This autumn has been a doozy.
It’s been a season of loss and roller coaster emotions. It’s hard because autumn and winter are my favorite seasons, with their bright colors, frigid temperatures that make me feel alive, and the hope of spring.
At least they used to be… this one is testing me. Hard.
If winter comes, can spring be far behind?
– Percy Bysshe Shelley
Taking a Deep Breath
Last week, Seamus got a birthday card from his Meme and Pop. Sunday, after a particularly trying morning, he opened the card, read it aloud, and in the corner, in tiny print, was this verse:
The LORD your God is with you… He will quiet you with His love. – Zephaniah 3:17 NIV
It could not have been more appropriate, or better timing.
Find Your Heart Verse
I stated in the first post for this series that this isn’t about religion. It’s not about doing all the ‘right’ things, or praying hard enough, or being good enough, or anything enough.
But I will say this: I have found great comfort in the words of others – whether it’s the Bible, a lyric, a random quote, or even a blog post. And in the midst of my anxiety and struggles, being able to recall these things has been an indescribable help.
Psalms 23 has long been mine. When my mind was panicked and could focus on nothing, I could recall these words that I had learned as a child. They enveloped me like a favorite blanket, comforted me, and gave me something to focus on, process, and think on, to slow my breathing and get my focus away from my fears.
Yours might be one of the quotes that I’ve posted throughout the series, the words of someone else, or even your own.
Our Family Verse
We decided to write the verse that Seamus read on our family white board and discuss what it meant to each of us.
The kids (and adults) have found renewed comfort and understanding of the importance of quieting their minds and their hearts, in order to feel the calm and peace that gets crowded out by the noise of everyday life and anxiety.
And I just might have a new verse to recall the next time anxiety strikes.
Do you have a favorite verse, or lyric that comforts you? Please share it.
This is the 29th post in a 31 Day Series: 31 Days to Peace: Finding inner peace for anxiety and panic attacks. Start from the beginning here.
