Faith in Action: 5 Tools to Calm Your Mind and Reclaim Your Power from Ivonne Delaflor​

Over the past few months, my phone has been lighting up late at night. DMs. Calls. Texts. Families I know—families like yours and mine—are scared.

ICE raids are on the rise. Deportations are happening to people who have lived in the U.S. for 20 or 30 years. Some came here as toddlers and don’t even speak the language of the country they’re being sent to.

Even for those of us who are citizens or long-time legal residents, the fear is real. We walk around thinking: “What’s going to happen to my friends? My neighbors? Could I be stopped, questioned, or even detained?” I even carry around my passport in case I am detained. Me, Louis Barajas, who was born and raised here, who has written several books and done many keynote speeches. Even I am fearful. 

This fear doesn’t just sit in your head—it hits your body. I’ve seen it show up as sleepless nights, headaches, chest pain, and that constant knot of anxiety in your stomach. And when we’re living in that state of fear, it’s easy to make rushed decisions—selling assets, avoiding legal advice, pulling back from the community—because fear shuts down our ability to think clearly.

Here’s what I know after years of helping families protect and grow their wealth: your financial health depends on your emotional and spiritual resilience. When your mind is in chaos, your money decisions usually follow.

That’s why, on a recent Wealth Gap Warriors episode, I called a “911” and brought in my friend and spiritual mentor, Ivonne Delaflor. I wanted her to share practical tools to help all of us move from fear to empowerment.

What she shared was life-changing—not just for our listeners, but for me, too. Here are five tools she recommends to calm your mind, ground your spirit, and take back your power, even in the middle of uncertainty.

4-7-8 Breathing: Reset Your Nervous System

When fear takes over, your brain flips into survival mode—fight, flight, or freeze. Ivonne teaches a simple breathing exercise that can bring you back to center:

1. Inhale for 4 seconds
2. Hold for 7 seconds
3. Exhale slowly for 8 seconds

Do this three to seven times. This breathing for safety can melt panic, lower your blood pressure, and give your mind the space to make clear decisions.

The Sacred Pause

In a crisis, our instinct is to act fast. But rushing almost always leads to mistakes.

Ivonne calls this the Sacred Pause—a conscious decision to stop, breathe, and get present before you make your next move.

Even 60 seconds of stillness—eyes closed, feet on the floor, a few deep breaths—can shift you from fear into clarity. Only then can you respond with wisdom instead of panic.

Gratitude Journaling

When everything feels uncertain, gratitude can feel out of reach. But this simple habit rewires your brain for hope.

• Write down 10 things you’re grateful for—no matter how small.
• If the only thing you can write is “I am breathing”, start there.
• Honor the little things: your kids’ laughter, a safe meal, waking up to another day of life.

Gratitude isn’t just about “feeling good.” It’s about training your mind to see possibilities instead of problems.

Create a “Calm Kit”

Fear thrives in chaos. A Calm Kit is your physical reminder that you are safe, loved, and not alone. Fill it with:

• A photo of a loved one
• A small object that brings comfort (stone, crystal, keepsake)
• A card with an affirmation like: “I am protected. I am not alone.”

When panic hits, hold your Calm Kit item, take a breath, and read your affirmation. It grounds you in the present moment.

Faith in Action

The most important tool Ivonne shared is this: faith is not passive—it’s action.

Faith in action means:

• Choosing to believe that life still has purpose, even in hardship.
• Pausing to pray, meditate, or simply acknowledge God’s presence in your breath.
• Taking one small, concrete step to protect your family today—making a plan, reaching out for help, or just breathing through fear with intention.

As Ivonne reminded me during our conversation: “If you are breathing, you have God. If you have God, you have life. And life means possibility.”

Take Back Your Power

Fear and uncertainty may be part of our reality right now, but they don’t have to control our lives.

When you calm your body, anchor yourself in faith, and take small, empowered steps, you protect not only your finances—but also your heart, your mind, and your family.

If this message speaks to you, I want you to do two things:

1. Order Ivonne Delaflor’s book, Faith in Action: The Path to Personal Transformation in 21 Days.
2. Subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss this incredibly hopeful conversation on Wealth Gap Warriors. You’ll also get the complete toolkit for moving from fear to empowerment in the episode.

Remember this: faith in action is how we turn fear into power, and uncertainty into purpose. a