Let Nothing Disturb You (A Meditation)

Let nothing disturb you

Let nothing frighten you

All things are passing

God never changes

Patience obtains all things

She who possesses God lacks nothing

God alone suffices.

St. Teresa of Ávila

What disturbs you?

What frightens you? What keeps you up at night?

Concerns about money? Or a relationship? How about the idea that your life is right before your eyes with nothing to show for it?

Every one of us has fears large and small that we must contend with. It’s an essential part of the human experience. However, sometimes our fears can become so overwhelming that we feel crushed by them.

The worst part? Most of our fears are intangible and nebulous. Half the time we don’t have a good grasp on what we’re actually afraid of. It’s like someone turned on the fear switch inside us and forgot to turn it off.

When St. Teresa of Avila, Carmelite nun and mystic, wrote the famous prayer above, she likely had to contend with her own fears as well. But through spiritual discipline and prayer, she was able to transcend her fears and live an extraordinary life.

Each line of her prayer can serve as a powerful mantra all on its own. Together they provide a compelling and effective roadmap to help us face our own fears.

So let’s now meditate on this prayer line by line:

Let nothing disturb you 

Where would we be without our smartphones? We have the world’s information available to us at our fingertips. 

But a significant downside is that negative and disturbing information can now travel to us at the speed of light. A tweet, a text, a YouTube video is all it takes to disturb us.

We’re bombarded with so much negativity, we barely notice. All we know is that we feel unsettled and uneasy. 

Let nothing disturb you.

Let this mantra be a reminder that you have a choice. You can choose to become aware of all the negative influences in your life. You can choose to limit or block access to these sources of negativity.

You can choose to not be disturbed even in the presence of disturbing things.

Let nothing frighten you

Is it possible to be afraid but not frightened? Yes, because you can feel your fears without running away. 

Let nothing frighten you is a reminder that you can choose to stand your ground in the face of fear. You don’t need to pretend it’s not there or try to run away from it. 

Stand in your fear. Let it speak to you. Accept its presence in your life. But whatever you do, don’t let it overcome you.

All things are passing 

On the surface, this mantra does not sound comforting.

Besides, the vast majority of our fears center around our fear of loss. So if I am reminded that all things are passing, then I have much to be afraid of. 

How can I ever tolerate losing my stuff, my health, my independence, and eventually my very life? Of course I know all things are passing, I just don’t want to be reminded of it.

But when I allow soul to fully accept this truth, I get a glimpse of pure freedom, even ecstasy. In those moments I realize that all I need to do is get out of the way of my fears. They are just passing through.

God never changes

The Greek philosopher Heraclitus once said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.”

The thing we fear the most is change. So we do all we can to maintain the status quo. But doing this is a futile as stopping the clouds from moving across the sky.

The mantra “God never changes” assures us that no matter how much life changes, there is one reality that does not change.

Let God’s unwavering presence and love be the anchor that grounds your being. 

Patience obtains all things

Patience seems to be in short supply these days.

I see it most in the way we drive. We’re always in a hurry. We’re always on the way to something. And if someone cuts us off or drives too slowly, watch out world. 

But all the anger we experience with road rage is just another form of fear. It’s the fear that comes when we realize that we’re just driving around in circles. We’re moving fast but seemingly going nowhere. 

There seems to be no escape from the monotony of our lives. “Patience obtains all things” reminds us to slow down so we can experience that incredible journey called life.

She who possesses God lacks nothing

We spend much of our lives acquiring and hoarding material things. 

But sooner or later we realize that in the end, much of the stuff we’ve accumulated have no real value. All the things we thought would make us happy just leave us feeling empty and hollow inside.

And even then, we’re afraid to get rid of them. “She who possesses God lacks nothing” invites us to unburden ourselves from our stuff. Because…

God alone suffices.