Praise God When I Have Anxiety, Fear & Discouragement

I'm sitting here reading for my mom's study tomorrow and once again I am struck by one of the chapters. The second half of the book addresses 15 times when it is crucial to praise God. The first one is "When I Am Troubled by Negative Thoughts & Emotions." I could go into that one but the chapter that really hits home with me is the next one, "When I have anxiety, fear, and discouragement."

I have a few reservations about sharing this on a public blog as it's personal and it deals with the area that I struggle with more than any other area.

"Anxiety comes from fear. All of our worry, uncertainty, distress, dread, and panic comes from fear. Fear can come on us with heart-stopping suddenness. It can distort our thinking. It can control our lives. It can paralyze us" (p.185).

I know that kind of anxiety - the kind that comes on suddenly and paralyzes me with fear. I don't even want to type it out because, frankly, I don't like seeing it in writing, it makes it too real.

What am I anxious about? Death, dying, cancer - for me, my kids, my husband, my family. It has been an over-whelming fear that has brought on anxiety attacks and rendered me unable to function at times. It has been that bad. I hear stories about cancer and I sit there thinking about all the things physically wrong with me, which, of course, are all cancer. I over-analyze things with my kids and constantly worry about them getting sick and dying. It's morbid, I know and it's totally a tool of the devil to keep me from experiencing the fullness of life that Christ offers me.

For years this fear has kept me from even seeking God completely. Oh I was a Christian and I had no doubt of where I would be going when I died, I was just afraid of how I'd get there & how my family would get there. I would see people that were totally committed to Christ and they would have bad things happening in their lives. I think I had this fear that if I let go of my anxiety and fear and sought after God with everything I had that the bad things that I feared would happen to me, as some sort of test to see if my faith could really stand up under the test. Backwards, I know.

Several years ago I read a verse in Philippians that I repeat to myself over & over again when I am faced with this struggle.

Philippians 4:6 says:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

"Praising God is the way to combat all anxiety, and it's best to do it in the moment you sense anxiety over anything. And then continue to praise God until all anxiety leaves.

You need to have total peace about who you are, what you are doing, and where you are going in your life. You need peace about your past, present, and future. You need to have peace about the circumstances you're in, no matter what they are. The lack of such peace in your heart and mind can make you miserable. The strife, torment, anxiety, and stress can make you sick.

When we are fearful, apprehensive, worried, alarmed, or terrified, only the peace of God can restore us to a calm, assured confidence. Even though life is unpredictable and sometimes full of fearful things, God says we don't have to live in fear.

At the first sign of anxiety, seek the peace of God. In His Word. In prayer. And in praise and worship" (p. 187, The Prayer That Changes Everything, Stormie Omartian).

So, there you have it - more about me than you probably want to know and probably more than I should have shared.

Lord, please continue to give me the peace that transcends all understanding. Guard my heart.