How to completely stop feeling anxiety
Do not be anxious or
worry about anything, but in all things through prayer and supplication, with
thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. And the peace of God, which
surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. ~The
Apostle Paul
What do you usually do when you
experience anxiety, or when you worry? I usually can't stop thinking
about whatever worries me. I can't sleep or concentrate. I'm
distracted by what I fear will happen, or by what's happening that I can't
stop. Is that true for you? If so, God gives us a way to be free from
anxiety and worry. I know from experience that what I'm about to share is
true.
God commands us not to worry or have
anxiety. This means it's not God's will for us to worry or have anxiety,
so much so that we are sinning if we do it. But don't let that
discourage you. Because God commands us
not to worry, we have a choice; we have control over worrying or not
worrying. It's up to us. So, God
commands us not to worry. But He doesn't
stop there. He tells us what to do instead. Pray.
Thank Him for what we have. Ask
Him for what we don't have. Ask Him to
take away whatever we have that is harmful to us. When we do these things, God promises to
replace worry and anxiety with a divine and incomprehensible peace. This is an example of how it has happened for
me.
Say I'm worrying about a financial
need. I've been sick and I need money for a specific doctor's bill that I
just don't have. I'm beginning to worry. So, I pray, first thanking
God for the services the doctor provided, and that I'm doing better. Then
I ask God for the specific amount of money I need. I tell him why I need
it (though of course He already knows,) and I tell Him when I need it.
After I've poured out my heart to God, one of three things may happen,
resulting in a divine, incomprehensible peace:
1. God provides the money.
Someone feels led by His Spirit to give me the exact amount I need, though I
never asked them for it.
2. I no longer feel the need to
think about the money, though I can't explain why. I don't have any money
yet. And I don't know when or if it will come. But for reasons I
can't explain, I feel absolutely no need to think about it anymore.
3. The due date for the bill is
three days away, and I still have no money, or any guarantee that I will have
money. Yet I still feel no need to think about the bill.
In all three cases, after praying my heart out, I am no
longer distracted by thoughts about the money at all, though I can't explain
it. I'm free from anxiety. You can
also be free. This is how.
What are you worried about right
now? (Be very specific.) First,
thank God for what you have, for every blessing in your life you can think of,
at least two blessings. Second, tell God
exactly what you're worried about and why you're worried about it. Third, ask him to give you what you lack, and
to take away whatever is causing you harm.
Keep asking until you no longer feel distracted by the thoughts at
all. It should feel like a gradual lessening of a need even to pray any
more. Your prayer will fade into thoughts about other things in your
life. You worry will fade away. This is God's incomprehensible
peace.
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