Persecution Live

In our anxiety, we are incessantly inward-focused. At times, we do worry about others, but even these worries are typically how the actions of others might affect themselves and our ability to relate in a healthy way with them. In our worry, we may fear losing a parent or fear the self-destructive actions of a young adult spiraling out of control. Jesus taught us that this worry accomplishes little.

However, one of the consistent themes throughout the gospels is the call to care for those in need and share the good news of what Jesus has done for us. At the end of the ministry trip that Jesus took His disciples on, He gathered them around and let them in on a secret. It was their turn to go and heal the sick and share the good news of forgiveness of sins. He didn’t just want them to trust Him. He wanted them to help others to trust Him too. He was sending them on a ministry trip.

Because our thought patterns of fear, worry, and anxiety tend to focus on the danger we face, refocusing our mind and energy toward serving others can make a major impact on how we deal with anxiety. Anxiety tends to paralyze, isolate, and cause self-doubt. However, when we can learn to focus on others with a heart of compassion, life has renewed meaning and we experience a renewed purpose and vision for our lives.

If you are a follower of Christ, Jesus calls you to pray for the harvest, to serve in planting seeds, and to make as much of a difference as you can, even if you are struggling with anxiety. Just because you can’t do everything you once were able to do, doesn’t mean that God has put you on the shelf. Seek to find the difference that God has called you to make. You have a purpose given by God for your life, and you will experience less anxiety by pursuing a life of purpose.

Action step: God calls me to overcome anxiety by keeping my focus on serving others.

After Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount, the disciples and Jesus embarked on a ministry trip so that Jesus could teach His disciples and model for them the way of life that He was describing in the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew records these stories one after another to make the case that Jesus alone has the power to intervene. He was unlike the other religious leaders of His day. At the end of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7, Matthew adds that “the crowds were astonished at His teaching, for He was teaching them as one who had authority, not as their scribes.”

Jesus has real power to intervene in our troubles, and Matthew wanted to make sure you understood the reason why Jesus could stand up and say don’t be anxious. It wasn’t just a slogan to make us feel better or distract us from our troubles. Jesus really was different. People’s lives were really changed when they encountered Him.

The chart below from Matthew 8–9 represents the various conversations and encounters that Jesus faced on this trip. As you look at the conversations, you see His response to ordinary people with deep troubles and sorrows. As a counselor, if I were to make a list of the most common worries that walk into my office on any given week, this list could have been written yesterday.

Circumstance of Anxiety & Worry

Conversation Partner

Reference
Circumstance of Anxiety & Worry

Conversation Partner

Reference
Terminal Illness Ostracized Leper Matthew 8:1–3
Death of a Loved One Centurion Ruler Matthew 8:5–13
Physical Discomfort & Sickness Peter’s Mother in Law Matthew 8:14–15
Spiritual Oppression Many inflicted with illness Matthew 8:16–17
Financial Security Scribe lacking commitment Matthew 8:18–22
Physical Safety Those in the boat w/ Jesus Matthew 8:23–27
Spiritual Warfare Two Men with demons Matthew 8:28–34
Loss of Reputation Those with Jesus & Sinners Matthew 9:9–13
Suffering of a Child Ruler with dying daughter Matthew 9:18–26
Permanent Disability Two Blind Men Matthew 9:27–31

Do you get the point of all these stories given back to back to back? Jesus cares about you and your specific circumstances. He cares about the things that keep you up at night. In each of the situations, Jesus wanted His disciples to understand a key truth about life: they lacked the power to control the outcome, but God was powerful.

In our anxiety, we tend to focus on the problem, and we find ourselves under the illusion that we must find a way to control what ails us. On this ministry trip, Jesus made it crystal clear to His disciples, “Apart from me, you can do nothing.” However, if they were sent with God’s power and were empowered by His Spirit, they did not need to fear. His power was available to them just like it is available to us.

Action step: God calls me to overcome anxiety by keeping my focus on trusting Him with my trials.

Tim Keller writes, “Worry is not believing God will get it right, and bitterness is believing God got it wrong.” How we respond to life’s trouble reflects how we view God and whether we trust how He has acted towards us. Jesus makes the case that our worry really stems from a heart of unbelief that God is acting in a good way toward us. To those who doubt the provision and power of God to do what’s best, Jesus gives a gentle rebuke, “O you of little faith.”
In our counseling office, we see this all the time. When dealing with death, divorce, dysfunction, and distance in relationships, we can extrapolate all kinds of negative outcomes. Focusing on the possible outcome stems from a heart that ultimately desires to be in control. Rather than trusting a good God, it really is a heart of pride. Tim Keller reminds us, however, “It takes pride to be anxious. . . . I am not wise enough to know how my life should go.” Do we trust God with our future so we can stay present today?

Action step: God calls me to overcome anxiety by keeping my focus on His faithfulness.
How often do we become distracted when we fear the future and take matters into our own hands? We seek to control our destiny and focus our attention on what we want most. We don’t trust God to provide or to keep us safe. We start to think 10 steps down the road and bring tomorrow’s problems into today. Jesus reminded us that worry accomplishes very little and distracts us from being present in our lives today.

Everyone worries. Everyone has a problem with anxiety—including me. Despite the fact that we generally think God is against our fear, worry, and anxiety, we don’t ever seem to completely overcome its harsh grip.

God created us as emotional people. Our emotions are given by God to put us “into motion.” For instance, anger is driven by a sense of injustice and a desire to oppose something that we feel isn’t fair or right. In the same way, fear is a God-given emotion when our mind alerts us to danger, real or perceived. Anxiety is what we feel when our body is responding to the emotion of fear. Worry is the thought process that mulls over and gives power to the object of our fear.

Fear, worry, and anxiety show up together and feed into each other in the various situations where danger lurks. Even at times when we don’t know why we feel anxious, our brains have previously learned to fear in a similar situation that we simply can’t recall at that moment. Our anxiety is tied to our life experiences and thought patterns, not some random biological defect.