Healthy Habit: Say your Prayers...and Meditate

I'm kicking off my Healthy Habit posts for October with a topic that makes up a part of my everyday wellness. That is prayer. And since this month is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, I thought I'd share a set of verses that are very dear to my heart.   

Five years ago I relied on these words as survival. Yet today, I still find myself calling on these verses in even the better times.  

Yes, prayer is paramount to my faith and spiritual beliefs. But even more, the act of meditation through prayer helps me find peace and promotes positive living.

These 10 verses not only guide my prayer but have taught me the following:

Faith and Fear cannot exist in the same place

I mentioned these prayers as survival. Fall 2015, I found myself through a wave of emotions. After suffering two pregnancy losses and then finding out we were expecting again, anxiety dictated much of my days.  For example, every time I'd arrive to to the physician's office, I stood paralyzed in fear. Fear that silence would be found on the screen. Fear that the tech would again say,  "I'm sorry but it appears the heart has stopped beating." 

To help fight against the fear, I'd pull up my phone with this image and with white knuckles, get lost meditating over these verses until my name was called. 

You know what? I'd find peace. Calm. My stomach would settle, my breathing would normalize.  Through my faith, I found moments of comfort and clarity. 

And it wasn't just coincidence. There are many benefits to prayer and meditation.

Why is it important to pray and/or meditate?

• Reduces stress A few minutes in prayer can allow you to escape the worries of life and find peace within your daily life
• Control over thoughts Keeping peace through prayer pushes out negative thoughts and helps prioritize daily hurdles 
• Improved health  It can calm anxiety, lower blood pressure, give mental clarity. It can also bring a sense of closeness to self and a higher being
• Personally, it's important for my spiritual wellness. I give thanks and ask for guidance from my creator, the one who is ultimately in control 

I've shared these prayers with friends as they navigated their way through pregnancies. And I thought it was important to share here because you do not necessarily have to be experiencing loss or pregnancy to find joy in these verses.

In fact, 2020 stirred up the importance of these verses.  I think we can all use some faith over fear right now. Do you agree?

So no matter what you walk through may you always remember that faith and fear cannot co-exist. When we choose faith through prayer and meditation, we push fear out and live more positive, peaceful and healthier lives. 

XO,

Brit

To print out a PDF version of these scriptures or learn more about faith based resources for moms and families, visit Gather&Grow.