3 Reasons You’re Anxious About Prayer and How to Overcome Prayer Anxiety Today

The Bible tells us that instead of worrying and being anxious, we should pray. But what do we do when our very anxiety and worry become a hindrance to praying in the first place? This can create a discouraging cycle for Christians. So, if you’ve found yourself too anxious to pray, I want you to watch this video because I’ll be sharing three reasons why you feel anxious about prayer and how to overcome each one. Stay tuned!

1. Not Having the Right Words

Sometimes, we’re afraid to pray because we feel like we don’t have the right words or know how to pray. But the truth is God is not looking for us to be eloquent speakers. He just wants us to be real and honest with Him. If you feel like you have to say everything perfectly for your prayer to be heard, it can cause anxiety. You might think that if you mess up, there will be consequences, or that you’re wasting your time, or even that God will be upset with you. But that is the opposite of what scripture reveals about the character of God.

God is compassionate, caring, and gracious. You don’t need to have the "right" words, use big words, or say everything perfectly. He simply wants your heart and for you to come to Him.

2. Unable to Be Still

Another reason prayer might make you anxious is that it requires stillness and solitude which can be difficult when there's a lot going on around you. While it’s not impossible to pray amidst distractions, prayer often requires a level of quiet so we can clear our minds, talk to God, and also hear from Him. But we’ve grown as a society to like distraction. Honestly, I would even say that we’re addicted to it.

When we’re still and quiet before God, unwanted feelings or thoughts may surface—things we’d rather avoid. But the purpose of prayer is to bring all our cares to God, not just the good requests, but also the heartbreak, trials, and trauma we’re facing. We can give all of that to Him, and He can process it with us. He can handle it.

Often, we distract ourselves from the pain we may be experiencing, but God wants to heal us, and He can’t do that if we’re constantly distracted. We have to remind ourselves that the negative feelings we may face in stillness are not bad—they’re part of God’s healing process. Prayer creates the space where that healing can happen.

3. Spiritual Attack

Lastly, prayer may cause anxiety because the enemy will attack you when you pray. I personally struggle with anxiety, and there was a season when every time I tried to pray, I experienced intrusive thoughts. It was so discouraging. But my therapist reminded me that the enemy does not want us to pray. Why? Because that’s  where our healing, power, and strength from God come from.

So yes, the enemy will intentionally put thoughts in your head to distract you, even when you’re making an effort to pray. When this happens, they are just thoughts, sudden ideas, or visuals that pop in your mind. You are not your thoughts and you can choose to let them pass or dwell on them. To overcome prayer anxiety, make a practice of changing your mind when a distracting thought comes to mind. Like changing the channel on your tv or continuing the scroll on social media, don’t stay there in that thought, just keep your mind moving onto a better thought. Don’t judge the thought or yourself for having the thought, as this just makes you think of it even more. Simply move on.

Now I understand this isn’t easy, but the more you control your thoughts, the easier it gets and the less your thoughts control you giving you the peace of mind to focus when you pray. 2 Corinthians 10 says:

“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭10‬:‭5‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

When you experience prayer anxiety, I encourage you to first pray that God will clear your thoughts, remove distractions, heal your mind, and cover you as you pray. God is faithful, and He wants to hear from you.

If you’ve been struggling with anxiety about prayer, remember that God doesn't need perfection—He just wants your heart. Silence the distractions and know that even in the midst of spiritual attack, God is with you, ready to listen and provide His power that comes through prayer. Anxiety doesn’t have to stop your prayers. In fact, it can be the very reason to lean into God even more.

I love to say, we can pray to God about anything, anywhere so I invite you to watch this video where I teach you step-by-step how to pray without ceasing.

For more encouragement, download my free Bible Study, “Worry-Free,” to learn the 3 lies feeding your worry and the truth that sets you free at belovedwomen.org. Thanks for watching, and until next time, be beautiful, be blessed, and be beloved.