A Prayer for a Peaceful Holiday Season
For the heart that's already tired in November
SaveThe holidays haven't started and you're already tired. The calendar is filling up, the list is getting longer, and somewhere in all of it you were hoping to actually feel close to God this year.
Here is a prayer for the start of the season. Pray it once now, and again any day the rush starts to win. It won't make the list shorter, but it can make your heart quieter.
The prayer
Lord,
The season is coming fast, and my heart is already running to keep up. Before the plans, the shopping and the hosting, I want to stop here with You.
I bring You what is weighing on me: (name it). The family I'm worried about, the money that's tight, the empty chair that will be hard to look at. You see all of it, and You are not in a hurry with me.
Teach me to wait on You this season instead of rushing past You. Keep me in perfect peace, because my mind is stayed on You. When I start to measure the holidays by how much I get done, remind me that Christ came quietly, to people who were waiting.
Make my home a place of peace. Give me patience with the people I love, grace for the ones who are hard to love, and rest that doesn't wait until January.
Let me arrive at Christmas with a heart that's ready for You, even if the house isn't.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
How to pray it
- Pray it now, before the first holiday plan goes on the calendar.
- Name the one thing you're dreading most, in one plain sentence.
- Pick one verse below and put it where you'll see it while you cook, shop or drive.
- Each Sunday until Christmas, pray the prayer again and ask God what you can leave off the list.
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Seven verses for a slower season
1. Isaiah 26:3 (KJV)
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
The peace this prayer asks for: a mind stayed on Him.
2. Psalm 46:10 (KJV)
Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
Be still is a command, not a reward for finishing the list.
3. Matthew 11:28-29 (KJV)
28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Come tired. That's who the invitation is for.
4. Psalm 27:14 (KJV)
Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
Wait on the Lord, and wait again. Pray it when the rush starts.
5. Luke 10:41-42 (KJV)
41And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: 42But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
Martha's busy kitchen and Mary's quiet place. Ask which one you're in today.
6. Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV)
6Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Bring every holiday worry with thanksgiving, and let His peace keep your heart.
7. John 14:27 (KJV)
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
His peace is not the world's kind. It holds even when the season doesn't go to plan.
The holidays can be hard, especially after a loss. If the heaviness won't lift, please also talk to your doctor, a counselor or your pastor. If you are in crisis in the US, call or text 988, any time.
Go deeper
The Light Is Coming: 25-Day KJV Advent Devotional & Prayer JournalTen quiet minutes with Jesus each morning until Christmas, without the December rush crowding Him out.
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