Prayers During a Deployment
Prayer has always been a part of my life. When my husband is deployed I pray for him. I also know he is on about 5-6 different military prayer lists at different churches around the country. I know his family is praying for him. I know his friends are too.
But this is where I am stuck. Will praying keep him safe? I pray all the time he is safe.
But the reality is people who have prayed for their husbands (or wives, sons, daughters, etc) have lost them 🙁 It’s hard because I just don’t understand it. And maybe I am not supposed to. Maybe I am just supposed to pray and trust that God will protect him? Will more prayers from more people help him?
I know that when people pray for my emotional state, I do feel better. When we pray for families of the fallen, I hope that they do feel a little more comfort. But praying to keep people safe is where I get confused. Not that we shouldn’t do it, I think we should but I just get confused by it all.
Prayer just feels very complicated to me right now. I want to believe that prayers will keep people safe, that they will heal them and that by doing so it will make life better. I want to believe I have power over it. At the end of the day, I really don’t and that is a very hard thing to let go of. I don’t want to have to think that my husband might not come back from war. I want to believe that he will be 100% safe and return to us so we can go on with our lives.
With the recent news of even more deaths, I just get even more scared about my husband being over there. Honestly, it terrifies me. Mix that with bad feelings I have never had before, I just feel lost. It’s a scary thing to have to go through. To make a will, to have those discussions, to be afraid of a knock at the door. It is all a part of Military life and deployments and something the spouse just has to figure out a way to deal with.
The reality is, that most of those who go over there come back. Most of them are okay and most people go on and have a life after deployment, although there might be a lot of struggles along the way. All we can really do is pray for them, pray for us and rest in the knowledge that God is there no matter what happens in the future.
Anyone else struggle with this?
Last Updated on April 11, 2016 by Julie Provost
It's Something
I believe that when I pray, that's when I'm talking to God. Sometimes I don't always hear Him, but other times I question that maybe that voice wasn't my own and it was His. The power of prayer is amazing. I believe God is always listening and that he will answer your prayers, in one way or another. Sometimes its not always right away, sometimes his answer doesnt come until later. But he doesnt answer prayer.As far as praying for someone's safety, I believe he hears you and that God is keeping him safe, but like it says in the Bible, He knows how/when we'll die. I don't know if prayer will change that (never thought about it really). God isn't going to bring you to something that you can't handle though and from every bad situation that may come into your life, he can turn into good. I find comfort in knowing that. Hope this helps a little bit. http://www.life-itssomethingbeautiful.blogspot.com
Ginger
I believe in prayer and have seen God work in my own life. God doesn't want bad things to happen. I believe God wants to protect and keep your husband safe. I know it is hard! Lots of Hugs, Ginger
JG
I definitely believe that praying for safety is important and effective. Yes, Psalms says that all our days are written out before we are born (Ps. 139:16) – so we know that nothing will cause someone's death before their time. I claim that verse all the time and it gives me comfort. But I do believe that prayer for safety is heard and answered all the time. How else can I explain our friends and loved ones who have come back from the war not only physically healthy but also mentally and emotionally healthy? "His rod and staff comfort me" – those were the tools used to protect sheep from attackers. I think praying and trusting God to keep them from being hurt is entirely biblical and an exercise in faith. WE can't keep them safe, but HE can, so take it all to Him!
Mowenackie
I am right there with you. Though I am bit lost, spiritually, I have been reading the Psalm 91 book and praying every night for my husband's safety. I find, though, that if I think too much about it, I get confused. (This has always been my problem with religion.) If something happens to him, will it be because I didn't believe hard enough that God could protect him? Or did the answer to my prayer come in a format I don't understand? Or…? It honestly makes my brain hurt.
Paula
I too, believe in the power of prayer. I believe God listens and answers even if it's not the answer we want.When I've prayed for something in the past that didn't turn out the way I wanted, I did feel some sort of peace that God was in control.. I believe that's because of the prayer and my relationship with God. I feel your pain. Nothing hurts like sending your loved one to a war zone.
Alia
I wonder about this a lot too. Prayer works though, He always hears you and is always listening. I hope that you will have some peace over everything going on right now, because "fear is not of the Lord" 🙂 hugs to you!
~ Noelle
talk to the chaplain… they might be able to help…. but yes, i know what you mean…. i pray and pray for everyones safety…
Kelli
I totally agree with you! I struggle with the exact same thoughts…what to pray for in those circumstances or similar ones, like when someone is sick with cancer or something like that. I try to pray with Spirit led thoughts…but I know what you mean, it's hard to know what to say, where to start sometimes. I also know what you mean about him leaving and worrying with everything that's going on over there. We are gearing up for our 1st deployment, my hubby is leaving soon. I am so scared, and I don't want to be. I want my faith to be strong, and it usually is, but lately I just feel overwhelmed with fear. Only at times, like if I hear about an incident or I think about everything too long…but even just a few moments of entertaining those fearful thoughts can be enough to suck me into bondage =( I appreciate you being real with your feelings, your life…it does help. It's a great way for us all to stay connected and help share the load I think. =)
Bunch of Barrons
It's hard…but I believe prayer is so important. Sometimes we don't get the answers we want, but in the process of our praying we grow closer to God and understand His love for us, and are able to see what He DOES have planned for us. He doesn't want bad things to happen, but loves us enough to let all of us have free will, which often leads to bad things happening. *crime, etc.* I will pray for your husbands safety, and the safety of all our troops! Hang in there!
Jeannette
I am feeling the same way about my hubby right now. His wrist is healed from surgery, but he still can't do push ups and may never be able to. He goes in next month to find out if he'll be put on a permanent profile but deployable, or med-boarded. I have no idea what to pray for… I always feel like I ought to just pray for whatever is in God's plan. I feel weird asking for something in particular. What if God wants him to deploy or if He wants him to leave the Army. I have no idea. I don't know what to tell you hun.
Jessica
I realize that this is an old post but I was searching "prayers for safety during deployment" and this was one of the first sites that popped up. We are gearing up for our 2nd deployment and as the date gets closer and closer my husband is getting more and more scared. He seriously thinks he's not going to make it back. I pray for him daily and will continue to do so while he's deployed. But I also struggle with praying for safety because while my entire heart and soul wants him to come home safely to me I sometimes ask but what if God has another plan? I also feel horrible for that thought even popping up. I will continue to pray with my whole heart to keep him safe…..it's all in God's hands….