Is it Possible to Not be Anxious or Afraid?

I don’t know where you sit at today: physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually. 

Perhaps you feel like you could soar: your heart is light, circumstances feel bearable, and celebration comes easy. People you trust and love surround you. Maybe you just came out of a dry and weary season and you are experiencing relief in a well-watered landscape.

Perhaps you are in a battle-heavy season where you feel like you’re marching forward, praying for victory over mindsets, circumstances, and habits. Though you do not feel like you’re soaring, you are still walking, pressing on, believing in the hope that lies ahead. You do not feel like giving up yet, but you sense your desperate need to stand firm - even if you don’t know how to do that today.

Or, perhaps, you wish you felt like walking…or even sitting up. Instead, you want to crawl into a dark space and wait for all the things to pass. Or you are in a dark space you wish wasn’t encapsulating and you wish to escape. You are tired, discouraged, worn out, and unsure how to keep going. Whether or not you know how you ended up in this place of great weight and sorrow, you know you’re ready for it to end…or even for life to end so you don’t have to continue to endure. 

No matter where this post finds you today, God wants you to know He sees you. He loves you. Even if neither of these feels true. It is true. Because God cannot be other than Who He is. And He is Love. He is compassion. He is victory. 

Victory over our strongholds. Over the habits and addictions we feel trapped in. Over the darkness that feels overwhelming. Over the circumstances that are unbearable. 

His victory may not look the way we want it to. But it is sure. Because He is triumphant. 

No matter where you sit today, no matter what you see (or do not see) ahead; whether or not you feel like you are facing an army or are experiencing reprieve, God wants to remind you:

“Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” (2 Chronicles 20:15 NIV; emphasis mine)

No battle is ours. It’s the King’s. 

We battle in and under the Armor of God: which is Jesus Christ, our Savior, Who is our salvation; Who is the Word become flesh; our sword of the Spirit (which is the Word of God...are you seeing the connection?). Satan hates us. He wants to destroy us. But Jesus has ultimately conquered Satan, sin, and death. And though our battles may physically look different than the one referenced in 2 Chronicles, we are all in a constant spiritual battle. We must be armed and ready to stand firm, surrendered to the King of Kings Who commands His army. Who leads and protects us. But we must choose to listen to Him and obey His commands. Stepping out when He says go. Sitting in peace when He says to wait. Waiting in His armor for each command. (Read Ephesians 6 for more on the Armor of God and standing firm!).

But how do we do this? How do we choose to let God fight for us? How do we choose to not be afraid or discouraged? How do we stay dressed in this armor?

We choose to not be afraid or anxious. 

Jesus said:

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34)

It sounds simple enough, doesn’t it. But how? How do we do this when we are so naturally bent toward holding the weight of innumerable things in our hands? How do we do this when finances are tight, children are disobedient, jobs are lost, relationships are broken, pasts are haunting, hurts are deep? How do we choose to not be anxious in a world riddled with anxiety?

We surrender. We throw up the white flag. We admit we cannot do it…any of it on our own. We admit we are in need of a Savior again and again. We surrender expectations we are trying to fulfill, all the things we are trying to control, all the ways we feel life should be going, and we ask God to fill us and lead us instead. We rest in Who He is. Truly trusting He knows what is best. We practice listening to His voice and obeying in His strength, even when it feels impossible or crazy.

Feelings of fear or anxiety naturally occur in humanity. But we do not have to respond in or out of fear and anxiety. It is possible to experience these feelings and still choose to respond in the fullness of Jesus' power and peace. Which looks a lot like choosing to believe truth even when we don't feel like it is true. 

We learn to do this through reading His Word, meditating (or thinking) on His Word continually, spending time in prayer (listening and talking to Him), and lifting up praise. When we open His Word, even when we don’t feel like it or don’t understand it, it teaches us more about the King: His heart of love for His people and His commands. 

We reflect on what it says again and again. We can write down Scripture and take it with us on a notecard. We can write it on our mirrors or fridges or desks. We can make it the background of our phones. We can choose to pick it up and read it before we do the next thing we feel anxious about, the next thing we feel addicted to, the next thing we feel like we can’t let go of. We choose to fast (or abstain) from that next thing and feast on Jesus and His Word first. It refocuses the eyes of our hearts and rightly orders our priorities. 

We take all these things to the feet of our King, the victorious one. We acknowledge they are surrounding us, pressing in. We acknowledge we cannot be free of them on our own. And we listen. We listen to His voice. We ask for His guidance and wisdom. And then we obey - even when we don’t feel like it, even when it doesn’t make sense, even if we look contrary to the world around us.

Then, we praise.  We praise because it refocuses our attention from the weary front ahead and places it back on the One leading us, arming us, protecting us, giving us victory. It takes our eyes off of us and our surroundings and puts worship back in its proper place: at the feet of Jesus. We practice thanksgiving because it reminds us that we are not in control. God is ultimately the provider of everything we need: our food, clothes, water, security, acceptance, opportunities, etc. And though we may feel weary in this battle, a heart of praise brings refreshing life to a tired soul. 

I do not know what battle you may be facing today or what battles may lie ahead. But I do know that God says over and over and over: “Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged. Do not be dismayed.” When we rest in Who God is, when we trust Him at His word and in His power to save, we allow Him to battle in us, through us, and for us. We will go in to battle knowing that God is actually the one fighting on our behalf. And we can trust Him. We do not have to be anxious or afraid. 

The true victory is in Jesus. He is our freedom. Our way out. Our hope. 

Love. Rest. Breathe. Restore.

1. Where are you today: mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually?
2. Is there any space you feel trapped? like you need a victory?
3. What area(s) do you feel afraid, discouraged or dismayed? He says to not be afraid, or discouraged, or dismayed. How do you choose to believe this even when it doesn’t feel true?
4. What promise of God do you need to choose to believe today?
5. What promise of God do you need to share with someone else who needs the Light today?
6. Take some time to journal, slowly walk and think, or sit still and contemplate the goodness of God in your life. Sometimes it is hard to see, but when we look for it, it is there. God is always good and He wants to reveal Himself to us in every area of our lives.