give in to the temptation of drinking again [ Proverbs 23:31-32 (NIV) ]. Request God for your husband to avoid a drunkard who encourages him to drink [ 1 Corinthians 5:11 (NIV) ]. 

5. Request God for higher spirituality

Alcohol addiction is linked to a low level of spirituality. Your husband’s addiction is a clear indicator that he is not close to God.

God made a promise and a declaration that He will be with anyone who is going through some struggle, and He will give deliverance [ Isaiah 43:2 (NIV) ]. Ask God for your husband to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. Pray that your husband will remember that God is with him in what he is going through and that God will help him break free from the bondage of alcohol addiction.

6. Ask God for purpose and direction

The wisdom of your husband may have decreased due to his addiction. He may have lost the purpose and direction that God had given him before.

God said to David that He will guide him  [I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.  Psalm 32:8 (NIV) ]. Request God for your husband to follow the guidance of God. Ask God for your husband to be directed, to remember his purpose, and be inspired to work and serve his way toward it. 

7. Implore God for freedom

Addiction is not easy to break. Much effort and strong will are needed to break free from it. Healing comes with the help of the entire family and other people.

The author wrote that the grace of God instructs people to decline sinfulness and calls people to live a life that is pleasing to God [ Titus 2:11-12 (NIV) ]. Ask God to make your husband change his mind and become free from addiction. Implore God for your husband to grow in his faith and be firm to turn his back on addiction.

8. Pray to join an online community

Your husband needs support for him to stop drinking gradually. There are Christian communities online that he can join to get help with his addiction. 

He will hear testimonies on how others recovered from alcoholism through Jesus. Solomon wrote that people should take advice  [ Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. Proverbs 19:20 (NIV) ]. Your husband will be advised on how to become sober.

9. Pray for healthcare support

When your husband has a tough time stopping his addiction, it might be a good idea for him to consider getting help from a healthcare professional or therapist.

Found in the Bible is a helpful verse that instructs believers to help one another bear their load  [ Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:2 (NIV) ]. God wants you and your husband to ask for help from others. Seeking a professional’s help will give your husband strong support and efficient therapy. Pray for your husband to be willing to be helped.

Can prayer help my husband stop drinking?

Your prayers are powerful in helping your husband say goodbye to his addiction to drinking. Here are reasons why prayer can help your husband stop drinking:

God listens to prayer

When you pray, God listens to you [ For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. 1 Peter 3:12 (NIV) ]. He listens to you because you are His child, and He is your father. Whatever matters to you matters to Him. The Bible even says that before you say anything, God already knows what you are going to say [ Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. Psalm 139:4 (NIV) ]. When the Israelites were fighting a war, Joshua prayed to God that the sun would stand still. God listened and made the sun stand still [ Joshua 10:12-13 (NIV) ]. God, the mighty God that He is, is still the same today; He can do the same for you. He can listen to your prayers just as He listened and answered the prayer of Joshua.

God acts to transform

God knows the situation your husband is in. He sees his addiction. God knows what you and your children are going through because of your husband’s addiction. God will respond to your prayer seeking a change in your husband. As you help your husband overcome, God will help you. God said that he will provide a new heart and a new spirit [ I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:26 (NIV) ]. He will do the same for your husband. Your husband will be cured of his addiction just as Jesus cured the man who was possessed by the evil spirit [ Mark 5:1-20 (NIV) ]. Jesus will transform your husband the way Jesus transformed Zaccheus in his love for money [ Luke 19:1-10 (NIV) ].

God answers prayer

God knows your heart, and He answers prayer [ Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. John 16:24 (NIV) ]. When Elijah prayed for God to stop bringing rain, God did [  Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. James 5:17 (NIV) ]. When Elisha prayed for the resurrection of the son of the Shunamite woman, God answered his prayer [ 2 Kings 4:32-35 (NIV) ]. Jesus said that everything is possible with God [ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26 (NIV) ]. The Bible has many stories about God answering prayers. You hear about many answered prayers from the people you know. To this day, God still answers prayers. And He can answer yours because He loves you and your husband. He can still answer prayer because He cares for you.

Prayer for your husband to stop drinking

You can pour out your heart to God in prayer, and He will listen to you. You may pray this simple prayer or have it as a guide in praying:

Dear Father God, You know everything that is happening. You are in control of our lives. Please work in the life of my husband. I know that it is not Your will for him to be addicted because You have great plans for him and our family. Heal him from his alcohol addiction, as nothing is impossible for You to do. Let him come to his senses. Let him surrender his addiction to You. Please take away his appetite for alcohol that the evil one has given him. Let him be self-controlled. Let him overcome. Heal him completely so he can become the person, husband, and father you want him to be. Let him be willing to seek help for a fast recovery. Let him become sober. I believe that You will grant my petition. Thank You for Your grace and mercy. I pray all these things in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Alcohol addiction is difficult to overcome. This addiction has the potential of damaging health and relationships in the family, but pray with boldness and strong faith that your husband will be healed, for God will answer you.