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Author
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Topic: Prayer
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Found in Him
Advanced Member
Member # 7596
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posted
Hi MentorsRiddle...
Heavenly Father,
I pray that You will bring Your perfect peace and flood This child of Yours' heart and mind. Your perfect love casts out and drives away all fear. I pray that You will also wrap this one in Your love.
Sometimes we just need to be wrapped up in nothing else but You Lord, Please bring the release and healing that is needed and keep this one free and in Your care.
In Jesus' Name I pray.
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~To Him That is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy...to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.~ Jude 24
Posts: 1503 | Registered: Jan 2009
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Betty Louise
Advanced Member
Member # 7175
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posted
MentorsRiddle,
Do not be afraid to seek medical advice. Anxiety attacks are sometimes caused by a medical problem.
Praying for you.
betty
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Luk 21:28 And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.
Posts: 5051 | From: Houston, Texas | Registered: May 2008
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Carol Swenson
Admin
Member # 6929
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posted
MentorsRiddle
I'm sorry to hear that you're experiencing these upsets. I know about anxiety. I will pray for you, and I also offer some notes from Charles Stanley. ![[hug]](graemlins/hug.gif)
Three Causes of Anxiety
There are at least three major causes of anxiety:
1. People perceive that they won’t be able to meet or resolve their needs. Jesus addressed this cause of anxiety in the Sermon on the Mount. Around A.D. 30 when Jesus preached this truth, the Hebrew people, for the most part, were living in poverty. The Romans drained the wealth of the land through taxation and acquisition. There were no social welfare programs as we know them today. People were consumed with the daily activity of earning enough just to meet the basic needs: food, shelter, and clothing.
Today, this cause of anxiety might be worry that people won’t be able to pay the bills, find or keep a job, or provide sufficiently for their families. The causes of anxiety at this level are very real, practical, and material.
2. People set standards that can’t be met, resulting in repeated failure and frustration. Much of this anxiety is rooted in intangible expectations, ideas, dreams, or self–set goals. Sometimes unrealistic standards are set by others—such as supervisors, parents, or spouses—but when that is the case, the response is usually not anxiety as much as it is anger or resentment. Only if people internalize the unrealistic expectations of others does anxiety take over.
Perfectionists struggle with this type of anxiety. Some people set standards for themselves that are far higher than those set by God! They expect absolute perfection in everything they do as well as everything others do.
3. People have unresolved hostility. When people feel anger, bitterness, or resentment over a period of time against a particular person, institution, or circumstance, they feel a constant agitation or irritation in their spirits. Again, this cause of anxiety is internal.
Now, just because anxiety is rooted in high expectations or unresolved hostility does not mean that it is any less real than anxiety rooted in the meeting of basic material needs. The anxiety is real, it is just as damaging, and it has the same hallmarks.
Signs of Anxiety
Proverbs 12:25 tells us, “Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression.” In the King James Version, this verse reads, “Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop.” Anxiety pulls us down.
The symptoms associated with anxiety vary from person to person, but they generally involve one or more of these characteristics:
• Forgetfulness
• Inability to concentrate
• Irritability
• Inability to cope with small problems
• Vacillation in making decisions
• Misjudging other people
• Feeling persecuted
• Procrastination
• Gnawing dissatisfaction
These symptoms have dire consequences if they continue unchecked. Some consequences include the following:
• A feeling of drudgery about life, especially toward work and tasks
• A loss of excitement and enthusiasm
• A loss of productivity, creativity, and energy
• Damage to the physical body
In other words, nothing good comes from anxiety!
Jesus referred to some of the negative results of anxiety in a parable He taught:
Therefore hear the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty (Matt. 13:18–23).
The “cares of this world” choke off the productivity of a good seed sown in our lives. When we allow ourselves to become enveloped in anxiety, we become almost immune to any positive word, expression of faith, or insight from God.
If you are anxious, you are so overwhelmed in looking at your problems that you don’t even think about what you might pursue as solutions. When that happens, the Word has very little impact in your life, which eliminates the very thing that can build faith and counteract anxiety. The spiral is a downward one.
Have you ever tried to read your Bible only to find that you’ve gone through several verses and don’t have any recollection of what you have read? Chances are, anxiety was at work. You were seeing the words with your eyes, but other cares and concerns kept you from taking in the words of Scripture.
Note that Jesus taught this parable about the kingdom of God. He said that the “wicked one” snatches away some of the seed planted in our lives. But that isn’t the case with anxiety. We are the ones who control what we will be anxious about. We are the ones who allow ourselves to worry.
If you have a loss of interest in life—a loss of enthusiasm, a loss of productivity and energy, a loss of output—consider whether you have developed an attitude of anxiety. If so, it’s up to you to take action to break the hold that worry has over you. God will help you, but you must face what you have allowed to develop in your life and take action to counteract your response of worry and anxiety.
God’s Answer to Anxiety
There are no easy–way–out solutions for people who have allowed anxiety to become a mind–set. They literally need to take hold of their minds and corral them, refusing to let anxiety reign.
