“I love taking exams! I wish I could take them every single day! They’re my favorite!” Can you think of someone who feels this way? Neither can I. Whether you’re a straight-A sophomore or preparing for the comprehensive exam to earn your master’s degree, a prayer for success in exams is just what you need to get through this challenging time. There’s no magic wand or miracle tincture, but prayer can help in this situation in so many ways! Keep reading!
Why We Dread Taking Exams
I’m sure I don’t need to tell you why most people dread taking exams. Even if you were interested in a subject and excelled with discussions and assignments, exams can be stressful! They can make you feel like your intelligence is dependent upon one test. If you score well, you feel smart! But if you fail, you feel inadequate. I understand the feeling because I have failed many times! But when I look back, I realize that my worth was not reduced to how I performed during these exams.
Why We Measure Ourselves By Exams
It’s normal to measure yourself to an exam. Everyone has limitless value in the eyes of God! But our human understanding leads us to believe that we need to quantify it or measure it in some way. So we use numbers and metrics to determine that. And we compare. We compare ourselves to others. Sometimes this can help us grow because we enjoy the challenge of improving and rising to the top. But often, we feel discouraged or competitive. We may even feel envious of others and hope to surpass them. We feel prideful.
Where “Prayer for Success in Exams” Comes In Handy
In the midst of all this, exams will arise throughout our human lives. Perhaps you are taking the NCLEX to become a nurse, following your calling to help others in this special way. Maybe you are taking your ServSafe exam to handle food properly in a restaurant, feeding others with not only good food, but kindness and hospitality. Exams can be humbling because they remind us of what we don’t know! But exams can also inspire gratitude when we feel accomplished after doing well. And as we know, prayers are always helpful during difficult situations because they allow us to call upon God to help us when we are feeling weak, unsure, or uncomfortable.
Thanking God for the Gift of Learning
When praying for success in exams, it’s crucial to start by thanking God for the gift of learning! Exams may be a pain, but they wouldn’t exist if valuable acquiring of knowledge did not occur first. If you are a parent, grandparent, or other mentoring adult, remind the young students in your life that it is important to thank God for the beauty of education! Encourage them to be grateful for the opportunities to grow in their understanding of the world around them and all that God has given us.
Praying for Good Focus
Nervousness can make us do poorly when taking exams. We can become so overwhelmed with worry that we will fail and forget everything we learned. Understandably so, we can fear that if we do not succeed in taking exams, we will not move on to the next steps of achieving our goals. So praying for good focus can allow us to take on an exam by simplifying it: reading questions carefully, thoughtfully crafting an answer, and articulating that response as clearly and eloquently as possible!
Asking God for a Positive Attitude
Sometimes our attitudes stink. We are already expecting to fail. Perhaps we are tired from studying all night or we predict that our instructor, teacher, or professor will not be compassionate when grading our work. We can be wrapped up in our own negative thoughts, so praying for a positive attitude can help us to imagine positive outcomes from this stressful situation.
Calm Nerves and Clarity of Mind
If we have had negative experiences in the past with taking exams (who hasn’t?), our body may automatically respond with panicked nerves and a foggy mind. It’s perfectly normal! When you say a prayer for success in exams, ask God to bless you with a calm demeanor. Ask him to clear your mind of any distracted or self-deprecating thoughts. God can bring you the tranquility you need and can obliterate any unnecessary thoughts that invade your mind.
A “Prayer for Success in Exams” is for Educators, too!
As I mentioned before, the time will come when your teacher will need to grade that exam! And we all know that teachers are humans, too. They have bad days, struggle with God’s purpose for them, and experience difficult life seasons that affect not only their moods, but their abilities to think and judge appropriately. Pray for those teachers! Ask God to soften their hearts and make corrections with grace, not fury or frustration.
Pray for Humility
Even before I was a wife and a mother, I prayed to be a lifelong learner. I asked God to help me to always love learning and to always remind me that there is always something I could learn. I never wanted to believe that I knew everything there is to know. Then, when I became a wife and mother, I wanted my children to always love learning. So I encourage you to pray for humility like I do, asking God to help you to be humble in all of your learning, even when it’s difficult and it feels painful to be “proven wrong.”
Prayer for Success in Exams
Good and Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the gift of education, the gift of being able to think and discover, the gift of learning truth. As other students and I prepare for exams, I pray that I may have focused attention and a positive attitude. Grant me strength in my studies, absorbing all information necessary to not only succeed in these exams, but to better understand and appreciate Your creation as I learn and grow each day. I pray that all students and I have calm nerves and clarity of mind during our exams. Help us to persevere, even when we grow weary. Lord God, I ask you to bless all educators, all teachers, and all tutors, working to do Your will by sharing their gifts of knowledge and patience. I ask that You soften their hearts and bless them with compassion when it is needed, such as in moments of grading and correction. Continue to humble me throughout my education, nurturing my desire to grow in wisdom.
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
Glory Be…
Angel of God…
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
FREE DOWNLOAD HERE: >>>>> Prayer For Success in Exams – free printable PDF – life with the saints
More Resources for Students…
This may not be the end of the road for you, dear student! Or maybe you are a parent, in need of strength and encouragement for the upcoming school year and years to come. Check out this Morning Prayer for School! I also highly recommend saying this morning prayer with your family each day. These prayers can be ABSOLUTE GAME CHANGERS in your family life!
I wish you the best in all of your exams and educational journey!
Want to know more about Life with the Saints? Read all about my mission and story here.
