Giving our gifts to the Lord as an act of worship is a special privilege for us as Christians. Praying for the offering, whether individually or together as a church, can be a beautiful part of this gift.
These 9 options for a powerful prayer for tithes and offering can help you as you prepare what to say as you pray for your gift to the Lord.
And if you’ve been asked to say the offering prayer at church during one of the church services, these examples can be useful in your preparation. These prayers can be great starting points for preparation for pastors, church leaders, and church members and volunteers.
The Importance of Tithes and Offerings
Knowing what the Bible has to say about tithing can be helpful as we prepare to give our offering and pray for it.
These Bible verses about tithes and offerings offer insights and examples about how God wants us to see giving as believers.
Proverbs 3:9 English Standard Version (ESV)
“Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce.”
As Christians, our lives should honor the Lord. Not just parts of our lives – our whole lives should honor the Lord. Whether we are doing a good work, showing kindness to others, or giving money towards the Lord’s work, we should honor the Lord.
When we give to the Lord, we are giving back just a portion of what the Lord has given to us. Giving back the “firstfruits” – the first parts of the harvest – is but a small sacrifice that honors the Lord.
It shows that we trust the Lord that the rest of what we have will be enough, that He has adequately provided for us. It might not be exactly what we have pictured, or what other people have, but He has given us enough to be content (Philippians 4:11-13.)
2 Corinthians 9:7
“Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Does our attitude matter as we make our gifts to the Lord? Ideally, God wants us to serve, give, and love with a willing, eager, and humble heart.
If you knew someone who only spent time with you because they felt like they had to, who reluctantly spoke or texted you, and were stingy with you in every way, you would not count them a good friend.
How often do we treat the Lord like that? We don’t spend time with Him, we neglect His Word, and we hold our money and possessions with clenched fists.
Sadly, we do this to the One who provided freely for our salvation, who provides our daily bread.
Our goal should be to give cheerfully. It may be difficult, and it may be a journey. But the Lord wants our heart, and being able to give back to Him cheerfully is a part of letting go of parts of our heart that we may have been holding back from Him.
Luke 21:1-3 ESV
“Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And he said, ‘Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them.’”
This example of giving from the New Testament shows us a widow giving likely all of what she had.
Widows in Bible times had few options, as women had few options for financial support beyond their fathers or husbands at that time. An older widow had less opportunity to marry, and could be wondering how to survive when her husband died.
Jesus saw the poor widow giving her two copper coins, sometimes referred to as the “widow’s mite”, and commended it as she was giving far more of her net worth than the big offerings that the rich deposited into the church’s coffers.
Her act of giving is an example of relying on the Lord in faith to provide, beyond what we can see.
Malachi 3:8-10 ESV
“Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”
To the generation of Israelites being addressed in Malachi 3, it was clear to them what they should be giving. Yet they shorted the Lord. In His grace, He told them that He would clearly give them what they needed if they brought in the full tithe. Theologian Matthew Henry offers this insight.
“God must be served in the first place; and the interest of our souls ought to be preferred before that of our bodies. Let them trust God to provide for their comfort. God has blessings ready for us, but through the weakness of our faith and the narrowness of our desires, we have not room to receive them. He who makes trial will find nothing is lost by honouring the Lord with his substance.”
Luke 11:42 ESV
“But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.”
This Bible verse offers another reminder that our heart matters not only as we give, but as we live. God can still use those gifts that we give with the wrong motivations, but He ultimately wants our heart.
The Pharisees were very good at following the rules, tithing even down to the last bit of herbs that they had, but they did not love others. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 reminds us that without love, all the “good” things we do are pretty useless.
God is more concerned with our hearts as we give. It doesn’t mean that we should be neglectful in our gifts, but it should be part of our worship of the Lord and not the only way we worship Him.
Psalm 51:17 ESV
“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”
Again, we see the Lord wanting our hearts.
In the Old Testament, besides the firstfruit offerings of what had been produced by the works of their hands, God’s people offered other sacrifices to cover their sins.
In the New Testament, we see these offerings being replaced with the ultimate sacrifice, Jesus Christ.
Even in these Old Testament times, the psalmist was led to focus on the heart of a person towards God, rather than just the actions.
Matthew 6:26
“See the birds of the sky, that they don’t sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns. Your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you of much more value than they?”
Sometimes as we give, we worry about how we will get by on the rest of it. Yet how quickly we forget that the Lord provides for what we need.
This can especially be difficult at times. God may be asking us to adjust our lifestyles or to approach finances differently. He might not work on our timetable or give us what we want. But we will have what we truly need for Him, according to His will.
