5 Reasons How Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus

5 Reasons How Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus

Anxiety is something that Christians deal with more often than we think. The devil’s target is our mind. He will try to discourage us, ridicule us, scare us, destroy us and keep us in a state of fear and worry. Once you become a born-again Christian, the major battles that you face in the spiritual realm are in the mind.

Think of what happened right before Judas betrayed Jesus. In John 13:2, the Bible says “And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him;”. The devil put that thought in Judas’s mind to go and betray Jesus. 

Working on your anxiety as a Christian doesn’t just change overnight. If you have dealt with anxiety leading up to being saved, the devil can see that as a weakness and target your mind as a way to attack you and fill your thoughts with fear. 

“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” – John 10:10

The Devil’s Target Is Your Mind

The devil will put thoughts in your mind to discourage you, confuse you, bring you down and keep you in a state of worry and fear. He will have you questioning yourself, and doubting what the Word of God says too. We first see the devil doing this when he tricked Eve into eating the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. He made Eve doubt/question God’s Word.

“Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:1-5).

And the devil continues using this deceiving trick with Christians to this day. That is why we need to fill our minds with the Word of God daily, and to have a Christ-Centered mindset.

What is a Christ-Centered Mindset?

In order to understand what a Christian mindset is, we must first take a look at what a mindset is defined as. A mindset is a set of attitudes/believes that someone has. A Christ-centered mindset is when the thoughts in our mind line up with what the Bible says.

How to Have a Christ-Centered Mindset

We have to let Christ be the center for our thoughts/beliefs in our mind. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 2:16 that we have the mind of Christ. This means that we share the same perspectives and understandings of God’s plans and purpose for us. It also means that we share the same kind of compassion, obedience and need for prayer as Jesus.

In order to achieve having Christ as the center focus for all our thoughts and feelings in the mind, we need to first learn how to cast down all negative thoughts and feelings that do not come from God. 

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” – 2 Timothy 1:7

The Bible tells us in 2 Corinthians 10:5-6 to cast down imaginations that go against the knowledge of God, and to command those thoughts to submit to the obedience of Christ. Doing this takes a lot of time and practice; it isn’t as simple as ignoring those negative thoughts that enter your mind. You need to cast them out and remove them completely from your mind. Never give the devil even just a tiny bit of thought or space inside. 

Practicing this daily will help improve on bettering your mindset and making sure it is a Christian-led mindset. 

A Message To Those Christians Struggling With Anxiety

Don’t forget to give yourself some grace. Mastering casting out negative thoughts from your mind will take time. I have dealt with anxiety for majority of my life. I come from a family of worriers. Breaking this cycle in the family is hard, but give yourself a pat on the back for firstly recognizing that you have struggles with anxiety and secondly want to actively work through it and get mentally and spiritually stronger through the help of Jesus and His Word. 

The Battles Don’t Cease, But The War Is Already Won

I am thirty-one years old this year, and I had decided to really truly work on my anxiety these past few years. However, it wasn’t until this year that I really started to see some results. I had been struggling so much this year with anxiety and stress.

This mental and spiritual battle is on the daily. You will have some good days and then will have some bad days, too. I do not believe that these attacks in the mind will necessarily go away so to speak because the devil loves to attack Christians in the mind. But I know that in time, and with a lot of faith, and strength and grace from the Lord, you will be able to master how to win these battles and cope with them a lot better than when you first started. 

We have Jesus who is always there for us and will never leave us nor forsake us. We might not always win the battles, but the victory of the war is ours through Christ Jesus.

“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” – 1 Corinthians 15:55-58

God gives us the tools and guidance we need on our to win the battles in our mind and to strengthen our faith in Him, as well. Read more on spiritual warfare here.

Let’s take a look at how we can overcome anxiety and strengthen our faith in God. These are 5 reasons how my anxiety has strengthened my faith in Jesus.

5 Reasons How Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus

1. Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus By: Growing Closer to God

When you are struggling with anxiety, sometimes you are so deep in it that you feel like you cannot dig your way out of it. You forget what to do or which scripture to read, and may even struggle with the right words to say to God in prayer. You feel so tired and overwhelmed, and lost for the ability to truly connect with God and let go and trust Him. 

