3 Uplifting Prayers for Summer Stress

While most, if not all, Christ-followers long to live fully yielded to the Lord, this can feel more challenging while managing a full agenda and all the expectations imposed upon us. When our commitments decrease, it becomes easier to recognize and yield to the Lord’s gentle leading.

We’re more apt to follow the guidance recorded in James 4:13-15, which reads:

“Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’”

This passage doesn’t prohibit planning. It does, however, encourage us to remain pliable to the Holy Spirit.

Father,

Thank You for allowing this more relaxed pace. Use it to refresh and refocus my heart. Help me to remain present in the present and alert to Your still, small voice, consistently drawing me closer to You and the life to which You’ve called me. Help me to use this season to deepen my relationships, create precious memories with loved ones, and strengthen my soul for the busy periods that will later come.

Lead me to books, podcast episodes, and other content that will encourage, inspire, and transform me. Delight me with Your goodness and help me in turn to bring delight to others. Anchor me, ever more firmly, in Your grace and truth. Search me, Lord, and remove anything within me that hinders my intimacy with You.

May this be a time in which my faith grows, my anxieties decrease, and my trust deepens as I come to know You better. May every morning bring fresh revelations of Your steadfast love and inexhaustible mercy. May every sunrise, flower and lush meadow remind me of the new life I’ve received through You.

In the Name of Your Son, my Savior, Jesus I pray,

Amen.

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Anyone who’s tried to diet, change a behavior, or break a habit understands how difficult it can be to maintain motivation and momentum. But how will we respond when we don’t meet the standards and goals we set for ourselves? Will we determine we failed and give up entirely? Or, with God’s help, will we begin again?

One of the most encouraging messages woven throughout Scripture is this: today’s failure doesn’t have to be final, nor must our present struggle indefinitely persist. Philippians 1:6 assures us that God, who began a good work in us, will carry it on to completion. What’s more, if we’ve trusted in Christ for salvation, we possess the indwelling Holy Spirit. He gives us supernatural self-control in ever-increasing measure as we turn to and rely upon Him (Galatians 5:23). That’s not to say we won’t stumble along the way. But it does mean that “though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again” (Proverbs 24:16).

We can gain additional inspiration from Isaiah 40:29-31, which says, speaking of God:

“He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.”

Father,

You see my heart and genuine desire to grow closer to You and to live more consistently for You. But You also know my unique challenges, be they unexpected events that hijacked my plans, my propensity for distraction, or how difficult it can be to maintain new rhythms. Keep me from shame or from approaching my relationships and faith with a pass-fail mentality, both of which are contrary to Your grace. Instead, may I see each mess-up and missed target as an opportunity to rely more consistently on You, for it is You who works in me and gives me the power to do what pleases You.

When I self-sabotage, show me what lies beneath my behavior, heal what needs healed, correct what needs correcting, and give me Your strength in place of my weakness. But also help me recognize when my goals are unrealistic or too rigid. I don’t want to be driven by rules and agendas but rather by You.

In Jesus’ Name I pray,

Amen.

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While I’m an empty nester now, I remember the stress that comes when one is trying to remain present for their children while also meeting work demands. During those seasons, I often battled guilt. When I focused on writing deadlines, I felt like I was neglecting our daughter. When I set my computer aside to spend time with her, I worried I wasn’t managing my career responsibilities well. This, inevitably, led to reactive behavior that only increased my inner angst.

This makes sense considering the recent scientific discoveries. Studies found that when we attempt to accomplish numerous things at once, each task competes for priority in our brains. Not only does this slow our mental functioning, it also prompts our adrenal glands to release stress hormones.

According to Psychology Today author Steve Sisgold: “This can trigger a cycle, where we work hard at multitasking, take longer to get things done, then feel stressed and compelled to multi-task even more.”

The fact that many of us feel pressured to get more done than we have time to only exacerbates our anxiety. When I feel inundated with life’s demands and confronted by my limitations, I take comfort in this truth: the Lord formed His plans for me knowing where I would be and what I would face each moment. This means He’s already accounted for today’s struggles.

In Psalms, David, ancient Israel’s second king, wrote:

“Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be”
(Psalm 139:16).

Ephesians 2:10 conveys a similar message:

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

I particularly like the way the Amplified Bible phrases this:

“For we are His workmanship [His own master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above — spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us].”

Father,

I’m grateful for Your perfect knowledge of all things past, present and future. You knew my every challenge, and already see the solutions, long before worries filled my brain. I’m also incredibly thankful for Your sovereignty. No matter how chaotic my circumstances feel, or how uncertain my future appears, You retain full control. You have promised to never leave me or forsake me (Heb. 3:15). You will never release Your strong yet tender grip on my life or cease working on my behalf.

Guide me in this season. Show me responsibilities and time-stealers I need to release and how to engage in other activities more efficiently. When I sense myself becoming agitated, remind me to pause to recognize, and gain peace from, Your presence. When negative thinking tries to hijack my brain, fill my mind instead with truth. And thank You for Your promise to bring good from everything I experience and every mistake I make. I trust You to bring lasting joy not just to me, but to those I love as well.

In the Name of Your Victorious Son, I pray,

Amen.

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