Anxiety is epidemic in many societies; faith is the antidote to anxiety. When we connect to God’s reality all other circumstances lose their control over us and peace guards our hearts. Our faith grows as we become aware of our fears, face them, and disarm them by letting God be in control and trusting him to help us deal with the results. Even when we feel fear we need to choose faith. The recipe for peace is to “cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (1 Pet. 5:7, NIV).
Since anxiety is an excellent indicator of weak faith it is helpful to develop the habit of becoming aware of our anxieties then learning to defeat the unbelief behind them. Below is an exercise to develop this habit.
Guide to Anxiety Awareness
- For one week make a written note every time you feel anxious about something. Some people are well aware of their anxieties but others will need to train themselves to detect their anxiety by stopping to examine their hearts at key moments.
- Make a list of the types of things that you are anxious about.
- Try to determine why you are anxious about these things. What are you afraid will happen?
- Reject any improper attitudes or desires behind your anxieties. (This is usually a process but you can begin it now.)
- As you reflect on your anxieties what changes have your been hoping for so that the anxieties would disappear? If any of those expectations are not reasonable then let go of them.
- Determine the lack of faith in God that is behind your anxieties. Where are you not trusting Scripture?
- Learn to embrace faith in the Scripture that applies to your anxieties. Do the “Possible Faith” exercise in order to develop more faith.
In order for faith to conquer our hearts it is essential to meditate on and absorb Scripture. It is his truth in Scripture on which we rely. We are trusting the words of a person: God. Faith is not just a thing that resides inside us; it is a relationship grounded in what someone has communicated to us. Thus, reliance on Scripture is the core of authentic faith in God because Scripture is his communication to us.
Which anxiety will you work to defeat in your life?
