A Prayer to Overcome Panic Attacks - Your Daily Prayer - February 21

A Prayer to Overcome Panic Attacks
By Lauren Gaskill

The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen. – 2 Timothy 4:18

Have you ever experienced a panic attack?

The fear rises in your chest without warning. Your heart begins to race and your pupils dilate. Dread and shame quickly weigh you down and before long you can’t catch a breath. It feels as if an elephant were sitting on your chest. You might pass out. You might become nauseous. You might break out into a sweat.

It’s a dark, scary place — the kind of place you never hope to find yourself in.

It’s definitely the kind of place I never wanted to find myself in. And yet, despite every ounce of faith and belief within me, I’ve been in the panic pit more than a time or two. In reality, too many times to count.

But God is a chain breaker. And He has been so gracious to me in that, through my on-and-off struggle with panic attacks, He has shown me that I don’t need to be ashamed — I need to speak up. Because I know there are many out there who might be going through something similar. And they need hope, light and encouragement just as much as I do, every single day.

If you’re struggling with or have struggled with anxiety, remember these two truths: You are not alone. And you will get through this.

There’s a prayer I pray on the mornings after an intense panic attack, and I want to share this prayer with you today, as an example of how you might trust in God to be your strength and help you overcome.

Lord, I come to you and I thank you for drawing near to me when I draw near to you. To think that you are mindful of me — it overwhelms my soul. But Lord, today my spirit is heavy and my body is weak. I cannot bear the weight of this anxiety and panic any longer. I recognize I can’t get through this alone, and I pray against the very active enemy who is trying to shake my faith and tear us apart. Help me stand strong in you. Fortify these weary bones and remind me of the truth that this pain and panic will not last forever. It will pass.

Fill me with your joy, peace and perseverance, Father. Restore my soul and break the chains of anxiety and panic that bind me. I trust you with my panic and I know that you have the power to take it all away. But even if you don’t, I know I don’t have to be a slave to my fear. I can rest in the shadow of your wings and I will rise and overcome by your unwavering strength. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

And with that, I lift my hands up to the sky, feeling the weight lift as I surrender all to Him. I breathe in new hope and a new strength rises within.

I picture God rescuing me from the troubled waters of my anxiety, whisking me up into the air on a cloud of perfect peace. If I let Him carry me, in Him I can overcome the panic every time it comes.

Editor’s Note: Portions of this devotional were taken from How to Overcome Panic Attacks by Lauren Gaskill. You can read that article in full here. All rights reserved.

Related Resource: What If God’s Heart Toward You Is Kinder Than You Think?

In this episode of Talk About That, you will laugh along with stories about children’s books, volleyball mornings, St. Patrick’s Day, and even the questionable legacy of the Power Team, but underneath the humor is a thoughtful conversation about one of the deepest questions of faith: how God truly sees us. John and Jonnie reflect on weakness, mercy, and the struggle many believers feel in accepting that God is not only patient with them, but genuinely pleased to call them His own. It’s an honest, encouraging reminder that our relationship with God is not built on performance, perfection, or “having it all together,” but on His love, grace, and fatherly delight in His children. You'll come away challenged to see yourself less through the lens of self-criticism and more through the steady, compassionate eyes of a God who knows you fully, loves you deeply, and may just be rooting for you more than you realize. If you laughed out loud listening to this episode, be sure to follow Talk About That on Apple and Spotify!