So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
- Isaiah 41:10
Anxiety. It’s a familiar word, a familiar emotion. That tightness in the center of your chest, the disquiet that gnaws at your peace and contentment and keeps you awake at night.
Anxiety comes when you - or your subconscious - realize that there are factors outside of your control, and that a successful resolution to your worries is not 100% guaranteed, no matter what you do or how hard you try. Anxiety is a symptom of the underlying belief that your fate, your future, your present, should be under your control, and should go the way that you want it to.
If only life were that simple.
We talked last Sunday about four ways we can remind ourselves not to “fret:”
TRUST in the Lord
DELIGHT in the Lord
COMMIT to the Lord
BE STILL AND REST before the Lord
I’d like to offer you one additional comfort for anxiety, and this one you don’t have to do anything for aside from remembering it:
KNOW that your God is with you.
God will strengthen you. God will help you. God will uphold you. You are not powerful enough, knowledgeable enough, or wise enough to tailor reality to your desires. There are too many variables for any one human to be able to calculate. And that’s okay. God has you - and everyone else - in mind, and He is in control. The One who created the universe did so with a plan and with all the factors and variables mapped out. There is victory in the Lord, my friend, and He has invited us to join Him in it.
So, as it says in Numbers 6:24-26, may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord be kind and gracious to you. May He look upon you with favor and give you peace.
Amen.
