Finding Peace through Prayer

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Posted by: Brittany Riva, Program Director | Sunday, May 17th, 2026 ( 1:39pm)

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.—Colossians 1:15-17 

You know what I (re)-learned about prayer recently? God isn’t reliant on my prayers. He doesn’t “need” them. And that’s a relief.  

Let me be clear—prayer is important. Really important. Jesus us tells us to pray. He gives us examples of how to pray. HE (the Son of God) spent tons of time in prayer. We need to be praying. God wants us to pray, and I believe there is power in prayer. 

Recently, I found myself wondering why I was experiencing so much stress over several situations some loved ones were going through. This stress went beyond empathy or concern. I’m talking losing sleep, trouble concentrating, and a gnawing worry in the pit of my stomach that wouldn’t go away. I had been constantly praying for these people and situations; praying that God would move in mighty ways, praying in faith for healing, praying for miracles. I was praying so much, so why was I still so stressed? 

I was mentioning this to my counselor, and she very kindly pointed out that it can be hard to exist in situations where you know everything is out of your control and there really isn’t anything you can do to fix the situation. Well, as she said this, the Holy Spirit flipped on the lightbulb in my brain.

I had been praying, but I realized that I was trying to control it. I was praying with the posture that if I DIDN’T pray, God wouldn’t move. Somehow, I had used something intended to take our eyes OFF ourselves and turned it into something which was just about me feeling like I was still in control in some small way. If I pray, then that person will experience healing. If I don’t, healing might not happen. If I text a friend to remind them I'm praying, then they will feel the Lord's presence. If I don't, they might emotionally spiral.  

Now, I don’t think we will ever really understand how prayer works until Christ returns. I know prayer is powerful, and I know that it DOES change things...but I also know that when I looked at how I had been praying, I was turning prayer into something that I had power over. As if the God of the universe who created all things and holds all things together would somehow feel He had “permission” to act once I had prayed enough times and in the right way.  

I repented for my mistake, acknowledging the privilege it is to ask the Lord to move while also finding peace in knowing He orchestrates every situation with perfect wisdom. Once I did this, that pit of worry in my stomach went away. What a reminder that I need to continue to submit myself to Him and His Word. What a relief that we serve a God who holds all things together so we don’t have to.

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