It’s difficult to live life without fear, worry or anxiety. Each of us experience them from time to time, the only real variable is the frequency and how deeply we feel them. Some people are better at handling them than others, yet still they are common to us all. It’s important that we learn to live life with these emotions, but without allowing ourselves to be paralyzed by them.
How can we experience fear, worry or anxiety without allowing them to disrupt our lives in a major way?
1. Go to the Lord in prayer – early and often!
Fear, worry and anxiety are emotional responses to what we are experiencing. They are not threats in and of themselves, but rather representative of the significance that we attach to them. Still, they can be debilitating. We can get so caught up in our emotional response that we are unable to deal with the challenges and problems before us in a rational way.
The first – and best – way to address this is by going to the Lord in prayer. We often think of prayer only after we exhaust all other efforts, but life always goes better when we make it the starting point.
Think of prayer as preparing for battle, which is exactly what we’re facing anytime we experience fear, worry or anxiety. God will prepare our hearts and minds for whatever it is we are facing, but that can only happen if we ask. The time to do that is as soon as trouble becomes apparent.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. – Joshua 1:9 NIV
We may not have the strength and courage on our own, but God will give us what we need and in the right measure – right when we need it.
Start your prayers with worship – praising God for being God. Then give thanks for what he’s done in your life. By doing this, you are preparing your heart. Only then should you tell him your troubles – after all, he already knows!
After that, pray as often as you feel the need. Trust that your negative emotions will subside and that you will be given the resources you need to deal with whatever is troubling you.
2. Focus on what God has done for you in the past.
The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; – Psalm 34:19 NIV
Think back on your life – how many times have you been in a dark place, but somehow lived to tell the story? If you really reflect heavily, you’ll realize this has been the outcome of the majority of your most fearful moments. Whenever we’re facing a problem it looks for all the world to represent imminent doom. But once the moment passes – and we survive – we often wonder what it was we were so worried about.
Think back on those times. Think about the times that you went to God in prayer and your prayers were answered. Maybe they weren’t answered quite the way you expected, but you were delivered from your troubles nonetheless.
Be thankful for this, and trust that this will be the likely outcome with your latest trouble. If need be, keep a journal of these moments in your life, and reflect back on them anytime you begin to experience bouts of fear, worry or anxiety. They will remind you that you have never been alone – and you aren’t now either.
3. Tune out the world – it makes us worry!
A big part of the fear, worry and anxiety that we feel is externally driven. That is, it comes from the world around us. This is much more intense than we believe, because we are virtually surrounded by TV, radio, the Internet, and the print media. They are filled with experts and newscasters who are quick to tell us why we need to worry, and why doom is just a matter of time unless we follow their advice.
The less you can expose yourself to this, the less you’ll experience negative emotions. Find ways to minimize the impact of “the world” on your life, but never more than when fear, worry and anxiety are creeping into your head.
4. Take action.
Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. – Andrew Carnegie
Once you have gone to the Lord in prayer, and feel a sense of direction in facing your fears, it’s time to get busy. Action truly is one of the best antidotes to fear, worry or anxiety. The negative feelings from these emotions often come from a sense of powerlessness. When you take action, you begin to sense some measure of control over your troubles.
Anytime you are bothered by what you are facing, take an action step that will help put the problem behind you. Have a list of action steps that you can draw on any time you sense defeat of any sort.
You want to become the irresistible force in the face of your troubles. No matter what you face, you won’t sit by idly and let it roll over you. You’ll have an action plan to deal with it.
5. Keep going forward and trust God for the outcome.
Many of the troubles we face, including the most challenging, cannot be resolved quickly. You will need a certain amount of endurance, and that can only come from trusting in God for the outcome.
Trust is an action step. It means that you continue to pray no matter what you’re confronting, or how overwhelming it appears to be. It also means that you continue to go forward and do the best you can along the way. Moving forward into a dark place is a form of trust – you see the trouble, but you are willing to trust God to lead you to the light.
It’s worth remembering that we were never promised that we wouldn’t have troubles. But we were promised that we would have help and protection facing those troubles.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcomethe world.” – John 16:33 NIV
If you are facing fear, worry or anxiety, remember to pray often and as deeply as you need, to remember what God has done for you in the past, to block out the world and its many warnings, to take action against your troubles, and always to trust God for the outcome.
How do you deal with fear, worry and anxiety? Leave a comment!