This year has been huge for me spiritually and mentally speaking. I have gone through a lot of stress and anxiety, health issues and the like. It took me to a place where I felt empty and confused and was struggling. 

God will allow us to be tested and to go through different trials and moments to see if we will actually let go and just depend on God’s strength and support and love and grace to get through those difficult times. It helps us to grow and mature in the faith as we learn that we cannot do anything on our own. We can depend on God in more ways than we can ever imagine. 

2. Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus By: Learning to Trust God More

It has been a really hard but important lesson to learn to trust God more. Time and time again when I am feeling really anxious or stressed out, God will remind me to trust Him more. We have our blinders on when we are anxious, that we forget to see what is right in front of us. We have to let go of focusing on the anxiety, and keep our minds and thoughts and feelings focused on God and His Word. You have to learn to shift the focus from fear to faith. Doing this encourages us to trust God more as we turn to Him and keep our eyes on Him. He knows what is best for us, and has the ability to help us through it all. 

“Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth” – Colossians 3:2

3.Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus By: Changing My Prayer Life Dramatically

I have learned how to pray better by meditating on and understanding the scripture Mark 11:24. When we pray to God, we have to then let it go and trust that He will hear and answer our prayers. This comes with a lot of faith. God always hears and answers our prayers, but they might not always be how we wanted them to be answered. But we are putting our trust in a God who has created a perfect plan and purpose for our lives. He knows which path we need to take and which seasons we need to go through in order to grow and fulfill His Will in our lives.

When you pray to God, trust that He WILL answer your prayers, and thank God before your prayers are being answered. Start practicing thanking and praising God for answered prayers before they happen and begin behaving as such. For example, “Thank you God for giving me this new job to be able to support my family”. 

And if prayers aren’t quite answered the way you wanted them to, still thank and praise God because He STILL is with you and hears and answers them. 

4. Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus By: Learning How to Quote Scripture and Claim the Promises of God In My Life

There is a difference between merely reading scripture and quoting it out aloud (especially when we are in spiritual warfare or feeling anxious/afraid). Claim the promises of God – read aloud and declare these promises and blessings in your life. Remind God too of these promises knowing that you trust His Word and are patiently waiting to receive the promises of God in your life. You know your prayers will be heard and answered and you thank Him and praise Him!

The devil knows just how powerful the scriptures are, and that is why he tried to trick Jesus and use the Word of God against Him when Jesus was in the desert for 40 days and nights. The devil will use the same tactic on you, to get you feeling confused, afraid and unsure. Stand strong in the Lord, put on the armor of God each day and know your Bible!

5. Anxiety Has Strengthened My Faith In Jesus By:  Keeping Me Deeply Rooted in Christ Alone

As I grow closer to God, I am becoming less like the world, more like Jesus; more rooted and grounded in Christ and His Word. I am reading the Bible more, studying His Word and meditating on the scriptures more. I am memorizing scriptures and using them in spiritual warfare. I am claiming those promises of God and truly taking in what I am speaking about when it comes to using and saying the scriptures out aloud. 

By practicing casting down imaginations on the daily, and believing in what I am praying about more, I have more trust in God and more faith in Him and His promises for me. Practicing gratitude and thankfulness towards God daily, especially BEFORE prayers are being answered, keeps me deeply grounded in Christ alone. 

Everything that we go through and experience is to help us grow and to become more like Christ. Jesus went through trials and temptations, and we will go through the same. Everything that we are experiencing, Jesus already experienced, and already knows, too. Never stop believing and praying. Cling on to God. Be planted and deeply rooted in Christ and His Word. Nourish your soul with the scriptures daily and continue producing good fruit for Him.

How Has Your Anxiety Strengthened Your Faith In God?

I would like to know! 

We will go through many trials and hardships in our life. God will send tests your way to get you to move past those struggling times or things you need to work on and grow from. But no one is going to pluck you out of the Father’s hand. He already knows what you are going to face in your life. God will always support you and love you.

Stay encouraged.