Anxiety 

We seem now to be living in an age where there are so many mental health issues, in particular anxiety. In this fast paced world, many of us are continually living our lives partnered with worry and anxiety. They may be big things, they may be small things, ranging from how to pay the bills, health issues, jobs and at this time of year, exams.

Yet I would arguably say through the centuries as human beings, we often have a tendency to be overcome with worry and anxiety from the world we live in. As followers of Christ, we intellectually know that God is bigger than our problems. Yet do we rest in God’s assurance? Anxiety comes into our lives when we focus on ourselves and own abilities instead of focusing on Jesus. God loves humans and knows us intimately. It is why in God’s Word – in His manual for life - He speaks to us about worry and anxiety. How reassuring it is to know that God is with us and beside us in our times of worry. In Philippians 4:6, it says ‘Do not be anxious about anything but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God’. Therefore if we give EVERY worry, EVERY concern and EVERY circumstance to God and place God at the forefront, we can rejoice in the knowledge that God will carry us through.

It doesn't mean there won't be times when we sink into seasons of worry and anxiety, wondering whether God sees us and our circumstances. Yet as David says in Psalm 8, ‘When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?’. When we look around us at the world God has created, we can only look at it with awe. From the skies above us to the mountain ranges, forests, lakes and oceans that cover the earth, we must stand back and feel honoured to live in God’s masterpiece. It can make us feel insignificant and small. Yet to feel humble at the light of God’s handiwork can put us and our feelings of anxiety and worry into perspective. Our God loves us so much. He has placed us above the animals and a little lower than the angels within His creation. There is no question that you and I are loved by our Heavenly Father. You may feel alone and living a life that seems full of anxiety, fear and worry, but God values you so much. You only have to take a moment and look at the world God created us to live in to see how much He cares and loves you.

Matthew 6:25 says, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body or what you wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?" Jesus gives an invitation to leave your anxieties behind for assurance in God. The birds do not worry about where there next meal is coming from (Matthew 6:26). If God can look after the birds who do not worry, then God will look after you. He will make everything well and will carry you through. We can rest under His wing in assurance. God does not want us to worry and be anxious. He wants us to trust Him. When we seek and trust God in the midst of our anxieties, fear and worries rather than focusing on ourselves, we will deepen our relationship with God and follow his desires for our lives rather than on our own. We should ‘seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.’ (Matthew 6:33-34).