“Where faith begins, anxiety ends. Where anxiety begins, faith ends.” What do you think of those words? Do they have merit? That quote comes from George Müller, a Christian evangelist in the 1800’s famous for establishing orphanages in Bristol, England. He did not ask for money or donations, relying solely on prayer to provide for the thousands of orphans in his care. In my opinion, that man knew the reality of faith and anxiety better than most ever will.
Last month we talked about letting go of control. Why do we want to control? Often we are worried, anxious, or fearful about something so we try to do what we can to achieve the outcome we think is best. Our theme in last month’s Corner for overcoming control was trusting and obeying. He gives us responsibility for doing what He has called us to do – obedience. However, He hasn’t given us responsibility for the outcomes. We trust Him for those. Trust,which is faith, has the power to push anxiety out like the quote we started with says. But if you still find yourself with the worry and fear, what do you do?
Consider starting here. “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). “Be careful for nothing” means don’t be anxious or worried. We are to make that choice not to be anxious. We can do that by purposely not thinking about the anxious situation because the thoughts make us anxious.
What do we do instead of thinking about it? We pray. These verses explain the content of the prayer. We are to express thanksgiving and bring our requests to God. Isn’t that what 1 Peter 5:7 is also telling us to do? “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” We cast our cares on Him Who is able to deal with them. If praying in your head isn’t working for you, what about getting down on your knees and praying out loud? I have often found that I have to pray out loud and speak right thoughts out loud for them to take over the anxious thoughts.
Then there is something that is to happen. God’s peace, a peace that doesn’t make sense, keeps our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. If that peace isn’t there, it likely means we are still holding on to control. We haven’t really cast our cares on Him. We aren’t thinking with faith and living in the mode of trust. If we give God our requests, the God of the universe is more than capable of handling them.
Then we have this verse: “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee” (Isaiah 26:3). Wow! This is powerful. God wants our mind on Him not on our worries. When our minds are focused on our God, He keeps our hearts in “perfect peace.” Not just peace but “perfect peace.” Again we see our theme word – trust. Does it seem too simple? Would you say it doesn’t work? If so, I would ask if you have really done it. Have you taken your mind off the things causing the fear and anxiety and put your mind fully on Christ – worshipping Him, praising Him, thanking Him, and going through Who He is as God? Those are just three verses, but they are direct and clear. They are also easy to memorize. Can’t memorize? That’s what a very dear friend said to me for the past five years, but do you know what? She has just finished memorizing Psalms 121 and several other individual verses. She is thrilled. Her “I can’t” turned into “I can” when she put a little time and effort into it. What would those verses do hidden in your heart? “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalms 119:11).
Memorize the verses that are God’s truth and His plan to battle your fear, anxiety, and worry. Then obey them – just do what they say – over and over, if necessary. You have allowed yourself years and years and years of habitual anxious thinking. It will be a process as you let your faith truly begin as George Mueller said.