Anxiety seems to be the scourge of the modern world. Who has not been anxious about something? Health, finances, marriages, the future, relationships, career, exams and so much more. Some people are so consumed with anxiety that they are diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and given a prescription for Paxil. Anxiety can cause physical reactions – often called “conversion reactions” – where the anxiety is converted into a bodily reaction to placate the anxiety. The demands, idols, stress and more of this world will have its toll on the human soul. We lose sleep, lack inner peace, feel driven and stressed. All those things and more will undermine our life and our relationships. We might be tempted to shove all these anxieties into the “backburner of the soul”, simmering underneath our life. But deep down, we know that we don’t want to live like this. Is there a “cure” for anxiety? Having survived two bouts of cancer and a tragic bus accident in Syria, both with hardly any anxiety, I know there is a cure for anxiety.
You might find this somewhat surprising, but the most profound insights and ultimate cure for anxiety are addressed in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6:19-34). The psychology is so deep that one doesn’t see it at first. Jesus poses the crucial questions that go right to the heart of the issue. What do you really treasure in your heart? Are your treasures at the mercy of this world? Who do you really serve, and at what cost to your soul? Is there a heavenly Father who cares for you? Do you know Him? Do you know your identity and worth in God? Does your spiritual vision of this world and your place in it line up with reality and truth? Do you know what your deepest goals, desires and objectives are in life? Does your heart rest secure in the love and provision of God the Father, or do you doubt his existence? Until the most crucial questions of one’s life, of one’s very existence are answered, anxiety will be like the “mad dog at your heels”.
Anxious to learn more? Then please listen to my audio message where I offer an exposition of Matthew 6:19-34. I go through Jesus’ questions and truths with application to life in the modern world and how this relates to anxiety. I hope you will appreciate the incredible wisdom and insight from Jesus’ teaching. The Presence and Peace of Christ – this is the ultimate cure for anxiety – far better and more potent than any medication, meditation or behavioral technique. Indeed, the daily spiritual discipline is to practise the Presence of Christ and not the presence of the problem.
Thank you Dieter. I will listen to your sermon on this. Your questions have RE exposed many issues that are still here in my life. I didn’t know that you had suffered with cancer OR about the terrible bus accident. WOW- minimal anxiety?! You always were a “chill dude” from the first time we met you. If it’s the Presence and Peace of Christ, then clearly you have it. I don’t. So frustrated. But must keep trying to look forward with hope. It is NOT easy.
Irene