1) Thank God that He knows the details of your prodigal’s life, especially the parts that are beyond your awareness and control. Praise His omniscience. Ponder the truth that there is nowhere they can go away from His Spirit, nowhere they can flee from His presence. (Psalm 139:1-12)
2) Acknowledge to God that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Pray that your prodigal would develop a healthy fear of the Lord that is aware of His justice and power, and awed by His grace and love. (Proverbs 1:7)
3) Pray that God would grant them mercy according to His loving kindness. Ask Him to impress on their heart the truth that they can be forgiven, and that He would give them a desire to be cleansed from their sin. Beg the Lord to let them hear joy and gladness once more, that their broken places would be healed, and that the joy of His salvation would be restored. (Psalm 51:1-12)
4) Implore the Lord to open their eyes to the emptiness of sin and fleshly pleasure, that they may echo Solomon’s pronouncement, “Vanity of vanities. All is vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 1:2)
5) Ask that your prodigal would cry out to the Lord, and that He would bring them out of the horrible pit, out of the miry clay. Pray that He would give them a firm place to stand, putting a new song in their mouth. Marvel that many would see this happen and turn to the Lord themselves, and ask that it would be so. (Psalm 40:1-3)
6) Agree with God that those who walk with the wise become wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm. (Proverbs 13:20) Pray that God would bring a godly friend into the life of your prodigal, someone who can speak truth to them in love. (Ephesians 4:15)
7) Pray that God would bring about spiritual brokenness in the heart of your prodigal, doing whatever is necessary to bring them to a place of contrition. (Psalm 51:17)
8) Adore your Savior, who came to seek and to save the lost. Thank Him for seeking your prodigal, that He might save them. (Luke 19:10)
9) Pray that you wouldn’t become bitter toward your prodigal, but that you would maintain a forgiving spirit toward them. (Ephesians 4:31-32)
10) Praise God for His patient character, and that He doesn’t want anyone to perish but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
11) Pray that the prodigal in your life will hear the truth and that it will be mixed with faith so they might believe. (Hebrews 4:2)
12) Share your burden for your prodigal with a trusted prayer warrior friend. Ask this person to pray for the prodigal in your life, and consider praying together, acknowledging that if just two or three agree in prayer, it will be done for you. (Matthew 18:19-20)