I am writing to you from the midst of my own struggle with an anxious heart in the hope that God can use what I’ve learned to help you.
We are in a season that many of us have never experienced before. Some of us were already struggling in some form or fashion and the events of this year have amplified things to a new level. Some of us are faced with new and unfamiliar worries with some of us wondering, “What in the world is going on?”
Wherever you find yourself right now, I want you to know you are not alone in this. I want you to know that it’s not lack of faith or failure on your part to find yourself here.
I write this as a friend, with an ear to listen, a shoulder to lean on, someone who understands how easily anxious feelings can creep into our hearts and overwhelm us when we least expect it.
I hope to share with you some encouragement to help you turn down the noise that surrounds you and hear the words of our Father, who is always ready to release us from the fight.
Anxiety comes in many forms, from mild to severe. It can steal our sleep, our peace, and our joy. It can affect our relationships and our well-being.
Many of us have questions right now, questions about health, jobs, finances, faith, and the future. I have been wrestling with my own questions, thoughts, and feelings.
What is God doing in all that is going on in our world? What is this new year going to bring? And what does the future hold for our family? What are we going to face as Christians and who will stand for truth along with us?
I found myself one evening recently with a tight ball in my chest, my mind racing, my heart beating faster. I felt like screaming into the night a I thought to myself, What do I do?
Do you find yourself feeling this way and wondering why?
Why is it so easy for us to become anxious?
Ephesians 6:12 tells us,
“We do not wrestle with flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
Our enemy wages war on us through our thoughts, fears, emotions. He wants nothing more than to render us feeling helpless, afraid, and confused and he wants us to forget the promises we have been given.
How can we fight this? How can we reorient ourselves when we feel overwhelmed?
This time, like so many times before, I felt the gentle nudge to take my anxious heart to the feet of my Savior. I poured out my fears, my questions, my anxious thoughts and asked Him to show me His peace. I asked my husband and children to pray that I would be reminded that God is with us and we can entrust everything to Him.
As I rode in my car the next day, I decided to listen to a new song from one of my favorite artists. As I listened to the words, I recognized them to be from Psalm 29 and 46.
The Lord sits enthroned over the flood;
the Lord is enthroned as King forever.
The Lord gives strength to his people;
the Lord blesses his people with peace.
(Psalm 29:10-11)
God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
(Psalm 46:1-3,10-11)
In a beautiful answer to prayer, God was reminding me that He is here and He gives us strength and peace.
He is here for you too. He longs for you to bring your anxious and worry-filled heart to Him.
Our world today is filled with noise that seeks to turn our hearts toward ourselves, our minds toward the tasks for the day, the week, the month, and our eyes and ears toward all the battles that rage in our country, our families, and even our churches.
You can turn down the noise. You can turn to the one who is our Peace and you can lay your anxious heart at His feet.
These words from Isaiah 26:3 show you the way:
“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You.
When you take your questions, thoughts, emotions, and feelings to your Savior, He makes sense of the chaos. When your soul is restless, when your thoughts wage war, when fear takes hold, when you lose control or when your heart is anxious, He is your peace.
He will walk with you. He will give you strength and protect you. I know this because I have felt it and I have seen it at work in my own life. I believe His promises because they will never fail. You will get through today.
And the next time you find yourself here, listen for His voice, turn down the noise and remember you are not alone.