[I originally posted this in July of 2010, but God brought it to my attention again this morning when I (once again) needed to take my own advice! :)]
Anxiety, worry, stress–an experience common to everyone, but what do you DO about it?
People handle stress and anxiety in different ways. Some take the healthier route through exercise, journaling or talking to friends or professionals. Some choose other alternatives like pills, alcohol, shopping or gambling. Others just eat chocolate (guilty!).
It seems that we are quite proficient in dealing with the results of stress, but are we dealing with the source?
Much of our anxiety results from fear– fear that we won’t succeed, fear that something terrible will happen, fear that we will never have enough. These fears are grounded in false beliefs such as the belief that everything is in our control, that every outcome in our lives is our responsibility or that the world chocolate supply is in danger (okay, maybe not that one :)).
For many of us, the fear began in childhood when our needs were not met by the people who should have met them. Perhaps we saw terrible things happen in our own families. These events left us with a belief that we have to take care of ourselves because no one else will.
The truth is that you were not designed to carry that weight and God has given you a way out.
In John 14:27 of the Bible, Jesus says,”Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Jesus gives us a different kind of peace, a kind of peace that can’t be found in pills or yoga or psychologists.
I Peter 5:7 says,”Cast (throw) all your anxiety on him (Jesus) because he cares for you.” In the past I interpreted this verse to mean that I shouldn’t worry because Jesus cares about me. The truth is that He cares in my place so that I don’t have to. He is much more capable to take care of all the details of my life. The Bible even says that Christ is sitting at the right hand of God interceeding (praying) for us (Romans 8:34).
Maybe you have heard these verses before, but have you experienced them?
Philippians 4: 6-7 says,”Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Take a few minutes right now to talk to God about your anxiety and to ask God to reveal the root of it. Once you know, turn that worry into a prayer. Thank God for all He has done in your life, thank Him for caring about every detail and ask Him for His solution to your troubles.
As you truly trust God to care for you, and as you allow Him to guard your heart and mind you will experience a true, deep inner peace. You can’t find that in chocolate!
©2010 The Peaceful Mom-If you would like to share this article, please give credit and a link back to ThePeacefulMom.com. Please note that this post is not intended as professional advice but simply the author’s personal opinion. You should seek professional advice if your circumstances require it.
Thank you. I needed this. Amen and bless you.
I am so glad to help! 🙂
THANK YOU! I needed this so much today. God has been taking me through a crazy ride toward forgiving people for things in my childhood. He’s pulling me out of activities I enjoy (which is tough for me). And last week we found out my oldest son has aspergers. It’s been a wild ride and I needed that reminder that Jesus is willing to stand in the worry for me. I am still learning to trust Him with that (as odd as that sounds). Anyway, thank you so much!!!!
Have you read that my son has Aspergers? You can read some of my posts here: https://thepeacefulmom.com/autism/. You might also enjoy this series: https://thepeacefulmom.com/2011/10/22/new-series-becoming/ in which I tell some of my own story about forgiving. Blessings Bri!
I like your honesty. I used to worry constantly, I could have worried for you and the rest of the world. Made me nuts. Then two bouts of cancer. I don’t worry about anything. I am aware and work on what I can in my tiny portion of the world. I wish I could have learned this behavior years, ok….lots of years earlier. Hugs.
I was glad to see this post today. It caught my attention because this is exactly what our sermon was at church Sunday. I would refer you to Matthew 6:25-34 as this was our focus point. My favorite passage is verse 34: “Therefore so not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own”.
Thanks Tami!
Sometimes things get so tough that it’s hard to remember that all we have to do is give our worries to God and He will take them away and that things will always turn out as long as we trust in Him. Thank you so much for this reminder 🙂
I absolutely adore this post! It is so easy to get caught up in the stress of life and to try to control things we have no control over. How simple it would be to just let God take control of our worries, and yet so often we lose sight of that truth. Thank you for this awesome reminder!
Thank you for re-posting this. It’s exactly what I needed, and I’m so glad that God placed it in your heart.
Thank you for reposting this – I think this was exactly what I needed to hear/read today!
Thanks so much for this today. Didn’t realize how much I needed to be reminded of these scripture verses till I read them. Honestly I got to this part… “For many of us, the fear began in childhood when our needs were not met by the people who should have met them. Perhaps we saw terrible things happen in our own families. These events left us with a belief that we have to take care of ourselves because no one else will.”… and started bawling. You helped answer my question of why I have always struggled with being such a fearful person. Thanks for sharing
Oh Tiffany, I am so sorry. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit is our Comforter and I pray that He would comfort you right now as only He can. Be blessed!