Overcoming Anxiety

In the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning and through him, all things were made. Without him, nothing was made that has been made in him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.

At the beginning of time, God spoke as into existence, his word is life.

And God in the garden sustained Us by his presence. His presence, provided our Safety and Security, his presence meant our value and his presence defined our identity. In the beginning, we were his people and our God was our vision.

But when sin came in that vision was clouded; what was once a perfect Utopia of Man walking with God, became a scattered reflection of what might have been had we not rebelled. As Sin drove a wedge between us and our God, so was a wedge driven between our hearts and his truths. In the same way the mountains become smaller, the further you get from them, our view of God became smaller the further our hearts wandered from his. 

His voice was no longer the loudest thing in our lives. Who he says we are, what he says we should do, and how much he says he loves us gets drowned out by our fears that we'll never be good enough, our fears that will never have safety and our fear that there's no hope. This is anxiety at its core: Man, disconnected from the life- giving voice of God.

He never left; but the effects of sin in each of us obscure him from our sight. And every day since then, for every human, has been an ongoing battle to identify and focus on his voice. Humanity is a beautiful race. God designed us perfectly; not only to reflect his beauty but to see it complimented in US. We were made through God and his life is imbued in each of us. Because of that, only he can define certain aspects of our existence, because the very fabric of who we are is reliant on his. There's al Inseparable bond between the intention of the Creator and the

definition of the creation. 

Value, Faith and Hope.

These are the three areas that anxiety gains control if we don't vigilantly protect them against the lies of this world. Let's start with value. God, has defined our value solely by the Act of Creation. If we as Christians hold to the tenet that God is the standard of beauty, then everything he creates bears The Signature of Divinity. Every plant animal rock and human has value, not because of our actions, nor our abilities, but because of who created us. Our world would have us buy into the lie that our value is dependent on our performance, our relationships and our wealth, but He alone gives us value because of who he is, not because of who we are.

The second area is Faith, which, in many circumstances, is manifested as a desire for

control over our lives. Finances; careers; relationships: There is fear attached to the unknown. When we, as humans, can't see the larger plan, we panic because we assume the worst will happen. It's easy to have faith when you can see all the cards... because that isn't faith. God is good and he has our best interest at the forefront of his

heart. The beautiful thing is that he invites us to trust him, not

because it makes it easier for him to work his will, but because it makes it easier for

us to see it. 

And finally, Hope. 

God defines all of our identity. Who we

are? His. Why we're here? To be with him. And how he loves us? Infinitely. There's nothing he wouldn't do for you. The cross proves that. Identity is the most critical part in our existence because our identity is our purpose. When we allow God to define our identity, we become bulletproof because nothing in the world can damage the hope we have in him. But when we allow anything to come between what he says

about us, and what we believe in our hearts about ourselves, our hope will start to fail. This is why Satan tempted Eve the way that he did. If he could get her to question the authority of God's voice, then her value, her security, and her hope would all fall into question as well. 

Value.

Faith.

And Hope.

These three areas are our

security in Christ. Like a fortress under siege, you must constantly defend, rebuild, and strengthen the definition of these areas in your life, by the power of God's word.

And so... security is the opposite of anxiety.

It enables Christians to stand against the world and say, "My

God doesn't move. So you're going to have to." It empowers us to whether life's darkest trials because we know God is right there with us, and come hell or high water,

He is never going to leave. 

In the beginning, God spoke creation into existence. And to accompany that creation, there was also a structured plan of how the world should operate. When sin entered creation, that plan got bruised. Though the building blocks are still intact, the structure is blurred, and chaos has replaced it. God is still in total control, but we no longer have the ability to see that order. Every day he is working to restore our brokenness, but we prolong it by not submitting to who he is, due to the impact of sin on humans. On this side of eternity, we will never be able to sustain full faith in God 100% of the time, and it's in those

moments of faithlessness that anxiety will always creep in. A day will come when the line of communication with our Father is fully restored, but it's up to us now to decide how often we empower that Faith to grow. Anxiety is an unavoidable aspect of fallen humanity, but it is completely up to us, based on our submission to Christ, how often it

strikes and the intensity of its attack. Jesus is the Prince of Peace. He challenged death on the cross and won- forever robbing Satan of the one thing that could separate us from

Him. Jesus turned death into the gateway to God's presence. And while it doesn't make life's trials any less painful, it does make them easier to bear knowing our King has walked before us and is paving the way for us to be with him for all eternity. My prayer for all of you is that as the series continues, God would breathe new life into your relationship with him as you begin to view the world through a brand-new lens in light of Jesus' display of love on the cross. 

Until next time, stay safe, stay strong, and keep on towards eternity.

-Ethan Martinez