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What Are You Doing About It?

What have you tried to do to calm your panic? As you take life's challenges and try to control and manipulate them to turn out as you want, worry comes in when situations don't go your way! Are you a clinger -  clinging to everything you have control over and grappling for control over everything else? Or are you a suppressor - desperately trying to ignore the symptoms, talking your way out of the emotions? Or have you tried the super-spiritual formula – diving into legalistic religion, hoping that by doing all the right things, your life will turn out as you planned? Maybe you have tried everything you can think of, and now you are beaten down and disheartened because worry and fear continue to plague your mind and body.

At the very core of the issue of worry, anxiety, and panic is a need to control things that you were never meant to control. This is what the "what if" game is all about — fear of the unknown sets off worry. The fear at the core of anxiety is different from the natural fears that bother all people, like being afraid that the rattlesnake coiled up in front of us might strike and bite us. This kind of fear is natural, a gift from God that lets us know when we are in real danger. Most of the time, the excessive fear that drives us to anxiety is a much more irrational fear. Fears of losing your job, family, and health all in one moment are the kind on which the anxious dwell.  

To this day, I am ashamed of the irrational fears that took control of me. Take a close look at the things in your life that cause you the most worry.  You will probably notice that the things you wrestle to control end up controlling you. They tell you when to sleep when to eat, what to think, and how to act. Plus, after fear has managed to steal control over every moment, shame comes in to rain humiliation over you for what the worry has made of you. Trust me, fear and shame make a lethal pair.

What are 5 ways you have tried to control your fear and/or panic this week? Write them down. Now, pray for God to help you release those fears and panic to Him.