Anxiety … Almost everyone has battled this powerful emotion at one time or another. How about you? Do you ever find yourself distracted by anxiety and worry? Have you experienced full-blown panic attacks or a much milder version? Whatever it looked like, you have probably experienced some form of anxiety.

Perhaps it was because of COVID-19 and its new variants. Perhaps it was your marriage or children. Or maybe it was something else. Many things can trigger it and at other times it seems to have no direct cause. 

Anxiety can cause us to become distracted, even immobilized. But the good news is that God’s Word has answers for anxiety and those who suffer from it.

Last week, I wrote about conquering worry and anxiety in your thought life. In that post I shared an overview for successfully winning the battle. I didn’t intend to continue writing on the subject. But the truth is, in some ways, it’s more of a war than a battle. To really walk in victory, we have to practice those things until they become our habitual way of responding and that can take time.

So, since I frequently counsel women who are smuggling with anxiety, I thought I would go through some of the lessons I share in counseling. These lessons will include journaling exercises and other practical steps, homework, if you will.

You will, also, find links to the previous week’s other posts. This past week, they covered a variety of topics including parenting, trials, unanswered prayers, betrayal, and much more.

Winning the Battle over Anxiety

An All-Time High

According to the website The Cripplegate, anxiety is at an all time high. In a recent post, the writer said this:

I think it’s fair to say that the year 2020 was a stressful year for the global population. The COVID-19 pandemic was a large part of that, but people are also worried about the government, the economy, their health, their jobs, their loved ones, and their futures.

A survey of 3,013 adults conducted on behalf of the American Psychological Association (APA) in 2020 showed stress levels in American adults as the highest since these levels started being recorded, and “marks the first significant increase in average reported stress” since the survey began in 2007. According to the APA, parents are more anxious than adults without children, reporting stressors related to education, basic needs, access to health care services, and missing out on major milestones. The poll found that nearly 80% of adults say the coronavirus pandemic is a significant source of stress in their lives, while 60% say the number of issues America faces is overwhelming to them.

Dr. Arthur C. Evans Jr. APA’s CEO said: “This survey confirms what many mental health experts have been saying…: Our mental health is suffering from the compounding stressors in our lives…[which] will have serious health and social consequences if we don’t act now to reduce it.”

But there is good news. God has answers. First of all, the answer is a Person, Jesus Christ, and a relationship with Him. And He has given us His Word to help us know how to walk out that relationship and experience peace and joy in the process. But first, let’s define it.

What is Anxiety?

So, what is anxiety? It certainly involves our emotions, but it’s more than just feelings. The feelings we call anxiety can cause physical symptoms and reactions, as well. And things going on in our bodies like sickness and injury can themselves lead to feelings of anxiety.

The New Testament uses two related words to describe anxiety. The noun merimna which is usually translated “care” and the verb merizo which means to draw in different directions or distract. 

Paul Tautges in his book Anxiety: Knowing God’s Peace explains it this way, “To be anxious, then, means to have a distracting care – to have our minds and hearts torn between two worlds.”

He goes on:

These distracting cares divide our mental energy and cloud our spiritual vision; they keep us focused on the here-and-now instead of on the future-promised-but-not-yet. They form cataracts over our spiritual eyes and hinder us from keeping heavenly things in clear focus or from keeping diligent watch for the Lord’s return (see Luke 21.34).

Anxiety diverts us from what is most important. It causes our eyes to see only what is before us at that very moment. Our worries exert great effort to keep our vision fixed on the horizontal (the things of this world) instead of on the vertical (the things of God).

In the coming weeks, we’ll look at the ways anxiety shows up in our lives and what God says about responding to anxiety. And, prayerfully, we’ll experience greater victory in this area. I hope you’ll join me each Sunday.

Homework

I know homework can be a dirty word to some. But we grow as we apply the things of God to our everyday lives (Jas. 1.22-25). I believe you will get more out of these studies if you do the homework. But that’s your call.

Suggested Homework:

• Get a journal or notebook to use with this study.
• Meditate on Proverbs 12.25. 

Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad (Prov. 12.25).

• Make a list of all the things that tempt you to be anxious. Pray about each item. Ask God to show you which are your responsibilities and which ones you need to give to Him.

Now I hope you’ll check out last week’s other posts below.

The Most Read Post

Last week’s most read post along with a little preview:

“When You’ve Been Betrayed”

I’ve been betrayed and there’s a good chance you have, too. Perhaps by a spouse or a close friend. A parent or guardian. A co-worker or employer. Or someone else somewhere along the way.

How do you respond when you’re betrayed? Do you play that video over and over in your mind, allowing it to burn into your brain, turning to anger, then bitterness? How does God want us to respond? What do we have to understand if we’re going to come out the other side with God’s peace, even joy? Find out in this post.

Other Posts:

Here are last week’s other posts:

“The Best Resource for Parenting”

“Why So Much Religious Prejudice Today?”

“What Good Can Come from Trials?”

“When Your Prayers Seem Unanswered”

“When You’ve Been Betrayed”

“Is God Testing Me?”

How to Conquer Worry, Anger & Anxiety in Our Thoughts

I hope you’ll check out a couple.

In the coming days, we’ll talk about how we might be sleeping with frogs, how journaling can help us in our relationships with God and others, and how whining affects our lives.

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Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna

I sometimes LINKUP with these blogs.

Do you ever struggle with prayer? Do you sometimes feel it’s just one more thing on your to-do list or that you don’t measure up in this area? Me, too, but these are some of the strategies that I’ve learned through the years that have helped me have a more consistent and meaningful prayer life.