Battling Anxiety, Finding JesusSample

It's been eight years since my first panic attack. After that first night of overwhelming anxiety, I spent each of the next three weeks living the same night over and over again, wondering why I couldn't sleep, slow my thoughts, or reign in my anxiety.

I wish I had known the name for my overwhelming experiences when I had my first one, but now I know. I wish I had found the tools I discovered from my Christian therapist and other friends. I also wish I'd known that my experience with anxiety and panic would not be a quick fix.

Expectations are everything! Nearly every struggling couple I've ever counseled has faced unstated, unrealistic, and unmet expectations. Anne Lamott was correct when she famously wrote, "Expectations are resentments under construction."

Therefore, I want to be transparent as you set expectations for future battles between your ears. You need to know that winning this battle will be less of a one-time event and more of an ongoing process. In Romans 12, the Apostle Paul describes the transformation process in Jesus' followers as "the renewing of our mind."

Renewing our minds is less of an event and more of a lifelong work. We cannot say, "Boom! I renewed it—that's finished!" No, we are consistently and constantly renewing our minds, battling our enemy, Satan, and seeking to take each new thought captive so it can be obedient to Christ. While I wish this battle were momentary, it's an ongoing war that we will continue to fight on this side of heaven.

While my three-week period of panic attacks eventually ended, that season began a recurring experience of anxiety, which included more occasional panic attacks. Like Paul described a thorn in his flesh in 2 Corinthians 12, my battle with anxiety has felt like the place where God keeps inviting me to trust His sufficient grace and discover the power of His perfect strength in my weakness.

If you've experienced anxiety as an ongoing battle like I have, I want to encourage you to consider reshaping your expectations. Instead of looking forward to a moment when this will no longer be a struggle and you can get over this, what if you began expecting this to continue while hoping to find Jesus and His strength available daily?

Paul began Romans 12 with this expectation. "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God." With these words, Paul invited the Roman believers to shift from a partial contribution to complete surrender. Instead of merely contributing to the cause of Jesus Christ in the world, Paul urges his audience to conform to Christ's image. He's inviting them (and us today) to surrender our lives each day by renewing our minds.

On day two of this plan, I shared a quote from Jennie Allen, who wrote, "The greatest spiritual battle of our generation is being fought between our ears." I hope you've seen the wisdom of her words in this reading plan and your own life.

But, I don't want to describe the problem to you merely. I also want to point out to you the hope that's available today. Though our greatest battle is being fought between our ears, it can be won, and Jesus has already won it!

Before He was arrested and crucified, Jesus told His disciples what to expect in the future. "I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

There is a battle ahead of us, and we will have trouble. But God has made peace available to us, and He has overcome the world. Therefore, because of what He has done, we can be confident of victory - in limited ways in this life and ultimately in eternity.

It's been an honor to encourage you over the last five days, and I'd love to continue to help you. Click here for a complimentary copy of my Overcoming Anxiety Action Plan. This practical, Biblical, and accessible resource will help you take your next step as you get back up after you fall and live with hope each day!