How to Find Peace When Life Makes You Anxious

Are there circumstances in your life that are making you anxious, and you wonder how you can find peace in the world? Maybe it’s a health issue, a marriage conflict, or a prodigal child. Where is God when the storms of life are rocking your boat?

A few years ago, a little before midnight, my phone rang. It was a sweet friend who often called at odd hours, so I didn’t think anything of it. We shared a few minutes of small talk, and then she said, “Well, I have something to tell you, and you might want to sit down.”

Did your heart just stop? You can imagine how mine did.

Over the next 30 minutes, she poured out all the things my oldest daughter had shared with her in confidence, and none of them were good. I knew something was going on with my girl; we were a very close family, and it was unlike her not to be transparent with me. In fact, I had asked this friend a few months earlier to reach out to my daughter because she wasn’t acting like herself. Even from seven hours away (where she went to college), we knew something was up— we just didn’t know what.

It turns out, unbeknownst to us, our girl had been put on some medication that led to a distorted sense of reality, self-harm behaviors, and two trips to the emergency room. As the medical bills came rolling in, she panicked and called my friend, who was finally able to convince her to tell us what was going on.

I wish that were the end of the story, but what followed was a year of deception, bad decisions, and heart-wrenching pain. The details are not mine to share, but I can tell you that those were, without a doubt, the most difficult months of my life.

I am not a worrier by nature; anxiety is not something I have ever struggled with. But during that time—moment by moment, day by day, month by month—I could hardly breathe. The fear and uncertainty were crippling.

While I would never wish this experience on anyone, I know many of you can relate and if not with your children, perhaps with your health or marriage or financial challenges. Whatever it is, I’m pretty sure all of us have had moments where the storms of life have overwhelmed us and rocked us to our core.

How do you find peace when life makes you anxious?

The Greek word for the peace produced in us by the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5:22 is “eirene.” This is the same word Jesus used in John 14:27 when He said, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not let them be afraid.” It describes a tranquil state of the soul, an internal posture independent of external circumstances.

In other words, peace is not the absence of chaos or conflict but a sense of calm in the midst of it. And if you have ever found yourself sinking in the middle of a raging storm, you know that kind of peace only comes from Jesus.

Choose to Worship

Over the years, I have learned that choosing to worship the Lord while the storm roars around me makes all the difference. Focusing on Jesus and being grateful enables me to access His peace in the midst of crazy circumstances. Of course, knowing that and doing it are two different things!

I wish I could say my first response to the craziness was to fix my eyes on Jesus and find something to be grateful for, but it wasn’t.

Not even close.

It wasn’t until I was neck-deep in the waves of my chaos that I remembered where to lift my eyes. When I finally looked up, I saw Jesus. And something began to change inside me.

If I focused on our family’s circumstances, fear and frustration consumed me. But if I focused on God—His power, His goodness, His faithfulness— my heart overflowed with indescribable peace.

So, I thanked Him for being present with us through every difficult step. I thanked Him for answering our prayers, even when the answers didn’t come in the way I hoped. I pried my fingers open and turned my palms up to the Lord, willing to let go of my need for control and receive whatever He would give. And with each exhale of thanksgiving, I breathed in peace.

His peace.

The kind of peace that can’t really be explained that defies all logic. The kind that helps you catch your breath and makes you feel grounded, even when the terrain around you is wildly uneven. The kind of peace that expands to fill all the crevices carved out by fear and frustration until the pain and anxiety become a little easier to let go of.

I’ll be honest—it took tremendous effort. My mind kept rehashing all the “what-ifs” while my emotions fluctuated like an EKG. But 2 Corinthians 10:5 says we can demolish the enemy’s strongholds by taking “captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ,” and so I did.

I visualized Peter walking on water, keeping his eyes fixed on Jesus while the storm raged around him. An old hymn from my youth echoed in my heart, proclaiming in faith, “It is well with my soul.” And I continued to look for reasons to be thankful.

More peace.

It’s true what Elisabeth Elliot said:

“Restlessness and impatience change nothing except our peace and joy. Peace does not dwell in outward things but in the heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands.”

Through it all, the Lord held us safely in His hands, and He still does. Whatever storms you’re going through, whatever threatens to rob you of His peace, He has you safely in His hands as well, no matter the outcome.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, when the peace-stealing circumstances of this life threaten to overwhelm us, teach us to keep our eyes fixed on You. You are our anchor in the storm, our refuge in times of trouble, and our peace in the chaos. May Your peace that transcends all understanding guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus as we trust in You (Philippians 4:7).