How’s your mood today? Would you describe yourself as stable, unshaken, untroubled? Are your thoughts or actions free from care and without great turmoil? If you are like many Americans, your anxiety level has increased and continues to increase. Your security is scattered and your thoughts race with all the “things” that unsettle you.
Anxiety is not a new emotion or condition. There are many instances in the Bible where people felt anxious or troubled. There were several occasions Jesus actually said He was “troubled” or showed signs of anxiety such as crying and sweating great drops of blood. Though Jesus Himself felt troubled, He was not overcome by his anxiety. Stability and security characterized His thoughts, attitudes, and actions in spite of His great turmoil. He told the disciples in John 14 to not “let” their hearts be troubled. Jesus understood anxiety would come, trouble would occur, but his disciples did not have to be controlled by their anxiety. They could have stability in their life no matter what they were experiencing.
The fact that Jesus dealt with anxiety and His disciples dealt with troubled emotions, gives you hope for your anxiety. Count off three people you know in America. One of them likely deals with anxiety. You may be a person who lives with anxiety on a daily basis. You more than ever need stability in your world. Your life is becoming ever more turbulent. You may think, there’s no hope for me. I am powerless to change may be the words on your lips. I’ve tried EVERYTHING and NOTHING has worked you declare in defeat. I’m still anxious every day and nothing seems to work for me with matter of fact certainty you repeat to yourself.
When anxiety crowds in and takes over your life, what are you to do? Will you cower in defeat? Will you sit idly by and “let” anxiety have it’s way? It is true, anxiety can control your life. It comes in like a flood, almost before you even realize it. I want to encourage you to not give up. There is hope and help for you. No matter what you’ve tried in the past, no matter how far gone you think you are, and no matter where you find yourself; there is hope for you. If you believe in God, there is hope for you! Your help is not in what you do or in your efforts. If there is any hope for enjoying a life of stability through triumph over anxiety, it will come from the Lord.
Agree with God today. Take His hand. Say to Him, “You’ve enjoyed a life of stability and triumphed over anxiety. I am going to walk with You in this process. I decide this moment to walk Your path. Take my hand and guide me. Enable me to hear your word, believe it, and do it.” You may have to renew this prayer of agreement often. God will never leave you or forsake you. He has your best interest in mind. His kind and good intention is for you.
Four Scriptures To Help You Triumph Over Anxiety
Psalm 112:6 – He will never be shaken.
This Psalm describes a person who is not shaken. It doesn’t say they don’t have anxiety or that their world is not troubled. Instead it says this person is stable. Unmoved is the footing of this person. Their foundation is secure and they are held up despite their difficulty. Even in darkness, they will have light. Future for this person and their children is great with blessing, wealth, and riches. The conclusion is they will be known for their strength.
I would venture to assume if you are “struggling with anxiety”, you want to have a dose of what this person has. What is the theme of the person this Psalm describes? What is the footing for the basis of this person’s life? How do they have such stability? They have darkness, but light is seen in the midst of their darkness. How is this possible?
This Psalm provides the path of triumph in this way.
- Praise the Lord – This person boasts in God not in themselves. They remember God – the great and awesome God. Focus for them is on God and what He has done, is doing, and will do.
- Fears the Lord – Honor and reverence for God is a way of life for this person. Standing with “awe” at the wonders of God in His creation, His salvation, and His eternal life.
- Greatly Delights in God’s commandments – Seeks to love God and do all that He has said to do. Evaluates God’s way of doing things as best and valuable.
- Trusts in God without wavering – Boldly puts confidence in God, believes His Word, and places himself under the shelter of God’s protection.
James 1:12 – When he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life.
In this chapter, we are given hope for a future reward. We are reminded in this world we will have trouble, difficulty, anxiety, and many distresses. However, we have hope and some steps we can practice to ensure we walk the path of triumph. We are promised stability even though we have disquieting circumstances in life.
Though you are just trying to “get through today”, consider the promise of tomorrow. Your “getting through today” may be because you are hoping tomorrow will be better. This passage provides the avenue you can take when you are anxious. On this route, the footing is secure and the future is established forever.
The avenue of stability is along this route.
- Count all the anxiety joy – Know that God would not take you where His grace cannot keep you. Put on the record book the benefit of this “anxious” life you have as a satisfaction God is working in your life to make you perfect and complete, not lacking anything.
- Ask God for wisdom – The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The fear of God is an honor and reverence for Him. God promises to give you more honor and reverence for Him. He will not find fault with you for not having it. It is a gift He gives. Ask Him for wisdom to trust Him more.
- Ask God in faith – Be confident in God. What He has promised, He is able to perform. Do not call God a “short-comer” because of what seems to be His inability to help you. You are not beyond His help or His promise. Abraham may have doubted his and Sarah’s ability to have children, but he never wavered in faith believing God’s promise. If you have any doubt, let it never be of God. His promises will stand forever. They are trustworthy and true.
