Nahomi Allen Writes

Have you ever had one of those mornings where your spirit is running on fumes before 8:00 AM?

That was me on a Wednesday morning, less than twenty-four hours before I was scheduled to pack my bags and head off to a church retreat. Logically, a retreat sounds like an oasis. But internally? I felt completely down and totally unqualified to be going anywhere holy or inspiring. On top of the spiritual imposter syndrome, real life was loud. I was scrambling with babysitter logistics, worried sick about a family member in the hospital facing ongoing heart complications, and trying to hold the weight of the world on my shoulders without dropping a single plate.

The morning itself started out ordinary enough. I woke up, got the kids through the usual morning shuffle, loaded up the car, and did school drop-off. But of course, because my head was spinning in forty directions, I realized I’d left my AirPods sitting at home.

I whipped back into the driveway, ran inside, snatched them off the counter, hopped back behind the wheel, shifted into drive—and stopped dead in my tracks.

Right there on my car door panel sat a tiny, quiet, brown praying mantis.

I’m 29 years old. In nearly three decades of living, I can count on one hand the number of praying mantises I’ve seen in real life, and I had never in my life seen a brown one.

The moment my eyes locked onto it, a literal jolt went through my body. The dam broke, and tears flooded my face. It was the strangest sensation: all the racing thoughts, the heavy mental grocery lists, the hospital worries, and the feeling of inadequacy just evaporated. I felt weightless, like I was floating. And the whole time, this little creature just turned its head and stared right at me.

Naturally, sitting in my driveway with red eyes and my car still idling in drive, I pulled out my phone to learn everything I could about my unexpected little passenger:

• The Name Itself: The word mantis comes from the ancient Greek word mantikos, which translates directly to soothsayer, diviner, or prophet. They were given the name because their front legs remain folded in an intentional, perpetual posture of prayer.
• What the Color Brown Means in Nature: While many people only picture bright green mantises blending into fresh spring grass, mantises transition to shades of brown, tan, and dry-bark gray as the seasons shift into late summer and autumn. Brown isn’t a defect or an accident—it is camouflage designed specifically for dry, weathered, and dormant branches. It represents quiet grounding, earthiness, and the ability to remain hidden and protected when the landscape isn’t lush or green anymore.
• What They Do Their Entire Lives: A mantis’s entire existence is defined by stillness and acute vision. They do not run around frantically chasing down what they need. They are ambush predators who master the art of being still, waiting patiently, and striking only when the timing is precise. In fact, they spend more than half of their entire lives completely motionless in that exact same posture—front legs folded close, quietly waiting. They are also among the only insects with stereoscopic 3D vision and the ability to turn their heads a full 180 degrees. They don’t miss a thing.

Reading that fact stopped me cold. More than half its life… just standing still with folded hands. Here I was, running 100 miles an hour, wearing myself out trying to fix, manage, and control everything on my own, while God sent a tiny creature to remind me that power isn’t in frantic motion—it’s in the posture of prayer.

Reading those facts sitting in my driveway, the noise around me completely faded away. And right there in the quiet of my front seat, the Holy Spirit whispered straight into my heart:

“I see you. I love you. I’m so proud of you, and you’re doing great.”

That was it. That was the moment I completely lost it.

I didn’t need a neon sign, and I didn’t need life to instantly fix itself before Thursday morning. I just needed to be reminded that God sees me in the thick of the mess. When life feels dried up and weathered like a brittle brown branch, He still designs protection right into the season.

He didn’t ask me to show up to that retreat with everything figured out. He just wanted me to drop my shoulders, fold my hands, and remember who holds the wheel.

“For the Lord your God is living among you.

He is a mighty savior.

He will take delight in you with gladness.

With his love, he will calm all your fears.

He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

— Zephaniah 3:17 (NLT)

If you’re sitting in your car today—or at your kitchen table, or in a hospital waiting room, or in the hallway after putting the kids down—carrying an invisible mountain, this is for you.

I know what it feels like to think you’re not strong enough, not faithful enough, or simply not qualified to carry what’s on your plate. I know the ache of trying to be strong for everyone else while your own heart is breaking in private. But I want you to close your eyes, take a deep breath, and really receive this today:

He hasn’t left you. Not for a single second. Sometimes when everything feels like it has come to a screeching halt, He has put up a wall between you and the chaos—not to shut you out, but as a simple, gentle invitation to slow down, clear your mind, and relax. It’s hard to hear His voice when you’re running 100 mph, but in the stillness, He is drawing you closer.

You do not have to have it all together for God to be near you. You do not have to hustle or perform to earn His attention. Even when you feel dry, weathered, and worn down like that little brown branch, His hand of protection is covering you completely.

Hear this truth settle deep into your spirit right now: He sees you. He loves you. He is so proud of how hard you are trying. You are doing so much better than you give yourself credit for.

Lay down the pressure to figure out tomorrow. Release the need to fix what only God can heal. Just like that tiny mantis, let your hands fold, let your spirit grow still, and trust that the God who sees every sparrow—and every bug on a car door—has you wrapped securely in His grace. You are going to make it through this.