Who gets anxious? Nervous? Freaks Out? I do. Especially when I am not 100% sure of what the outcome will be. Maybe you reading this would call yourself an overthinker. Buzzfeed.com wrote an article on 21 Struggles Of Being An OverThinker. Struggles such as; What to wear, spending lots of time staring into space and being an expert Facebook stalker. The real mindset with overthinking always leads to Anxiety.
The Dictionary defines Anxiety as:
a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease about something with an uncertain outcome.
What the Bible defines Anxiety as:
Do NOT be anxious about anything, but in everything, 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).
The bible says to not be anxious. Of course that is often alot easier said then done, but lets take it back a step. What are you anxious about?
1) Fight For The Things That Matter
We all worry. We all get anxious. Even those we say we don't. You do. It's just more about what to you get anxious about. Do you get anxious about there being tea bags in the cupboard? If you do, then I want to encourage you to be set free from that right now. But maybe it's the bigger things... Loneliness, Success or lack of, maybe even death. If you are worrying about things that don't really matter then it might be worth praying about it, but if are you anxious about the bigger things in life then if your church has community groups, small groups, life groups, house groups or any other name then why don't you share. Even the thought of that might freak you out, but these people will be able to get alongside you in prayer and stand firm with you. If you aren't in a group get plugged into one, get involved in a meaningful Christian community mid week and if your church don't have something that you can get plugged into because of work or family commitments why don't you ask them for something. Maybe there are others in your situation.
2) Stressed?
Here is some of the ways you will know you are stressed; mood swings, anger, exhaustion, emotional exhaustion, fragmentation, checking out, weight gain/loss, panic attacks, fantasies about death, no sleep, over using on alcohol/drugs/smoking, high blood pressure, change in sexual desire, headaches, heart problems and always being on the negative side of things. Here are some quick tips on how to deal with stress.
- Read your bible. I know it's an obvious one, but it's one that does get missed. You are stressed or anxious and you know your bible you can read truths over yourself. Matthew25-34 or Luke12:24-31.
- Pray. Jesus knows you. He knows how you feel. So why don't chat to him. Go for a prayer walk, pray at home, pray at McDonalds. You can pray to Jesus anywhere. So why not let him know how you feel. Tell him whats on your heart. The more you spend time with Jesus, the sharper you become and clearer you become on who you are in God and how God is a good God.
- Live according the theology / scripture. If you believe God works all things for good or God provides in time of need. Then act like it. If you believe it then remember it.
- Accept the peace of God. God gives Peace as a gift to me and you and like a gift at Christmas time you need to accept that gift. Maybe you need to unwrap that gift of peace right now? When we accept the gift of Peace we will receive emotional, spiritual, body and relational health. It's a win win situation. You get a present for free and it does wonders of good for you. Surely that is better then some Dairy Milk Chocolate.
What I am not saying is when you have a problem just ignore them and it will be fine, but when you are worried about something then this is a great chance to draw closer to Jesus and ask him to help guide you through this worry. Even during the times of worry why don't you try and rejoice. With God there is always a reason to rejoice.
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