Anxiety (12-4-12)

Psalm 94:19 - "When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Thy consolations delight my soul."

Anxiety is simply fear or worry. The dictionary defines anxiety as "distress or uneasiness of mind caused by fear of danger or misfortune." Anxiety is irrational, but I think it's something that we all struggle with periodically throughout our lives. In Psalm 94:19 the psalmist confesses that anxious thoughts multiply within him, and I think that's how anxiety often works. We think of a certain situation we're about to face and we start to make up scenarios in our minds. I'm pretty good at thinking up several different ways that something could go wrong, and anxious thoughts easily multiply within me, but the psalmist doesn't stop there. He says - "When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Thy consolations delight my soul." That's the answer to our anxiety, the Lords consolations. Now, what are the consolations of the Lord? The word "consolation" simply means "comfort." There are a few ways that the Lord comforts or consoles us, but the primary way He comforts us is through His Word. When our anxious thoughts multiply within us, if we turn our attention to seek the Lord, and get into reading His Word we find an amazing thing comes over us, a peace that surpasses all comprehension. When we simply trust Him our anxiety will disappear. The psalmist said in Psalm 56:3 - "When I am afraid, I will put my trust in Thee." Anxiety is simply fear. When we are afraid or anxious we need to follow the example that the psalmist sets, we need to put our trust in God. Throw ourselves entirely on Him and trust what He says about Himself in His Word. Proverbs 12:25 says - "Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs it down, but a good word makes it glad." What better word is there than Gods Word? We can trust what He has revealed about Himself, and since what He has revealed about Himself is true we can trust Him and not be afraid. God is good. He is faithful. He is Just. He is sovereign. He is all knowing, all powerful, ever present. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He spoke the universe into existence. This is the One to whom we have given ourselves, the One who spared not His own Son but delivered Him up for us all. If He didn't withhold His own Son from us, can we not trust Him to give us every good thing? Can we not trust Him to work all things together for good to them that love God and are called according to His purpose? That's what Romans 8:28 and 31-37 declare - "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose...What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Considering the Word of God, and particularly what the Lord has revealed about Himself results in delight in our souls, and an unwavering trust in Him. When we consider how great He is, we see how silly our anxiety really is. Isaiah 12:2 says - "Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the Lord God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation."

The Lord is our Refuge, our Stronghold. He is the One that we can come to and in Whom we can hide. Throughout the Psalms we often see statements like Psalm 61:2 - "From the end of the earth I call to Thee when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I." When our hearts are faint and we take refuge in the Lord His consolations delight our souls. The Lords presence in the Christian life is such a blessing. The Lord is always with us and nothing will ever change that. Our circumstances, our feelings, our fears and anxiety, none of these things will ever separate us from Him. He is aware of all our circumstances, all our trials and fears. Psalm 56:8-11 says - "Thou hast taken account of my wanderings; put my tears in Thy bottle. Are they not in Thy book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call; this I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, in God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?" We read in Hebrews 13:5-6 - "for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?”" In Psalm 34:4 the psalmist says - "I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears." He says that when he sought the Lord, He delivered him from all his fears. He doesn't say that God delivered Him from his circumstances, or that God assured him that he wasn't going to have any hard times or trials, but he says that when He sought the Lord he was delivered from his fears. That's what seeking the Lord does. Life is going to have it's difficulties, we're assured that all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution, and that in this world we will have trouble, but we don't need to fear the future. We don't need to fear our circumstances or the potential outcome of a given situation. Seek the Lord and He will deliver you from your fears.
In Philippians 4:6-7 Paul instructs us - "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Along with seeking the Lord in His Word we need to pray. We need to lift everything up to Him in prayer, and just don't worry about it. Don't be anxious! That's what Paul is saying very straightforwardly. Just don't be anxious, and the key to not being anxious is to lift everything up to Him in prayer. Let your requests be made known to Him, and the guarantee is that the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension will guard your heart and your mind in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 34:4 - "I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears."