When Anxiety Gets the Best of You
Anxiety and fear can be completely debilitating. Yes, we’ve all experienced those times of nervousness, but it is when these two dark forces come together and blind you from any hope of a future living in freedom, that is the time for a breakthrough.
People have an array of descriptions for anxiety, from physical symptoms like heart palpitations and sweaty palms, to mental ruminations and sleepless nights. No matter what the symptoms, the trademark characteristics are always a barrier to peace and the theft of joy.
What is the Cause of Anxiety?
Countless research and scientific studies have been done to find the root of anxiety. But this uneasiness has plagued the human mind since the fall of man.
“That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.”—Ecclesiastes 1:9
>>>Watch Nothing New Under The Sun Livestream here!<<<
Some say it goes back to family relationships or a history of trauma, others say it’s biological, but there is a common denominator in all of this… the fact that our past creeps into our minds and tries to dictate our future.
Equally detrimental as drowning in worry, is to wear it like a badge. So many often justify the fear as caring, but the fact remains, but it comes down to a trust factor. This statement isn’t to say, don’t be concerned or caring toward others, but we are to have an honest assessment of how you are turning over your concerns to God. Trust that He will instruct you on how to show Godly compassion.
“Historians will probably call our era ‘the age of anxiety.’ Anxiety is the natural result when our hopes are centered in anything short of God and His will for us.” —Billy Graham
Therefore if our thoughts aren’t focused on God, where then is our focus?
According to scripture, when we don’t set our eyes on the Lord, our surroundings begin to crumble in various ways. Isn’t this interesting? When we focus on our situations and circumstances, that’s actually what brings disaster, chaos, and misalignment! This confusion should be our indicator to do something. The Lord instructs us where to set our thoughts.
“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.”—Philippians 4:8
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.”—Romans 8:5
“Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.”—Colossians 3:2
“Let your eyes look straight ahead, and your eyelids look right before you.”—Proverbs 4:25
Always remember the enemy wants to go unnoticed. He never wants to be ‘found out’ because if we knew the depths of his evil, we would undoubtedly turn to God. For this reason, he tries to blind people from the actual source of their anxiety, which is their lack of focus on the One True God.
The Lord doesn’t want you to try to fix the anxious thoughts. He desires for you to focus on Him, so His power can transform your mind, and His name is glorified!
How to Receive Your Spiritual Breakthrough…
Hearing the soft whispers of the enemy can tickle our ears, but it should also raise the hairs on the back of our neck. The confusion this voice causes is our indicator to leap into action.
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers…”—2 Timothy 4:3
When we don’t understand the roots of our faith, we fall short of following sound doctrine, which leads us down a path that might be attractive at first, but never ends in peace.
The enemy’s voice:
- Compares
- Pushes or Rushes
- Fears
- Confuses
- Discourages
- Worries
- Obsesses
- Deprives
- Condemns
The Holy Spirit’s voice:
- Stills
- Leads
- Reassures
- Enlightens
- Encourages
- Comforts
- Calms
- Convicts
How to experience a breakthrough…
- Prayer: Take a sound assessment of your relationship with the Lord. Are you spending time with Him daily? Prepare your heart to receive instruction on how to remedy the anxiety. Confess to the Lord of your need to control, and your lack of following Him.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”—1 John 1:9
This unrighteousness is the seed that produces the doubt, fear, and unbelief. Ask Him to purify your heart and renew your spirit.
- Scripture: After casting your cares on Him, it’s essential to dive into His Word. It is impossible to understand how God leads us to victory if we do not know what He says about it.
“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”—1 Corinthians 10:13
- Follow the instruction: What good is the Word of God to us if we aren’t willing to put it into action. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you in the ways that you should go.
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.”—James 1:22-24
- Praise: Praise God for who He is and what He has done. Praising His Holy name invites Him into our circumstances, and thus He invites us into His peaceful presence.
“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”—John 14:27
Read Psalm 91, out loud! Remind the Lord that He’s responsible for you. Call Him in remembrance of His Word.
“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’
“Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.
“If you say, ‘The Lord is my refuge,’ and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
“‘Because he loves me,’ says the Lord, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.’”—Psalm 91 (NIV)
>>>If you would like prayer, we would love to join with you! Schedule a prayer appointment today!<<<