Freedom From Anxiety Part 3: Lean Not on Your Own Feelings

By Bryan Mangerchine

This is part 3 in the Anxiety blog series.
To read part 1 of the Anxiety blog Series click here:
Freedom From Anxiety Pt 1 : Trusting God to Provide

To read part 2 of the Anxiety blog series click here:
Freedom From Anxiety Pt 2: Are you Ready to Receive?

YouVersion (digital Bible) recently released a statistic that Philippians 4:6 (“Be anxious for nothing, but in prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God") was the most read verse in the world last year. Statistically speaking we probably have some issues in our hearts with anxiety and fear. I’m here to tell you it shouldn’t be that way. We’re not supposed to be riddled with fear. I’m telling you if fear is something you experience in your life, there’s a problem. It’s a problem that you don’t have to continue to deal with.

My goal in this message is to empower you to walk in the freedom and the authority you have in Christ. Not of your own. It’s in Christ that our authority comes. It’s in His identity that He’s given us and speaks over us.

 Jeremiah 17:5-8 has impacted my life probably more than any other verse in the Bible: “Thus says the Lord: Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the Lord. For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when good comes, but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land which is not inhabited."

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit.”  Jeremiah 17:5-8

Those verses pretty clearly talk about fear. What part of our body does fear take place in? “Whose heart departs from the Lord …” This is something that happens in our heart. The battle for anxiety / fear in our lives is taking place in an actual place - in our hearts.

The battle is over this: WHO ARE YOU & WHO IS GOD?  
What does your heart believe? If your heart does not believe what God says about you, then you are living under a curse; you are making yourself susceptible to this curse that we just read about.

I can remember driving on my way to meetings at work confessing this verse (Jer. 17:5-8) because I was so anxious and afraid — so worried about what people would think about me. I can also tell you that it’s this verse that set me free from thinking like that. And now, I don’t feel that way anymore. The same breakthrough can be experienced by you if you are struggling with anxiety and fear.

Joshua 1:9 says “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” 

God is with you wherever you go … Unless your life is really hard right now. Unless somebody did something to you that hurt you. Our experiences can become our excuses.

We disobey God because He says right here “Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed …” So when we step into fear and dismay we are disobeying God and there’s really no excuse for that. Even though my feelings tell me there is a reason for that! So we've exalted our feelings beyond what they are meant to do.

Who has God said He is to you personally? Have you had an experience where you needed God to be someone for you and He’s told you Who He is in that place? Perhaps “Good Father” “Holy Spirit” “Provider” “Protector” “Healer” “Guardian” “Always with you” “my Teacher.” Now give me some examples of things the Lord has spoken over you about who you are: “holy” “beloved” “son” “blameless” “royal priesthood” “student” “apple of His eye” “accepted” “blessed” “loved” “righteous.” The more of these you receive in your heart, the less the troubles of the world make you feel anxious.

Do we seek after or draw from the Father what He has to say about us in our lives? Because the bigger that foundation of strength you build in your life, the less anxiety is going to sweep you away … and when it does come against you (and it still will) it’s a very quick response to get back on the right track of engaging your will and saying “hold on a second; why am I feeling this way? This is not actually smart.” Then you can minister to yourself. You can allow the Lord to minister to you the truth about who He says you are and who He says He is. Then all of a sudden you have a hope in your future.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own FEELINGS. In all your ways acknowledge Him for Who He is and who He says you are … and He will direct your paths and make them straight!

We lean on Him live in real-time. We allow Him to speak into our lives. This is how we avoid blind spots and how we walk and reign in life, free of those negative emotions that want to torment us!

God, I ask you to open my ears to your words and soften my heart to receive them. I want a solid foundation in my life made up of what you say and think about me so that anxiety has no power in my life. Help me to truly see the truth of how you see me, and for it to pull up the roots of the lies I am believing. I pray that when I have feelings that indicate that my hope is not in you, I can pause and ask you what lie I am believing and what truths you want me to believe in their place. Thank you that you are taking me on this journey to be free of anxiety and that your perfect peace is available to me.
Amen

If this stirred your heart, there is more in the full message below.