Every year, on the first weekend of June, something quietly powerful happens. Across continents and time zones, children and adults gather in churches, schools, homes, and public spaces to pray with and for children who are at risk. This global movement, led by Viva, has been running for 30 years and continues to unite hundreds of thousands of people in a shared act of faith and advocacy.
Watch the short story below and be encouraged by the power of a child’s prayer.
In 2025 alone, more than 350,000 children and 250,000 adults in 53 countries took part, filling streets and plazas with prayer walks, songs, and creative child-led prayer for the needs of children in their communities and around the world
This year’s dates and theme
The World Weekend of Prayer 2026 takes place on 6–7 June 2026 and carries a simple, reassuring theme: “He’s got the whole world in His hands.”
The theme is rooted in the image of a God who is present, involved, and trustworthy, holding both the “depths and the peaks,” the hard moments and the joyful moments, and calling us to pray and act as co labourers for children’s wellbeing.
What participation can look like
There is no single format. Prayer events can be as small as a family prayer time or as public as a community prayer walk. Around the world, groups have hosted child-focused prayer services, Bible clubs, school assemblies, radio segments, debates, and creative prayer gatherings, with children participating in planning and leading in age-appropriate ways.
This year’s resources are being shaped by children and child practitioners from countries including Nepal, India, the Philippines, Zambia, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, El Salvador, Bolivia, Argentina, and Cuba, offering drawings, prayers, and activities that can be translated and adapted for local use.
Resources you can use and share
To help churches, families, and organizations participate, Viva provides a full set of downloadable materials, including a Participant Guide, a devotion based on Psalm 95, and practical outlines for prayer events.
Join the global community
World Weekend of Prayer has always been bigger than one organization. This year, Viva is celebrating 30 years of both Viva and the World Weekend of Prayer, and welcomes anyone, anywhere, to join in prayer for children at risk.
Next steps and downloadable resources
Visit Viva’s World Weekend of Prayer hub to access the devotion, sign up for the Participant Guide, and download resources: https://www.viva.org/world-weekend-of-prayer
