A Prayer for Fear and Anxiety
By Kelly Balarie
For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight (Ephesians 1:4, NIV).
Anxiety feels not only like sweat, but also like a heart that beats out loud. It pounds and pounds until you’re certain your biggest fears, strongest worries and largest inadequacies will sound in unison and come crashing down.
What makes your anxiety come alive? Social situations? Dwindling finances? Health concerns? Relational issues? Your weight? Your future? Your past?
Anxiety speaks like a dictator and lives like bondage. Jesus speaks like peace and brings deliverance to life.
3 Ways to Wreck Anxiety and Fear
1. Acknowledge: God chose you. This means, out of all the millions of people He could have created, could have desired and could have accepted – by grace, He set His affections on you.
2. Accept: You are holy. By the sacrifice of Jesus, even in your worry, wrestling and hand writhing, God sees you as radiant and resplendent. You are his walking glory!
3. Affirm: You are blameless in His sight. Because Jesus was the perfect sacrifice, you can walk as an imperfect woman, covered by His heart-aching death on the cross.
Anxiety is an invasive bully. It gets in your face and then under your skin, telling you you’re about to face ruin.
The best way to beat fear is to not fear it. The best way to beat fear is to acknowledge it, repent of it and then douse it with love. It can’t rage under the power of the Living Water (Jo. 4:14). It can’t thrive under the light of truth. It can’t strengthen when submitted to the God of all strength.
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment… (1 John 4:18)
Let’s Pray
Dear Lord, thank You. Thank You that You see us as holy and blameless. Thank You that You want us. Thank You that, because of your sacrifice, You see us as radiant. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. We accept this as truth and we will walk by this truth today. We love You.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Content taken from the Girlfriends in God devotional, “3 Ways to Wreck Anxiety and Fear,” written Kelly Balarie. You can read that piece in full here. All rights reserved.
Related Resource: What to Do When God Seems Distant
What do we do when God no longer feels as close as He used to feel?
Many sincere believers experience seasons when prayer feels empty, Scripture feels quiet, and God seems strangely absent. For leaders especially, those seasons can feel confusing, discouraging, and even shameful.
In this episode of the Unhurried Living Podcast, Alan Fadling sits down with theologian and spiritual formation professor Kyle Strobel to discuss the new book When God Seems Distant, coauthored with John Coe. If this episode helps you recenter your work and life on God, be sure to follow Unhurried Living on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode!
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