Wrestling with Anxiety

Debbie McDaniel is a writer, pastor’s wife, and mom. She knows something of how fear can derail a person’s entire life. You see, Debbie wrestled with fear and anxiety for years. And her recovery didn’t happen overnight, but she did come to think about it all in a different way. 

She turned to the Lord, and He showed her practical things she could do to alleviate her fear. 

Now, for one thing, she began to notice something. When she thought about her fear and she studied her own patterns related to being anxious, she realized that the majority of her fears didn’t actually happen. And this is where a journal can come in really handy. By keeping a log of your fears, and then after a certain period of time, say a month later, check back and see how many of those fears actually manifest themselves. And you’ll probably be shocked at how low the percentage really is.

Next, Debbie said that she began to read words of life, as she says, “Soaking them in over and over, praying them out loud.” And she makes the great point that there’s power in the Bible’s words because it is God’s Word. Isaiah 35:4 says, “Tell everyone who is discouraged, ‘Be strong and don’t be afraid! God is coming to your rescue, coming to punish your enemies.’” 

Debbie also advocates what she calls guarding your heart. And this involves a daily concentrating power that reminds you of truth, even in the midst of confusion.

Again, this is where reading words of life is so critical. In this way, you’re making the peace in your own heart a top priority. And it’s okay to say that to yourself—as many times a day as you need. With just these few things, overcoming fear is within your reach. 

Let’s pray. 

Father God, how powerful your promises are to us. Your words of life bring harmony. Help us to be on the lookout for friends and family who are struggling so that we can remind them of the times you’ve delivered us from fear and anxiety. Help us to make guarding our own hearts a priority. In Jesus’ name, amen.