A Prayer to Calm the Chaos
By Tammy Darling
Bible Reading
“For God is not a God of confusion but of peace.” 1 Corinthians 14:33, ESV
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Our bodies often tell us stories we’d rather not hear. Chaos within and without can affect us on every level—physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Chaos evokes a feeling that we’re in the spin cycle with a box of rocks. We’re always bracing for impact, never sure when the next hit will strike. And like a squirrel’s indecision, we don’t know which way to go.
With chaos, panic isn’t far behind. Panic is that feeling of winning the lottery but losing your ticket. In the short term, you lose peace; in the long term, you lose hope. And “hope deferred makes the heart sick” (Proverbs 13:12, NIV).
I’ve been alive all my life, and I haven’t ever seen the level of internal and external chaos that I see in and around people today. But thankfully, certain truths will outlast the facts of whatever we’re going through: God is greater than all our inner and outer chaos combined.
We may be experiencing a shipwreck, but we don’t have to go down with the ship. We have a Holy Spirit life preserver, if only we’ll reach out and take hold. We often live as if everything depends on us, but it doesn’t.
Life is not an emergency. Slow down. Calm down. These are the things I must tell myself at times as well. Birthday candles don’t burn forever. We must be wise in what we allow into our lives. We don’t have to carry the weight of the world on our shoulders.
Living hyper-aware of all that’s going on in the world is not healthy. For the love of all things calming, turn off the news. When we carry the weight of the world, a deep body fatigue settles in the soul. Tending to the soul is crucial for a life well lived. You are the sentry to your soul, as I am to my own; we can calm the chaos.
Anything that really matters must matter tomorrow too. If it’s not going to matter tomorrow, it doesn’t truly matter today. Let it go. Don’t keep pressing the replay button on your life. Misery loves company, but why invite it in the first place?
Aristotle once said, “Memory is the scribe of the soul.” What are you remembering? And how are you remembering it? There’s more than one way to tell a story, and the version we tell ourselves isn’t always accurate.
Inside voices become viewpoints. And if those viewpoints aren’t in line with what God says about the situation, internal chaos ensues. We must be mindful of the stories we tell ourselves; they matter more than we think.
If you believe you can’t calm the chaos, just remember this: Paul wrote a theological discourse from prison. And Paul’s prison didn’t even remotely resemble the prisons we have today. Paul’s prison would have been dark, damp, and lacking even the necessities.
Chaos itself is a type of prison. The missed moments. The lack of peace and passion. The anxiety and stress. Chaos prevents us from being our true selves, from the abundant life Christ came to give us (see John 10:10).
The most important day of your life is today. What you do this day is what matters. We have countless choices each day that can add to or reduce the chaos around us.
We must be proactive. If we’re drowning in chaos, nothing will change unless we take deliberate steps to address it. The first step to change is the decision to do something different.
We can take a break. Did you know that butterflies rest when it rains? If butterflies can rest when the storms come, so can we. Take a break. Take a nap. Take a vacation.
It’s important to release what we can’t change. Let go of the need to be everything for everyone. Let go of the questions. Let go of perfectionist tendencies and the need to be in control. Life is found in surrender.
Recalibrate your life stride. Live at a pace that works for you. Some busyness can’t be helped, but there are things on our plates that don’t need to be there or can be delegated. Not every request deserves a “yes.”
Turn your duties into delight. A change of perspective can do wonders to calm chaos. The mindset “I don’t have to… I get to…” changes everything.
Take one step at a time. God doesn’t show us the big picture for a reason. One piece of the puzzle called life is all we need at this moment. One step. Then another.
Ask for support. We were never meant to do life alone. God created us for relationships. Jesus also gave us an amazing helper, the Holy Spirit. Asking for help is not a weakness; it’s wisdom.
At this very moment, you are standing on the edge of something beautiful. Don’t allow chaos to obscure your view. Calming the chaos is doable. Bring the Truth surrounding the chaos into focus and be at peace.
Let’s Pray
Father God,
We thank You that You are not a God of confusion; therefore, confusion and chaos are not wanted in our lives. Your peace is our inheritance, and we are grateful that You have given us many ways to calm chaos within and without. May we seek Your wisdom in how to do that in every chaotic moment we experience.
In Your Mighty Name, Amen.
Share your reflections on today’s devotional in the Your Daily Prayer discussion on the Crosswalk Forum.
Photo Credit: Austin Kehmeier/Unsplash
Tammy Darling is the author of 1,600 published articles and three books. She writes from her home in rural Pennsylvania.
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