Naming the Weight

Sit. Hands resting.

Begin to ask yourself, very gently: what am I carrying today? Not the big abstract things. The specific ones. The email you haven't answered. The conversation you're postponing. The small dread.

Let a word or a phrase come. It doesn't have to be a complete sentence. It might be a single word — or a name, or a number, or a knot in the chest.

Now — very gently — imagine placing that word in God's hands. Not throwing it. Placing it. The way you would place a tired child on a soft bed.

Read the verse: cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. The 'because' is important. The reason you can let go is not that you are strong, or that you've earned it, or that you've thought your way to peace. The reason is that He cares.

Let the breath help. A long, slow exhale is the body saying: I am handing this over, just for now.

Sit a moment longer. Notice the hands. Are they tighter or looser than when you began?

Carry the looseness with you.