Interrupting Anxiety

Steve* had been anxious for days, weighed down by the pressures of finding a student work placement. The perfect resume. Endless applications. Tense waiting. Daunting interviews. Clear competition.

Then he saw an Instagram post:

A Prayer for when applying for co-ops or jobs .

It was from the account of his local IFES fellowship, the IVCF Canada group at the University of Victoria.

As he read it, he realised something.

Prayer in the Feed

The lament resonated:

“Why is applying for co-ops so tiring?”…”Didn’t you desire work to be meaningful? / This all feels like thorns and thistles.”

He entered into its repentance:

“I confess my need to command creation… I confess my fear of my human vocation, with all its mortality and limits… I confess the fears in my ruminations”

And he rested in its confidence:

”Your love is steadfast, your anger slow, clothe me with your patience / As Chief Shepherd your rule is full of goodness.”

God’s Presence Everywhere

Steve texted his staff worker, Alan.

He wanted him to know that this prayer had interrupted his anxiety. The words on the screen had helped him recognize that God was with him in his search for a placement.

For the next week, Steve re-prayed the words as he waited for responses. He found strength to persevere for another two months.

As the author of the prayer, Alan was delighted. For the last two years, around 30 of his prayers have appeared on the uvic_ivcf account. He says:

“The digital age has given us new opportunities. Student’s personal and private spaces – bedrooms and kitchens and commutes – can become temple-like spaces where God’s presence is felt and responded to.”

A Good Connection

Alan doesn’t intend for his digital liturgies to replace embodied ministry. He sees them as “a bridge” that helps his cherished campus community connect faith with all of life – whether it’s one of those Mondays when it feels like everything’s falling apart or one of those moments when you feel like you’ve not studied enough.

He explains:

“I start by listening to students I meet with, to their stories and their fears. As I’m interceding for them, I find myself drawn by the Holy Spirit to begin writing. I try to weave their stories into the Biblical narratives of who God is and how their lives relate to his story.”

The digital medium offers a further advantage:

“A printed paper might be stuffed in a pocket and forgotten, but these prayers are now in a place that’s not so easily lost. Like a fresco in a basilica, they are publicly accessible – for this and future generations.”

Here is an opportunity for more anxiety to be interrupted, for more peace to be found in Christ.

Pray

Give thanks that this campus fellowship is combining embodied community and digital ministry in its learning and witness – thank God for Steve’s testimony and Alan’s Instagram prayers.

Pray for five community houses that serve as hubs for hospitality-evangelism – “a space for new students to be immersed in the living witness and testimonies of Christ’s work on the cross.” Ask that the spiritually curious and non-religious students will engage in Bible studies and commit to following Jesus.

And pray for Christian students struggling with a “survivalist” mentality – that they will envisage how to become flourishing and faithful communities, empowered by the Holy Spirit.

*Name changed for privacy.