If you deal with anxiety, you know what it feels like to be tortured inside of your own head. Sometimes it can feel like your brain never stops spewing all the worries for the future. Some anxiety is okay and may even be good, however, it can also be manipulated by the enemy so easily.
Those that feel lost in their life often respond by trying to figure out everything in our life. It makes us feel like we have control, that everything is fixable if we think about it enough. In my personal life, very little of what I’ve ever worried about has come true. In addition, things could have been fixed if I had just stopped relying only on myself.
But that is what anxiety does. It makes you feel that if you are not the one fixing it or it’s not done immediately, it completely derails you. My own past anxiety attacks have felt like a total car pile up. I was alive and watching, but could do absolutely nothing about it. As I have become more mature in my relationship with God and in my faith, I know now that I cannot control everything.
Is God Listening?
I can’t be the only one who has felt that God was ignoring us when we asked for direction in our life. Sometimes God will be quiet in his waiting for you to give control. Only when we give up this control and the fears of life can we truly become close to him. I was stuck in a pattern of planning everything in my life and was truly so unhappy because of it. I am so much better than what I was but I still fall into that pattern sometimes. When I do, I again become unhappy. When I give it to God and stop trying to force my life to what I think it should be, I can actually feel peace and comfort.
It May Come Down to You
Being trapped in your brain is such a difficult thing to deal with. God knows your struggles but may not be making it disappear for a reason. For me, I think it is so I know how to relate with people about it, how to sympathize. For you, I don’t know…but there is a reason, and you don’t have to stay put in it. It is difficult for me to maintain good mental health. This is because it requires a very diligent lifestyle.
I know if I spend too much on social media or my phone I become depressed. If I don’t drink enough water and give myself breaks throughout the day I become mentally shot. If I don’t start my day off with reading the Bible, I feel more hopeless. And yet, sometimes I get distracted on my phone, or don’t read my Bible, or work myself in a stressful frenzy.
Going Through it Can Bring You Closer to God
I think that God knows that my anxiety can drive me away from him. That’s why he puts solutions in front of me that are very easy to reach. It just requires me to take that step. God doesn’t just take away the anxiety because the effort I put into developing the lifestyle that takes me out of anxiety also takes me closer to him. The Devil knows how to toy with my brain, and same with everybody that has anxiety. Sometimes God does remain quiet while unhealthy brains never know when to shut up. It’s no surprise in these moments that it is easier to listen to your brain praying and reaching to God. But the difference if you do choose the later is huge.
My Methods
This blog post was more of a testimony of what I have gone through with anxiety than my typical post. Because of this, I am going to end it with a few things that have helped me in my life. I’ve found that resting in a verse or song during those moments throughout the day, help keep me from crashing. This week was the song Goodness of God and 2 Chronicles 20:15. Get them stuck in your head and just lay into them when you feel like you are derailing.
Another thing that has helped me during those weeks where I am carrying a very heavy backpack mentally, is reading the book of Phillipians over and over again. Paul touches on different aspects of anxiety in this book. It really comforts me to have someone that understands it so well.
Also, talking through my anxieties with a level-headed thinker really helps me. For me it is my amazing husband. He is able to talk me through things and whether it is something to have stress over or not. And if it does warrant concern, we come with a solution. For you that may be working with a therapist. Lastly, don’t leave out God from a single way that you manage stress. If you do, the enemy will use it…trust me, I’ve been there.
Father God,
You have us in your embrace every second of the day. But sometimes we let life distract us from your warmth and we try to make our own fire to keep warm. Anxiety can feel so unescapable. But it is, through you. When you know the best path for us is to go through it, please Father, give moment of pure peace to remind us what we can find in you. Even just brief moments can be such an amazing escape from what traps us. Build a network through this blog post that build understanding in anxiety. Even though we’re Christians, it doesn’t mean we are immune from it. In this moment, please give an extra strong squeeze in your embrace to remind us that we are just children compared to you and that it will all truly be okay.
In your loving name we pray,
Amen
