Hey everybody!
I just finished my 3rd debrief on the race in Azerbaijan! It’s always a busy week for SQL’s, but such a good time of reuniting with our fellow squad mates. This next week I will be in Georgia (the country, not the state), with my parents for PVT! I am SO excited. This will be a time of us sharing our experiences with our parents, and them actually coming alongside us to do ministry!
So during debrief, I taught a breakout on a topic that is near & dear to my heart. My fellow SQL encouraged me to share through a blog, so obviously I heeded her advice.
a n x i e t y & w o r r y
So I heard a statistic while listening to a podcast, that was quite disheartening.
80-85 % of young adults would describe themselves as “stressed” or “very stressed.”
Y’all this is sad.
If you guys know my story, you know that this has been a personal battle I have fought my entire life. At age 16, I was diagnosed with both anxiety and depression. This is something I would never wish upon anybody. I have been on and off medication, and this struggle has been one of my biggest convictions in my relationship with the Lord.
While I am not discrediting certain individuals truly do have a chemical imbalance in their brains, really worry and anxiety come down to one thing – not having enough trust in the Lord.
Here’s the thing, when we choose to follow the Lord a very significant thing happens. The enemy begins to use you as target practice. That birthmark of a believer is a bulls eye right on our forehead. This could be a bias statement, but I believe the biggest area the enemy chooses to attack in a young adult, is anxiety.
During my breakout I touched bases on two different passages in the bible. But for the sake of this blog not being super duper long, I am just going to go to 1st Peter 5: 6-10, (But you should definitely head over to Matthew 6:25-34 for more great insight into this topic).
1st Peter 5 is EMPOWERING.
First thing first, in v.6 it actually says we are under the mighty hand of God. This reminds me of the story of Peter walking on the water. I feel like its right when we are on the verge of something great with the Lord is when we begin to hear the condemnation of the enemy and begin to believe the lies he feeds us. Peter starts walking across the water out to Jesus in full obedience and trust, but then he begins to doubt the Lord. He looks to the wind, the storm, and begins to sink. Peter cried out to the Lord in his fear, and immediately the Lord reaches out and grasps Peters hand.
God has us in his hands. The hand of the Lord has a plan for you. He has a purpose. Anything we entrust to him, He will make good. Why? Because He is a good Father.
However, we must look to what it says before the mighty hand of God. It actually states to “humble yourselves.”
I think a lot of times we try to pick and choose what we like in the bible.
We look to being under the mighty hand of God, but do not want to take the active role in humbling ourselves.
It doesn’t matter about our ability to say I am not going to struggle with this, but our willingness to surrender.
I am gonna say it one more time.
It’s not about ability, but our surrender.
To say, Lord I cannot do this without you. I am going to rely on your strength. I surrender to your will.
Another interesting thing I discovered via podcast was…
The word a n x i e t y
What is in the middle of that word?
I
What is also in the center of the word p r i d e?
I
The center of our anxiety at times is our own pride and mistrust in the Lord. When we struggle with worry/anxiety we believe that the Lord is not in control, and we need to take matters into our own hands. It is in fact, a control issue. If I can just control what happens, then the outcome will be something I want. But leading out of our own strength we will inevitably fail. We cannot sustain the outcome, because we aren’t God. We bear a weight that is not our own.
Which leads me to our next topic…
So if you are anything like me… I constantly have thoughts running through my mind throughout the day.. but the worst is seriously right before I go to bed. I will be exhausted, lay down in bed, then have my mind race 100 miles per minute.
Why am I here?
What is my purpose?
What would win in a fight… a taco or a hot dog?
What is my existential purpose?
So all these questions pop into my head and I actually become anxious thinking about the answers.
But here is the thing worry is always concerned about the potential and not the actual.
Our anxiety isn’t in the actual thing but our inability to control it.
So it isn’t actually fixing our anxiety but trusting the Father more.
Anxiety is an area that I’ve struggled with a lot and felt pretty convicted with at times. But I have got to look at what the scripture says.
It’s states that the lion (the enemy) is prowling around, but it doesn’t say he has prevailed.
It doesn’t say to run away from the enemy, but it says to resist Him. It actually says to look fear in the face, and stand your ground.
The text alludes to God’s providence. God is a provider. The Lord has been caring for our tomorrows before we even knew what our tomorrow’s looked like.
So how do I combat my anxiety and worry?
Yeah there are some ways that you can do it practically… You can run, lift and do other things that distract you, but that’s only solving half of the problem. Like putting a band- aid on a gaping wound. Its just medicating a problem that only Jesus can fix.
So I combat these feelings with strategic prayer and scripture.
The main verse that I go to and repeat over and over to myself when I start to feel this way is
John 14:27
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
Some other great verses to go to is…
“Matthew 11:28-30
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)
Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, 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. (Philippians 4:6-7)
Also using strategic, bold prayers. Seriously, cast all of your cares on the Lord. Leaving all your worry at the feet of Jesus. Let me clarify, not picking them back up. Leaving them completely. Trusting that the Lord is who He says He is. He cares for you, and cares for your worry. Stop carrying burdens that weren’t yours to carry. The Father wants to take that load.
If you ever want to talk about anything in this blog, don’t hesitate to reach out to me!
And remember God is GOOD.
ANNNND He has a plan for YOU.
TRUST IN HIM.
