How to pray for all of the questions plaguing your mind
Whether it's a sleepless night of anxiety or daytime thoughts...
P.S. Just a quick plug here, since it is Cyber Monday and all. If you’re looking for a great faith-based gifgt for a loved one this holiday season, then I’d LOVE for you to consider the ”Pray” collection of books.
These days, as a father of two, balancing out a full-time job, a part-time job, and my own business/being a writer…
…I don’t struggle to fall asleep like I used to.
However, there was a point in my life where I would lie awake at night for hours, my mind racing. Thinking through every scenario possible of the way things could go terribly, horribly wrong.
And the fallout of those things going terribly, horribly wrong.
Now, instead, those thoughts plague me throughout the day…
And I say this only because I want you to know…I feel you…
I get it.
I really do.
The constant catastrophizing.
Assuming the worst.
Stressing out over how you are going to pay X bill, Y vacation, and Z auto maintenance.
It’s something I deal with daily.
And it’s something I am constantly (and I mean constantly) having to pray through.
Because I recognize it is a struggle of mine.
And, as dumb as it sounds, as much as it feels like shoving your emotions under the rug and walking away, the best thing for me has always been praying, “Our Father, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
…
There just isn’t much more that I can do to improve my situations beyond what I am already doing to be my absolute best and do my absolute best.
Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount that all of our worries are a waste of our life because God cares for the most minute creations…so God cares about us far more than that.
Even though life sucks, bills are past due, and nothing seems to be working…God has committed to providing when we commit to God.
And the best thing we can do is to practice improving our prayer life each and every day with God, staying in constant communication with Our Father.
Even when those thoughts plague our minds.
Prayer helps, even though it sometimes feels like it doesn’t.
Because, as I’ve said before, prayer is oftentimes more for us, helping us practice reliance on God, than it is for God.
My prayer for today
Our Father, thank you for being there in our darkest times. Jesus, help us navigate those questions that keep us from functioning, that cripple us with anxiety. Spirit, grant us peace and calm when all else fails. Amen.
Remember
Having anxious thoughts or catastrophizing does not make you a bad person. It makes you a person. Welcome to the human condition. So try recognizing those racing thoughts this week and praying, “Our Father, your will be done, not mine” and see how you feel. It’s encouraging to not feel like all of those things have to be handled by you alone, right?