Is anxiety eating you alive?

“I have this anxiety problem where I worry myself sick, literally. I really need some memory verses that I can say to myself every day to reassure myself that God will help me when I'm in doubt.”
—ec reader Madison

Not long ago on our fan page on Facebook, one of our readers wrote those words on our wall.

And those words hit me right in the middle of my forehead. Because I was dealing with the same thing. Anxiety about family matters, work stuff, and just in general. Lately, I’ve been waking up with this feeling of anxious waiting, just knowing that somehow something is wrong and the other shoe has to drop at some point. My stomach hurts. My mind questions. I cry out to Jesus for peace.

Because I know He is the Prince of Peace. And I know that taking every thing in my life that could be worrisome and internalizing it is not the life God has called me to live. His Word is very clear about that. So, when Madison’s words popped up on my screen, I knew that God had something to say to me about my worrying. I just had to open His Word and read it. Here’s what I discovered about God’s thoughts on worry and anxiety:

• Psa. 13:2: How long will I store up anxious concerns within me, agony in my mind every day? How long will my enemy dominate me?

• Matt. 6:25: “This is why I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?

• Matt. 6:26-29: “Look at the birds of the sky: they don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these!”

• Matt. 11:28-30: “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

• Luke 12:22-32: Then He said to His disciples: “Therefore I tell you, don’t worry about your life, what you will eat; or about the body, what you will wear. For life is more than food and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they don’t sow or reap; they don’t have a storeroom or a barn; yet God feeds them. Aren’t you worth much more than the birds? Can any of you add a •cubit to his height by worrying? If then you’re not able to do even a little thing, why worry about the rest? “Consider how the wildflowers grow: they don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! If that’s how God clothes the grass, which is in the field today and is thrown into the furnace tomorrow, how much more will He do for you—you of little faith? Don’t keep striving for what you should eat and what you should drink, and don’t be anxious. For the Gentile world eagerly seeks all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. “But seek His kingdom, and these things will be provided for you. Don’t be afraid, little flock, because your Father delights to give you the kingdom.

• Phil. 4:6: Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

• 1Pet. 5:6-7: Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, because He cares about you.

It’s clear that God wants us to cast our burdens and worries on Him. We just have to let Him help us through the anxious times. Take His Word to heart; God doesn’t go back on His promises.

So, let's just do this together: Father God, Jesus, we just give you all this anxiety in our lives. You are in control, and we trust you to complete the good work in us that you started. You know the burdens of our hearts and all these concerns. Help us to let go of them and let you have control and work in these situations. May You be glorified in every part of our lives, even these things that worry us. Amen.