Noticing God in Chaos: 5 Prayers for Tired ParentsSample

Striving Cease

It’s an ordinary weekday, and I repeat my usual: “Have a good day! I love you!”

At the last minute, I add, “God loves you!” to my morning send off.

My youngest son turns his head as he turns the knob on the door. “God loves you, too!” He smiles, and the door shuts behind him.

I hold my coffee and glance out the window. I wonder if my perspective would change if I didn’t see my children as little versions of myself but rather little reflections of God. As steam rises from my mug, I watch the car pull out of the driveway, holding pieces of my heart as they embark on the day’s adventure.

Our hundred-year-old house sighs. Without the symphony of children’s voices and bodies filling the space, the house groans with the wind, shifting to accommodate the new emptiness.

I breathe in my coffee’s bittersweet scent; I watch a sparrow that hasn’t yet flown south dance over a puddle from last night’s rain. I exhale and let my breath become a prayer—a prayer for my children to be safe and known, fully themselves and wholly loved. I pray they will make wise choices, be kind friends, and embrace curiosity as they learn new things.

My breath is a prayer for all these things, though I can’t quite put words to it.

As I breathe, I let the Holy Spirit unfurl the tightness in my chest and unravel the prayers embedded in my soul. In the quiet of the house, my thoughts get louder: Am I living into this prayer myself? Am I letting the Holy Spirit shift my values from the world’s ways to the ways of the Kingdom of God?

We may tell our kids we value the fruits of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—but what if we’re not bearing that fruit ourselves? As Jesus told His followers, each tree is known by its own fruit.

As you reflect on the messages you might be giving your children, be gentle with yourself. Consider the messaging you were raised with. What did the adults in your life tell and show you about who you needed to be? How has that affected who you are today. . . and how you’re raising your children?

It’s not too late to course correct. It’s not too late to choose a different path for yourself and your family, integrating new rhythms of Sabbath rest, choosing stillness, and letting striving fall to its place alongside the fallen leaves.

Our words reflect our hearts, just as our actions do.

What is the last thing our kids hear from us as they leave for school? Will you tell them to get straight As? Or to be kind?

Fall often feels like a fresh start. Pencils are sharpened; planners are clear. The shift to autumn air holds the promise of new beginnings—an invitation to reflect on what was so you can become more of who God created you to be right now.

When my kids are at school, I bring myself to my desk, opening my computer. I consider the blank pages of my planner and push away its whispering lies that say you are what you accomplish—that my work is my meaning. For I know I am more than my work, and more than my parenting mistakes too.

So are you.

Reflection Questions:
Where do you feel pressure to achieve in your life?
Does that pressure come from others or from God?
How can resting help us reset our values?
Why did God command people to observe the Sabbath?

Breath Prayer:
Inhale: Help me live in a manner
Exhale: Worthy of the calling.