How to Deal With AnxietySample

How to deal with anxiety (Part 4)

Out of the 30 times that words like worry and anxiety show up in the Bible, eight of them are in Jesus’ classic teaching on the subject. “Do not worry about your life. . . . But seek first [God’s] kingdom and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:25,33). When you get stuck in some looping, negative thought, Jesus encourages you to seek first God’s Kingdom and righteousness.

God’s Kingdom is where God is the King, where He uses His authority to offer you safety. As a child of the King, your Father will keep you safe from all the stuff outside the walls of the Kingdom. The lion might be prowling out there, roaring lies, telling you you’re not worthy, that God is angry, but he can’t take you away from the Kingdom.

Jesus died on a cross so that you would be safe from that, so that you would be with God, right with God, always right with God. That’s what His righteousness is, the gift of being right with our Father through the blood of His Son. That gift is yours, not because you are such a trusting, perfect Christian but because Jesus was perfect in your place. Let me repeat that—you are right with God, not because you’re perfect or your faith is perfect but because Jesus was perfect.

Fix your thoughts on thoughts like that, writing them on note cards if you need to, and you’ll be one step closer to God’s way of dealing with anxiety. “When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy” (Psalm 94:19).