Some people seek to escape anxiety. They turn to drugs, alcohol, or a change in geography in hopes of relieving their deep feelings of anxiety.
Others go on wanton sprees of seeking pleasure or of buying items they don’t really need. In all of these behaviors, they seek to substitute something for anxiety other than the peace of Jesus Christ.
These so–called solutions only add to the problem of anxiety. They may mask the problem for a while, but anxiety continues to brew and build. Eventually, people must deal with anxiety or face a serious mental, emotional, relational, or physical breakdown. When that time comes—and it inevitably comes—they face a mountain of anxiety and the problem of a possible addiction to the drugs, alcohol, or behavior sought as a solution.
You must deal with anxiety at its root. And what is that root? A failure to trust God.
At the foundation of anxiety is the belief that either God can’t take care of the situation, or God won’t—and either way, you lose because God doesn’t act.
The only real lasting and healing solution for an attitude of anxiety is to place your trust in God.
1. Turn your heart over to God. If your relationship is wrong with God, you can’t be right in yourself. If you are cut off from God’s peace, you ultimately can have no peace.
If you are a Christian, you must come to God and confess to Him that you have failed to trust Him completely. Ask Him to forgive you for trying to continue to live your life according to your own plans, abilities, agendas, and talents. Receive His forgiveness, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you trust God with your whole heart, mind, and soul.
You may need to confess this to God many times in your life. The process is one of trusting Him more and more.
2. Tell God about how you feel. Something very beneficial comes from admitting to God the anxiety that you feel.
A verse admonishes you to “be anxious for nothing.” This phrase is followed by a call to prayer: “But in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Phil. 4:6). The antidote for moments of anxiety is prayer—a conversation with God. Supplication refers to making petitions before God, asking Him specifically for what you desire. You are to accompany the prayer and supplication with thanksgiving; you are to give thanks even before you receive God’s provision for the answer that you know is on the way!
How can you know that God’s answer is coming to you? Because God is faithful to His Word. He loves you as His child and provides for you. In giving thanks, you are giving voice to the trust you are placing in God to love you and care for you.
What is the result of this kind of prayer? The next verse in Philippians says that after you have made known your requests to God, “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your [heart] and [mind] through Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:7).
Through prayer, you become anxious for nothing and have the true peace of God ruling your heart instead of worry and its related frustrations and damaging effects.
3. Turn the anxiety–causing problem over to God. After you have prayed about your anxiety and the problem that gave rise to it, leave your problem with God. As the old saying goes, “Let go and let God.”
That is what Peter meant when he wrote, “Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). Trusting God to solve your problem or meet your need means that you give the problem to God 100 percent. Give Him all of your concern, anxiety, and worry.
Walk away, saying in your spirit, “I may not know how the answer will come, and I may not know when, where, through whom, or by what means. But I know the One who has the answer, and I put my trust in Him.”
4. Turn your mind to the positive blessings of God. Choose to think about something other than your problem. Choose to dwell on answers, solutions, hopes, dreams, goals, new ideas and opportunities, and good things of all types.
Recall the many promises of God to you as His child. Search through your Bible and underscore passages of Scripture that speak of God’s blessings, provision, and peace. (Use a concordance to find as many verses as you can.)
The mind concentrating on God’s presence and work in this world has no room or time to dwell on evil, problems, or negative situations. The mind concentrating on God’s goodness results in emotions of anticipation, hope, faith, and joy. Such an emotional state is the very opposite of anxiety and worry.
When Paul advised the Philippians to be anxious for nothing, and then told them to pray and give supplication to God with thanksgiving, promising them God’s peace, his very next words encouraged the Philippians to meditate on praiseworthy things. (See Phil. 4:8.) His advice is for you today! So much of the world is steeped in bad news. How important it is for you to be steeped in even greater quantities of good news.
Direct your reading, your media watching, and your conversations to what is good. Discuss with others how the Lord is working in your life—how He is healing you, strengthening you, and bringing you to a higher plane in your spiritual life. Share with others the testimonies of people you know. Build up your faith and the faith of others.
When you have a positive, praiseworthy, optimistic, faith–filled approach to life, anxiety–causing situations will not affect you nearly as much as when you have a negative, down–in–the dumps, God–has–forgotten–me attitude. Your best approach to prevent anxiety is to concentrate on the praiseworthy and to voice your praise to God. Make abundant praise a daily part of your prayer life.
(From Becoming Emotionally Whole by Charles Stanley)
Posts: 6787 | From: Colorado | Registered: Dec 2007
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MentorsRiddle
Advanced Member
Member # 2108
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posted
can someone please pray for me?
I've been having problemw ith anxiety and the such...
I really need some releife...
can you please pray for me.
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With you I rise,
In you I sleep,
kneeling down I kiss your feet,
Grace abounds upon me now,
I once was lost
but now I'm found.
The gift of God dwells within,
To this love I now give in.
Posts: 1337 | From: Arkansas | Registered: Sep 2003
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