Prayers for Anxious Yet Hopeful Hearts
Hey, friends.
What a week the world has been through. As we wrestle with feelings of overwhelm and cling to hope, we wanted to share a few prayers that have brought us comfort and peace over the last few days. Pray them when you feel anxious, pray them when you're moved to intercede, pray them alone or with those closest to you--and all the while, know that we are praying that the peace of the Lord Jesus will guard your hearts and minds (and bodies, too!).
Jerry Zhang, Unsplash
BREATH PRAYER
Our dear friend and spiritual direction instructor, Steve Summerell, shared the following 9-word prayer with us a few years ago, and it's something we both turn to when we don't know what else to pray:
LORD, have mercy.
Into Thy hands.
Thee I adore.
With each movement of your breath, pray one line at a time as you inhale, then exhale.
Oh Lord, you who are the refuge of the poor and needy, we ask that you would save us from the pestilence that stalks in the darkness and the plague that destroys at midday. Be our sun and shield. Be our fortress. Be our comfort this day. May we not fear any evil but rather trust in your might to save and your wisdom to guide, so that we may rest always in the shadow of the Almighty. In the name of the One who heals our diseases. Amen.
- W. David O. Taylor
EXCERPT FROM "A LITURGY FOR THOSE FLOODED WITH TOO MUCH INFORMATION"
FROM EVERY MOMENT HOLY BY DOUGLAS MCKELVEY
“Give us discernment in the face of troubling news reports.
Give us discernment to know when to pray,
When to speak out,
When to act,
And when to simply shut off our screens
And our devices,
And to sit quietly in your presence,
Casting the burdens of this world upon the strong shoulders
Of the one who alone
Is able to bear them up. Amen.”
SOME OTHER GOOD STUFF FOR YOUR SOUL:
EVERY MOMENT HOLY FREE DOWNLOADS
One of the prayers listed above is available for a FREE download at Every Moment Holy's website, along with these others:
A Liturgy for a Sick Day
A Liturgy for Medical Providers
A Liturgy for Those Who Weep Without Knowing Why
DAILY PRAYER APP BY WELLSPRING
This app has included prayers each day that are especially timely, both for this season of Lent and these times of uncertainty. We've been praying them together throughout the day, and find comfort knowing others are praying the same words all around the world, too.
PRAY PSALM 91 FOR 91 DAYS
Young Life Africa started a prayer movement to pray Psalm 91 for 91 days (something they did during the ebola outbreak a few years ago, too), and a friend invited us to join her and others around the world in this same practice.
PSALM 91 (NIV)
1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
3 Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8 You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
12 they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation."
Please reach out if you'd like to prayerfully process your experience of faith, doubt, and the presence of God in this season, or even if you just need a little extra human connection. We'd be delighted and honored to walk with you (and Lord knows we need it, too!).
We are with you. We love you. Keep loving each other, looking for the good in humanity, and caring for the vulnerable.
When you feel afraid, ask the Lord to make Himself known to you. He is good, and He is with us.
Sending all of our love and doing our best to rest in the hope of Jesus alongside you,
Rachel and Bryan
Also, if you’re coming across other great resources for prayer in this time, please share in the comments!