02/15/2009
Choose to Trust in Christ in Trying Times
When you are facing a legal battle, waiting for medical test results, you are laid off from a job or going through some other life changing event, do you allow stress and anxiety to take hold of your body and mind, or do you remain calm, trusting in the Lord? Making the choice to become fearful, angry, hurt, depressed, full of dread, heart broken or sorrowful is a sin. Why not choose to trust in the Lord?
Dictionary.com defines "stress" as physical, mental, or emotional strain or tension. They define "anxiety" as distress or uneasiness of mind caused by fear of danger or misfortune. But, they define "trust" as confident expectation of something; hope, or as a person on whom or thing on which one relies.
What Does the Bible Say About Stress, Worry and Anxiety?
Matthew 6:27: Who of you can add a single hour to your life by worrying?
Matthew 6:34: . . . do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Luke 12:22: Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear.
Luke 21:14: . . . make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves.
1 Peter 5:7: Cast all your anxiety on the Lord, for He cares for you.
Stress, worry and anxiety are derived from fear. Fear is a very powerful emotion that the devil uses to tempt people into sin. Through fear he can confuse you into believing that you are worthless, that you are unloved, that your world is coming to an end and even that God has taken His hand off of you. The devil roams around like a roaring lion seeking whom he will devour, and if he can get you in a place where fear is ruling your life, then he can coerce you into taking actions that are destructive, and that lead you out of the will of God for your life. But, the truth is that man has a sin nature, and the only way we can overcome this sin nature is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that we would have life and have it more abundantly. So, don't accept the lies of satan!
What Does the Bible Say About Trust in God?
Psalm 9:10: Those who know your name will trust in you Lord. For you have never forsaken those who seek you Lord.
Psalm 31:6: I despise those who worship and rely on worthless idols; I trust in the LORD.
Psalm 56:3: When I am afraid, I will trust in you Lord.
Psalm 84:12: Lord Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in you Lord.
Psalm 91:2: I will say unto the LORD, "Lord you are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in you I will trust."
Proverbs 3:5: You shall trust in the LORD with all your heart. Choose not to lean on your own understanding;
Isaiah 26:4: Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, is the Rock eternal.
Jeremiah 17:7: . . blessed is the man whose trust in the LORD, whose confidence is in the Almighty.
Can you hear the Holy Spirit speaking to you? Is that still small voice gently guiding you? If your answer is no, then it is time to get in a quite place, be still and listen. Visualize your burdens as a heavy cloak of sin. Tell the Lord that you recognize your worry and stress is a sin, repent and accept His forgiveness. Now, as you visualize yourself removing the cloak of sin, recite the words, "When I am afraid, I will trust in you Lord." (Psalm 56:3) or another scripture that gives you strength and confidence in the Lord. Breathe deeply, allow peace to rise in your heart and let your body relax. Anytime, you feel the stress rising in you, decide not to let it take hold and demand it to leave in the name of Jesus Christ.
Remember the battle is in your mind, and it is you who make the choice to sin or to use the sword of the spirit (the word of God) to stop the enemy. He can only gain the foothold in you that you allow him to have through your choice to sin. You are a child of God who is filled with the Holy Spirit. You have the power within you, through Christ who lives in you, to overcome every attempt the enemy would make to separate you from the perfect will of God for your life. We can strive no higher in mortal life than to be in the perfect will of God, bringing Him glory and honor while loving one another. Choose to trust in the Lord and the power of His word.
