Human trafficking, kidnapping, missing people, children who have runaway. Murder, parents killing their kids, suicide, death of people way too young (before 70 in my opinion), death of loved ones over 70. School shootings, church shootings. Heck, any kind of public mass shootings. Cancer, Alzheimer's, sick children, other diseases. Mistreated animals, mistreated people. Massive fires, house fires, tornadoes and other natural disasters. Tragic accidents. Rapists, pedophiles, internet predators. War. I am certain that I could go on. Yes, I am also absolutely sure that these “sentences” are not grammatically correct. It’s all good.
Ugh, it’s not that I don’t want to not know about these things. I don’t want to bury my head in the sand and pretend they don’t happen. If I did that, I wouldn’t be able to pray for people in those hard situations, and I wouldn’t be able to be aware and vigilant so that I can protect those that I love. But, oh my goodness gracious, these things just overload my brain and overwhelm me.
Maybe I feel this way because I struggle with anxiety. Seriously, I worry about everything. I was like this before Jeff died, and since then, it has only gotten worse. Jeff used to tease me because I worry so much. Oddly enough, one of the things I worry about the most is losing those close to me. Clearly, I have a reason to worry. I pray for safety for my children A LOT! Bad things happen every single day. I have learned that you can’t stop them. I fully realize that I am not in control. That hasn’t eased my anxiety though, and medication only does so much to help.
It could be that my brain feels overloaded and overwhelmed because I am an extremely empathetic person also. That was another thing that Jeff didn’t fully understand about me. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not that he never felt empathy. His empathy was just generally reserved for people that he knew personally or had some type of connection to. My empathy goes beyond that. If I read about a missing child, I feel terrible for the parents. I start to physically feel what they must be going through. When those feelings come over me, I have learned how to rein them in. Doing this doesn’t completely make the feelings disappear, but it does keep them from consuming me.
Ultimately, whether the overwhelmed feelings come from my anxiety or overactive empathy, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is that I realize that I can’t function healthily with this level of fear, worry, uncertainty, or concern. I have to turn it over to God. So, I pray. I cast my cares on Him because I know that He will sustain me (Psalm 55:22). I listen to Christian music that gives me peace and hope. I read my Bible, and talk to family and friends that can help center me and bring my anxiety back down.
Ephesians 6:10-18 tells us how to put on the Armor of God. In verse 17, we learn that we need to be armed with the Sword of the Spirit. This is the word of God. So, I’m going to share with you a few verses about anxiety that I like to arm myself with. There are so many more verses in the Bible that could help if you also struggle with feeling overwhelmed by all the negative in the world, but these are the ones I turn to during times of need. I take these verses and turn them into a prayer. It’s not a magic cure, but most of the time it truly does help calm my overwhelmed mind.
- Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 4:6-7
- Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.” ~John 14:1
- “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” ~Joshua 1:9
There is one last verse that I would like to share with you. Proverbs 12:26 says that anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. When you are in need of a kind word to help ease your heart, you can’t just make someone say them to you. However, knowing that kindness can cheer up others, you should try to be looking for areas where you can spread this daily. I am a firm believer that this will help others, but it will also ultimately impact you. Cheering up others, will also cheer you up. Try it!
Thank you for the encouraging words and the absolute reminder that no matter what we face in this world we are not alone and are not called to be weighed down with fear and anxiety. You have such a way with word . Thank you!
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