You can find a link to a free printable of these Bible verses at the end of this post.
Powerful Prayer for Tithes and Offering: 9 Examples
Now that we have seen these important Bible verses about tithes and offering, our hearts are more informed as we get ready to pray.
Most of these are designed to be used for an offertory prayer during the church worship service. The final prayer will be a personal prayer for our own tithes and offering, that we can offer during our own prayer times.
Review these examples in your preparation, adapting what will work best for your prayer time or worship service, praying from the heart to our generous and gracious Lord!
Prayer for Tithes and Offering to Accomplish Good Works
Dear God,
We are so blessed to be gathered here today, to worship You with all of our heart.
As we worship You with giving back just some of what You have provided for us, we ask that these gifts will be used to accomplish the good works that You will to be done.
May You be glorified in our giving and in our lives!
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Prayer for Tithes and Offering in Gratitude of God’s Provision
O Lord,
We thank You for the gifts that You have given us each day. You have given us much to be thankful for. May our thanksgiving never be neglected.
We are grateful to You for providing for these gifts of tithes and offerings for Your church. Please bless these offerings as they are used to do Your work of the ministry here and around the world.
May we grow in our thankfulness for Your provision!
In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
Prayer for Trusting in God’s Faithfulness in Tithes and Offerings
O Lord Almighty,
We come to You today, trusting in You to provide for this ministry. We are grateful for how You have provided in the past.
We trust in Your faithfulness to continue to provide for the financial obligations of Your church. May we be faithful in giving. May we be careful in stewarding these gifts.
Thank You for Your faithfulness!
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Prayer of a Cheerful Giver for Tithes and Offering
Dear Lord,
2nd Corinthians 9:7 reminds us that You love a cheerful giver. We often find it so hard to let go of the very gift that You have provided for us.
We pray that these gifts we give today would not only serve You, but would help us to cultivate a heart that loves to give.
May we have generous hearts not only as we give financially, but as we love others and love You. May we have a spirit of gratitude for the abundant gifts You have given to us.
In the name of Christ Jesus, Amen.
Opening Prayer for Tithes and Offerings
Dear Lord God,
As we begin this service today, we want to start by giving the first fruits of what You have given us.
May we give cheerfully and with an open hand, knowing it is but a portion of what You have provided.
Please bless these tithes and offerings in the work of the church. May they reach further than we can ever imagine!
In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Closing Prayer for Tithes and Offerings
Dear Heavenly Father,
As we conclude our church service today, let us not neglect our worship in giving back to You what You have given to us.
Thank You for these tithes and offerings. May You be honored with how they are used. Please bless these gifts and bless these givers.
Help us to go forth and glorify You today!
In the name of Jesus, Amen.
Online Prayer for Tithes and Offering
Dear Lord,
I thank You for each person who is hearing this, no matter when that might be. May they be strengthened by the message they heard, growing in their relationship with You.
Please bless any gifts they may give online today, drop off at the church, or send in the mail. May their generosity be blessed.
In the name of Jesus, Amen.
Short Prayer for Tithes and Offering
Dear Father God,
Thank You for the gifts You have given us. May You be blessed by these tithes and offerings today, as we give back to You.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Personal Prayer for Tithes and Offering
O Lord,
Thank You for the abundant blessings that I have seen in my life. You have been gracious to me, providing for what I need each day. Thank You for giving me my daily bread.
I humbly offer You this gift, asking that You will bless it. May it go beyond what is expected, multiplying in service of You and Your work.
Please help me to give freely and cheerfully to you each day.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
If you’d find it helpful to watch these prayers, we have eight of these prayers for tithes and offerings in a YouTube video.
Free Printable Bible Verses for Tithes and Offerings
This list of free printable Bibles verses for tithes and offerings can be helpful as you get ready for your personal prayer time or congregational prayer time for tithes and offerings.
Head over to our Gumroad store to download the 7 Bible Verses about Tithes and Offerings for free.
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Your church could be enjoying a time of financial abundance, with fully-funded building projects and church members giving in the offering plate towards building a good foundation of ministry to future generations.
Or your church could be facing financial struggles, wondering what might be in the donation box, with concerns about paying today’s bill or supporting church projects.
No matter the circumstance, we look to God to provide as we do His work. He is faithful and will provide according to His will.
May God bless you as your prepare for a powerful prayer for tithes and offering!
If you liked reading Powerful Prayer for Tithes and Offering, please also read Opening Prayer for Bible Study and Closing Prayer for Bible Study.