It's Hard to Stop Worrying.

I was born a worrier. I overthink and am prone to anxiousness, even about things that may never happen, didn't actually happen, or won't happen for a very long time. I'm copies of my mom and my nana, and we've all struggled with it - it's in my blood.

And sometimes, it steals my joy. It takes me out of the present and into "what if" scenarios, triggered by the past or the future. Sometimes, I push the people I love the most away out of fear, and I push God away, because the worry seems to consume me. It's a spiral that's hard to get out of.

Yet, in Matthew 6:34, it says, "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." And this is hard, friends. I know it is.

Before I go too much deeper into this, I want to clarify that there is a difference between anxiety and worry. I got told this verse very often when I was in the middle of some extremely dark, seemingly uncontrollable anxiety, and it wasn't something I could just shut off. Mental illnesses cannot be fixed or erased with a verse, and so if anxiety is something you're genuinely struggling with, I pray that this post would encourage you and not leave you feeling condemned. Please take my words as a grain of salt, and know that there is so much grace for you here!

But, for some of us, worry is something that we can start making decisions about. We can start being intentional about taking captive our worried thoughts and fixing our eyes on Jesus, instead of spiraling and being consumed by it. It's a process, but Jesus is our strength and our comforter, and it starts now.

God has been so gracious in walking me through this journey, and I'm so excited about the things I get to share with you. God is so good, and He offers so much freedom, if we just reach out and accept His hand.

The first thing we need to do when we're battling worried thoughts is to acknowledge it. So often our thoughts escape unexamined, and we're unaware of the own toxicity settling in our brains. We need to start thinking about what we're thinking about, and when we're in the moment of worry, we need to recognize it.

A quick inventory of our thoughts is important, whether or not the content of our thoughts are worried or not. How do you know if your thoughts are healthy or holy? Take a look at Philippians 4:8. Can your thoughts be described by words like true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy? If not, maybe you need to intentionally take a pivot.

If you recognize that you're feeling worried, you need to take it to Jesus. You need to come to Him and tell Him honestly how you're feeling. It doesn't do you any good to hold back from Jesus, because He knows it all anyways, and it's for your benefit that you take steps to release what you're holding onto. Even if you don't know what specifically you're worried about yet (and I've been there), take that to Jesus! He wants to hear it.

I'd encourage you to take this as an opportunity to talk through the fear with God. A lot of times, this alone brings peace. Tell Him everything, and wait to listen for what He has to say. Let His voice and presence wash over you, and as you speak out loud or journal what you're worried about, let it be a release of what you're holding onto. It doesn't always make sense, but being in the presence of God is powerful and miraculous, and He can wipe away every worry by just breathing life into you.

Sometimes, though, you pray and pray and pray, and you still feel worried. There's still something in you that's unsettled and unsure. I've felt this too, and it's not a pleasant feeling. It's okay that prayer doesn't fix everything because it wasn't intended to be a fix. It was intended to be a connection with Jesus, with the Almighty God. You can't pray the "wrong" way, there's nothing you've done to prevent Jesus from bringing you relief. I don't have an explanation for it, but I know it's not because Jesus has stopped loving you, stopped listening to you, or stopped helping you.

In these moments, I often feel a reminder (or have to remind myself) that my Father just wants me to be a daughter. I'm His child, and He just wants me to rest secure in that truth.

Honestly, the first time I heard that whisper on my heart, my eyes welled up with tears and I smiled so big I started laughing. I say often that "I'm just a girl", but in God's eyes, I'm "just a daughter". I'm HIS daughter!

I'm loved.

I'm safe.

I'm secure.

I'm held in my Dad's arms.

I'm taken care of by my Father.

When my Dad speaks to me, He speaks to me gently and clearly - His mission is not to confuse me or cause me to worry, but to direct my paths in the way that is best for me.

My Father has my best interests in mind and He cares about me.

My Father is my protector.

My Father doesn't stop loving me when I misunderstand, mess up, or don't listen.

My Father has good plans for me, and I don't have to figure them out. He will lead me, direct me, and tell me what I need to know, when I need to know it.

And I'm just His daughter.

This might sound so crazy to anyone but me, but it has been the MOST comforting truth that the Lord has spoken over me in a very long time. It brings me chills just thinking about how safe I am, that He views me as His child, and He loved me so much to give up everything from me.

And when I meditate on that truth, when I sit in it for a little longer, there's no room for worry. My heart is filled with joy and peace, because the Truth has overcome the lies and emotions and attacks from the enemy. Worry loses it's grip, because I'm my Father's daughter, and HE'S GOT ME!

Maybe for you, it's not the truth that you're a daughter or son that comforts you. God might speak something totally different over you, or reveal a specific Scripture to you. Whatever it is, find the TRUTH, rooted in the Word of God, which is your Bible, and cling to it. Cover your walls and your heart with Scripture, and speak the truth over yourself. The Word of God is your sword, and it can slash and destroy any lie or worry that haunts your mind. Declare the truth about your identity, about God's character, about your situation, over and over and over again.

Because the majority of the time, the things we worry about are not actually rooted in reality. Our worries are not the truth. They usually haven't even come true. And the enemy would love to get you to settle on those things, take your eyes off of the one who calms every worried heart, so that you're more vulnerable.

Luckily, our enemy is not very unique in his tactics, and as a believer, we have the power and authority to resist.

You can stop worrying.

I know, it feels hard and even impossible. Sometimes worry feels like it has its nasty grip around you, choking the life out of you. But if we are a follower of Jesus, we are no longer under power of the law or under the world, but under the power of the Holy Spirit. And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

Let's take the first step today to walk in freedom.

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PS: Another strategy I use to help extinguish my worry is asking myself if it'll matter when I get to heaven. The verse right before the one I mentioned earlier, Matthew 6:33, says, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." And then in Colossians 3:2, it says, "Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things." This is the measure that we have to use on our worry. So often our fears are valid, but they are based on worldly things - and therefore will not matter in the long run. If it doesn't concern eternity, then I truly believe God does not want me to be consumed with worry. And more often than not, I wouldn't even remember what I was worrying about once I got to heaven - so it's not worth my energy.