The Pressure of Anxiety
By Chaplain Doug Samples
In his best-selling book, Anxious for Nothing,
Max Lucado tells us that the United States
is the most anxious nation in the world.
$300 Billion every year in medical bills.
The average child today exhibits the same level of
anxiety as the average psychiatric patient of the 1950s.
(BTW, this book was written BEFORE Covid!!!)
Yikes!
BUT HERE’S THE GOOD NEWS:
THE PRESENCE OF ANXIETY IS UNAVOIDABLE,
BUT THE PRISON OF ANXIETY IS OPTIONAL!
The Good News of the Bible has a helpful word for us.
Philippians 4:6 says, “Be anxious about nothing...
but pray about everything.”
I know...
That sounds crazy!
But it’s actually good advice!
When I am faced with a situation that is out of my control
and I begin to be anxious...
that is a reminder of how much
I need to pray about that situation.
Just last month my brother fell...
all alone at his house...
and laid there for three days before someone found him...
and he almost died.
I was really worried!
I was anxious about whether he was going to live or not.
But anxiety gets me nothing but worry...
fearful...negative... and a bunch of what if’s!
OR... I can turn that anxiety
into almost non-stop prayers
for my brother’s health.
And I’m glad to report
that he is almost back to full strength.
I want to be careful.
I do NOT mean to imply
that you can snap your fingers
and make all your anxiety disappear
in a nano-second.
But as Lucado says,
it is not God’s will
that you lead a life of perpetual anxiety.
It is not his will that you face every day
with a fear of the What Ifs.
God has a new chapter for your life
and he is ready to help you write it!
Throughout the next few months,
we’re gonna practice praying
instead of worrying!
If you can’t wait,
let me encourage you again
to buy Lucado’s book:
Anxious For Nothing.
I invite you to use this form to share your prayer request with me.
