Dear God! Help Me Write! Newsletter, 2/5/2026

Rehema Clarken·Feb 5, 2026· 4 minutes

I’m a big believer in prayer and writing as means for solving problems, so it’s only fitting that I’ve woven them together in many of my projects.

Over a decade ago, I went on pilgrimage to the Bahá’í holy sites near Haifa, Israel. At the time, I was in the midst of completing my doctoral dissertation but finding it increasingly difficult to finish. As part of this spiritual journey, I had made a list of things to pray about. It included names of loved ones and questions or concerns that I had about my life’s purpose. I even wondered if I was supposed to persevere or give up on my graduate studies. One of the personal prayers I said was: “Dear God! If it be Thy will, please help me write my dissertation and complete my Ph.D. program.”

One day while walking through the gardens on the Arc of Mount Carmel, I met a family friend on the pebbled path. She had also been researching and writing her dissertation for a few years and, like me, had been struggling to finish it. However, she had been working at the Bahá’í World Center in Haifa and had had the blessings of guidance from many wise people there.

Our conversation, under the Mediterranean sun, quickly turned to the struggles of completing our graduate studies. She listened to my laments about the difficulties of living abroad, where I was physically removed from my advisors and in an opposite time zone. This complicated arranging meetings and mentorship. Additionally, not being on campus made it difficult to secure books and articles that were available on library shelves back home.

She listened to my struggles. Then, she searched through her bag for a slip of paper that she graciously gifted me. It was a special prayer that she solemnly directed me to recite every day until I graduated.

Here’s a section of this prayer written by ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá:

“

O Lord, help Thou Thy loved ones to acquire knowledge and the sciences and arts, and to unravel the secrets that are treasured up in the inmost reality of all created beings. Make them to hear the hidden truths that are written and embedded in the heart of all that is.1

This prayer is found in many Bahá’í prayer books. It’s a common prayer, but it was not one I had ever remembered reading. I might not have ever discovered its power if it had not been for my friend. I followed her advice religiously. I said the prayer regularly for a few years until I finally graduated with my Ph.D. from Michigan Technological University.

Since then, this experience with prayer has inspired me to use specific mystical writings as spiritual anchors for my many long-term projects. For instance, the collaborative book of stories, essays, and poems, A Hundred Thousand Hopes,was inspired by the paragraph below:

“

O THOU who art turning thy face towards God! Close thine eyes to all things else, and open them to the realm of the All-Glorious. Ask whatsoever thou wishest of Him alone; seek whatsoever thou seekest from Him alone. With a look He granteth a hundred thousand hopes, with a glance He healeth a hundred thousand incurable ills, with a nod He layeth balm on every wound, with a glimpse He freeth the hearts from the shackles of grief. He doeth as He doeth, and what recourse have we? He carrieth out His Will, He ordaineth what He pleaseth. Then better for thee to bow down thy head in submission, and put thy trust in the All-Merciful Lord.2

Whenever I worry about this book project, I say this prayer. Whenever I have questions about the manuscript, I recite the prayer. Whenever I have an extra moment, I use this prayer to ask God to assist us with the publication of this book. Over the months, this prayer had become a mantra. It is a refuge for me to enter when I require help.

Having a prayer—a chosen set of divinely inspired words—to remind me of my purpose has been an anchor to my creative life. Therefore, I charge you to find a prayer for your current writing project. Copy the wording on a note card or print it out on beautiful paper. Then, place it somewhere you will see it often. The more you use the prayer, the more it will encourage you to write.