A Prayer to Overcome Worry

Father, worry has become a habit I cannot seem to break. My mind reaches for something to fret over the way a tongue keeps finding a sore tooth. Even on good days I feel I must keep watch, as if worrying were the rent I pay to keep disaster away.

I confess that all this anxious turning has changed nothing for the better. It has not added a single hour to my life or solved a single problem. It has only stolen my joy and tired me out.

So I bring this restless mind to You and ask You to retrain it. You never meant for me to carry the weight of every outcome. That burden was always Yours, not mine.

When the worry rises, help me catch it and hand it to You instead of feeding it. Teach me to pray where I used to panic, to give thanks where I used to brace for the worst.

You told me not to worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself, and today has enough of its own. Help me live inside that gentle boundary.

I lay down my watch. You do not sleep, and You do not need me anxious to keep me safe. Take this habit from me, one surrendered thought at a time, and give me back my rest. Amen.