A Calming Prayer for Anxiety, Worry, and Fear
The hollow growl of a thunderstorm awakens me well past midnight. I lie beside the open window and watch the skyline flicker white. Four sleepless hours later, I lie on my back and utter a calming prayer with the hopes of quieting the noise inside my head . . .
A Calming Prayer for Anxiety, Worry, and Fear
My calming prayer goes like this: “You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you.”
The prayer is from the words of Isaiah 26:3.
It’s a promise for peace to cover us as we place our trust in God and keep our thoughts fixed on him. But what does it look like to claim this promise when you’ve been lying awake for hours, and you know the patter of little feet will soon call you to begin a new day?
What does it look like to claim this perfect peace when the diagnosis is grim, the marriage is falling apart, the job is lost, or the demands of life feel suffocating?
As I consider this calming prayer for peace, I think of everything that’s stealing my peace.
Life’s been full here lately.
Our schedule is stretched.
We’re adjusting to a new summer season—a full season. Weekends are filled to the brim, the house is in a constant state of disarray, at least two family members are bickering at any given moment throughout the average day, the laundry baskets are never empty, and I can never seem to catch up on emails.
As I stare at the ceiling amid the sleepless night, a gentle thought passes through my mind. It goes something like this: Where is your peace? Is it found in organization, cleanliness, and control? Or is it found in the Lord?
Where Is Your Peace?
I know the answer.
All too often, my inner peace is contingent upon a clean kitchen and clutter-free living room. It’s contingent upon feeling like I have a grip on the paperwork coming home in the backpacks and a well-planned weekly schedule.
Sadly, when I place my peace in circumstantial order, I’ve placed my peace on shifting sands.
Sadly, when I place my peace in circumstantial order, I’ve placed my peace on shifting sands. #peace #peaceofGod #Godspeace Click To TweetThe Lord promises peace for those of us who trust in him—even when our schedules are overwhelming, our kids our bickering, and our houses are in shambles.
God promises peace as we learn to keep our thoughts fixed on him.
Your anxiety, worry, or fear might be far more serious than a shift to a busier schedule. Perhaps a loved one is fighting a battle between life and death or your future looks uncertain. Regardless of your situation, let’s look at several ways to keep our thoughts fixed on the Lord as we pray this calming prayer for peace.
How to Put This Calming Prayer Into Action
1. Read God’s Word.
Fixing our thoughts on God requires a renewal of the mind. In the flesh, our minds are prone to dwell on cares of the flesh—cares like laundry baskets and weekly schedules. If we want to think God’s thoughts, we need God to renew our minds.
God uses Scripture to renew our minds. He shapes our minds as we read his Word.
Throughout certain seasons of my life, I’ve fallen into the habit of picking and choosing my daily Scripture readings. There’s nothing wrong with jumping around or doing a quick search to find a verse to speak into a situation. However, God transforms our hearts when we read through the whole Bible.
Whether we read through a one-year reading plan, a chronological Bible, or simply start at the beginning and read a set number of pages per day, God’s Word will change us. He uses his Word to help us fix our thoughts on him.
2. Memorize God’s Word.
I memorized large passages of Scripture throughout my twenties; however, after becoming a mom, weariness pulled me from the discipline.
In his book Life Without Lack, Dallas Willard wrote that memorizing Scripture is the primary way God works to renew our minds. After reading this quote shortly after turning 40, I renewed my commitment to memorizing Scripture. I find that the more I focus on the Word, the more quickly my thoughts return to him in overwhelming moments.
3. Speak God’s Word.
Speaking God’s Word out loud reminds us of what is true. God’s Word also holds authority in the spiritual realm. When Satan tempted Jesus in the desert, Jesus spoke God’s Word in response.
Isaiah 26:3 is a calming prayer because praying God’s Word anchors our hearts in eternal truths. We align ourselves with the Prince of Peace, and his peace becomes our peace.
4. Dwell on God’s Word.
In Deuteronomy 11:18-21 (NLT), God’s people are reminded to hold God’s Word close to their hearts at all times:
“So commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that as long as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors.”
These words hold true for us today. When we learn to dwell on God’s Word, we will flourish. God wants his Word to be imbibed in our hearts and minds in such a way that we talk about his Word throughout our days, naturally share his Word with our loved ones, and remind ourselves of his Word when we are at home and in our communities.
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I finally fall asleep shortly before dawn. As expected, the youngest awakens me just as birdsong sounds through the open window.
“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you,” I pray, and I climb from bed to begin the work of the day.
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