Dear Heavenly Father,
You are a God who values peace, love, and joy. In times of anxiety, it can be very difficult to remember this. When I face turmoil, I am tempted to dwell on the hurt, the anger, the fear, but this is not what you want. Over and over in the Bible, we see you allowing your people to suffer for a time, but you always make your presence known and eventually bring them out of it and into your peace. Stephen found peace in the midst of being stoned in Acts 7:54-60. Similarly, Corrie ten Boom found moments of peace and joy in a Nazi concentration camp. How is this possible?
I acknowledge that your timing is not my timing. Your words and actions are not my words and actions. You are able to look at deep offense and move past the hurt and towards deep forgiveness. Sometimes my anxiety is caused by my own sin, other times by the sins of others, but in either case, forgiveness is required. Sometimes I need to forgive myself, and other times I need to forgive those around me.
When I do feel anxious, help me to keep myself from sin. Recently, I have been trying to speak truth into a difficult situation, but then I suffer from anxiety and insomnia. The situation makes me quite angry and I need to keep rereading Ephesians 4:25-27 (ESV) to keep angry actions in check: “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.”
Oh Lord, I fail at this so often! It is so hard to not be angry when I see errors that lead to deep hurt and distress. Please let me know when my anger is righteous and when it is self-righteous. I think almost everyone embroiled in this situation is making mistakes in this regard, myself included, which then causes anxiety.
Every time I feel my anxiety rising, please help me to remember Philippians 4:4-9 (ESV) and carry out the steps in these verses: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”
Help me to rejoice in ALL circumstances, even the ones that are painful. Let me rejoice each time I see a small step forward from anyone involved in this mess.
I confess that I highly value being reasonable, which seems like a good thing in this verse, but I sometimes take it too far and get extremely angry when others do not exhibit this characteristic or disagree with my reasoning process. When this happens, I often become the unreasonable one! Help me to apologize when this happens. Bring reasonableness and humbleness to all areas of this dilemma. We need your wisdom, which is usually not the same as human wisdom. Impart truth to each person and help them to take action on that truth in a reasonable manner.
Help me avoid anxiousness, but instead go to you in prayer and supplication each time it arises. You have all of the answers, not us. We need to spend more time listening and less time speaking. James 1:19-20 (ESV) says, “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” I confess that this is particularly hard for me! Send me aid! Help me to be thankful as I wait for your answers.
I want your peace. Even in the midst of conflict, I truly believe that it can be found! You even tell us how to gain it: focus on truth, honor, justice, purity, loveliness, things that are commendable, excellence, and worthiness! When we fill our minds with these things, rather than sin, we can receive your peace and find joy in all situations! I desire this!
Please take away all anger and malice from all involved with this conflict. There is plenty of sin to go around, which means there is also plenty of grace to go around. Help everyone in this conflict to sin less and forgive more! Help all of us to be slow to anger and slow to speak! Help us to “strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord,” as described in Hebrews 12:14. Please, Lord, give us your peace!
In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Reflection Questions
Consider the following reflection questions:
- How does the concept of finding peace in the midst of suffering, as exemplified by Stephen in Acts 7:54-60 and Corrie ten Boom in a Nazi concentration camp, challenge our understanding of God’s presence and peace in difficult times?
- In the prayer, the speaker acknowledges the challenge of forgiving oneself and others in times of anxiety caused by sin and conflict. How does forgiveness play a role in finding peace, and how can one distinguish between righteous and self-righteous anger?
- The prayer emphasizes the importance of speaking truth into difficult situations, as guided by Ephesians 4:25-27. How can one balance speaking truth with avoiding sinful anger, especially in situations where errors lead to hurt and distress?
- The prayer expresses a struggle with valuing reasonableness and becoming angry when others don’t exhibit it. How can one cultivate humility and reasonableness in the face of disagreements, and how does it relate to finding God’s wisdom over human wisdom?
- The prayer mentions the challenge of being quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger as advised in James 1:19-20. How can individuals practice active listening and patience, especially when emotions run high in conflicts?
- The speaker requests God’s peace in the midst of conflict and recognizes the importance of focusing on positive attributes outlined in Philippians 4:4-9. How can individuals intentionally shift their focus towards truth, honor, justice, purity, loveliness, things that are commendable, excellence, and worthiness to experience God’s peace?
- The prayer acknowledges the difficulty of waiting for God’s answers and the need for thankfulness during the waiting period. How can individuals cultivate patience and gratitude while seeking answers in prayer?
- The prayer emphasizes the abundance of grace available in the face of sin. How can individuals extend grace to others in times of conflict, and what role does grace play in fostering peace?
- The speaker prays for God’s peace to prevail in the conflict. How can individuals strive for God’s peace in their lives, as described in Hebrews 12:14, even when faced with challenging circumstances?
Respond
Please pray a prayer about anxiety that results from difficult circumstances. If helpful, you can use a prayer journal template.
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this post and wish to receive more Christian content, feel free to subscribe to my newsletters!
Related Resources
Visit the Joyful Moments in Christ homepage for all posts, or scroll through other blog posts related to peace and anxiety:
English Standard Version (ESV): Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are taken from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.
Joyful Moments in Christ 