- Love God – Have a personal affection toward God. Join yourself to God in union with Him. Do not let anything come between you and your God. Make Him have first place in your life, having the preeminence over all things. Give of your time and attention to Him in reading His Word and making exchange with Him in prayer.
Proverbs 31:25 – She smiles at the future
The Proverbs 31 woman is known for her great stability. Nothing seems to get her down. She does everything with great poise and grace. Her reputation seems unable to be attained and she intimidates you with her seeming perfection and lack of anxiety. You may think, her life is nothing like mine or she’s never seen the trouble I’ve seen. Will you listen to some of the things in her description. She has a husband and nothing is said about him but that “he sits in the gate”. She worked continuously. She seemed to be the only one who worked, caring for her maidservants, children, needy, and poor. Everyone seemed to “need her”. Certainly she must have felt “spent” at times. She dealt with merchants who didn’t encourage her merchandise. She “perceived her merchandise is good”. She strengthened herself and always kept herself “on”. Her grin never left despite the circumstances that were often less than gleeful.
Are you anxious because of your life’s circumstances. Do you have family who seems to pull you down and spend all your energy? Do you feel like you constantly have to “perform” for others, keeping your life and family together? Is that causing you instability? How much encouragement from others have you received lately? Do you have to think what you are doing is profitable because you have no one else to spur you on to keep going?
The way to smile no matter your circumstances is found here.
- Virtuous – Always present yourself for the outcome of “good” and “valuable” in all you did. This is not possible for ongoing stability unless you join yourself with Christ. Unless you work with all the might and power He provides, you will not endure. Choosing to give all the parts of your body to work what God approves in union with Him shows forth this valuable virtue.
- Proactive – Prepare ahead of time. Decide ahead of time to seek the Lord, His ways, and determine to not delay. It has been said delayed obedience is disobedience. When you see something that needs to be done, do it without delay. Consider ahead of time what is needed, and plan to do it before it is considered “past due”.
- Strength – Get the support you need from whatever source you need it. Get the counseling, the helpers, the people to come along side. Never neglect God as your foundational source of strength. Always look to God and His ways to strengthen and stabilize your path.
- Kindness – Receive fulfillment from teaching the way of kindness with your mouth because it comes from your heart. Never get fulfillment from useless words. Always speak words that are meaningful and lead people to know God and follow His ways. Remember it is the kindness of the Lord that leads people to repentance. Instead of “harping” on how people aren’t doing things the way you want them to do it, choose to teach people kindly remembering “a soft answer turns away wrath”.
Psalm 1:3 – He will be like a tree planted . . . in whatever he does, he prospers.
A song explaining the way of right living describes stability despite ungodliness, sinners, and people who mock God. On every side there was opportunity to falter, fail, and have company with those who seemed to be having a great time. Companionship was an option for those who were on the path that would perish. Though they laughed now, had a movement of “the way to do things”, and stood secure; warning was made to not associate with what seems right now. Be aware every way seems right to a man but it is God who examines the heart.
It important to understand that because your life doesn’t seem to be going anywhere, having any personal power, or be any fun; doesn’t mean you are not planted by the river. It doesn’t mean your heart is not right with God. It doesn’t mean you are not prospering. Just as trees have seasons, your life has seasons. In the winter, a tree looks dead with no blossoms, no life, and as if it would never live again. You may feel in your life of anxiety that you are dead, never to live again. Your life will live again just as the tree will bring forth blossoms and flourish in its season. The prosperity of your life may be in the dormant stage right now, but do not neglect to consider it stable, ready to bloom at any time.
The passage to prosperity comes by this route.
- Separation – Changing your environment may be of help to you. What are you taking in? Who are you hanging around? What are you using to feed your life? Separate from ungodliness, sinners, and doubters.
- Joining – Get some company that will “water” you. Join yourself with God’s Word, God’s People, and people who have had God work and move in their life. Set aside time to water yourself daily with God’s word, be in God’s presence, and take in words of confidence in God. Choose to read biographies of people who have seen God’s prosperity in their life.
- Satisfaction – Be satisfied with God. Be filled to the full with God and His ways. Know His word is best and valuable.
- Wait – Those who wait upon the Lord get new strength. Don’t discount God’s working in your life. Do not discount God working through your efforts to separate yourself from sin, join yourself to God, and choose to be satisfied with His ways. Your blossoms will appear soon. Evidence of your prosperity will come.
Take courage, my friend. The anxiety you are experiencing is not out of notice with God. He is fully aware of your anxiety. He does not “blame” you for your anxiety. He knows in this world you will have trouble. But, He wants you to know He has overcome the trouble of this world. When you join yourself with Him and choose His ways, you can triumph over your anxiety and enjoy a life of stability.
Try it today. Try it again tomorrow. And again the next day . . . do not let your heart be troubled, believe in God, believe also in Jesus Christ. In Heaven there are many rooms and one of them is being prepared for you. Join yourself with Jesus to triumph over your anxiety to enjoy a life of stability. He’s coming back for those joined to Him to receive them to be forever with Him. (John 14:1-3)
Written By: Anne Gurley
