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Understanding and Overcoming Anxiety Disorders

Introduction

What is Anxiety Disorder?

Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress and can be beneficial in some situations. It can alert us to dangers and help us prepare and pay attention.

Anxiety disorders differ from normal feelings of nervousness or anxiousness and involve excessive fear or anxiety. Along with depression, anxiety disorders are the most common of mental disorders and affect more than 25 million Americans.

Anxiety Disorders, include disorders that share features of excessive fear and anxiety and related behavioural disturbances. Fear is the emotional response to real or perceived imminent threat, whereas anxiety is anticipation of future threat.

It is evident that these two states overlap, nevertheless they also differ, as fear is more often associated with surges of autonomic arousal necessary for fight or flight, thoughts of immediate danger, and escape behaviours, while anxiety is more often associated with muscle tension and vigilance in preparation for future danger and cautious or avoidant behaviours.

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My Safe Place

One chilly October Sunday morning I walked into the sanctuary with a heavy heart: Feeling depressed and overwhelmed by life’s seemingly toughest experiences. I struggled just to make it out to Church that day. There was a sense of warmth which emanated from the smiles on each person’s face that quickly overpowered the chill.

To begin, one of the intercessors ardently and prophetically prayed. Everyone was in agreement with her prayer with exuberant shouts of praise and adoration unto Almighty God. Expectantly, I felt His presence and I knew I was in a holy place.

The worship team then took over and the worship leader continued to usher everyone into a deeper dimension of worship as the musicians played skilfully upon their various instruments. Everyone danced with all his/her might and sang unto God with voices of triumph. The expressions on each’ face reflected the freedom with which Christ has made him/her free. Overwhelmed by the peace and joy of the Lord, there were several expressions of worship unto God: Some bowed their knees, some cried, some were prostrate before the King of Glory, hands were lifted in surrender and praise and some clapped their hands.

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Adversity: Count It All Joy

TEXT: James 1

On this topic of “Adversity” we would like to explore why we should count it all joy when we are faced with various trials. It is observed that through adversity we learn who God really is, who we are, and our strengths and weaknesses. We need to understand that there are facts of life to be mindful of when facing adversities (trials); reasons for our trials; our response to trials must be appropriate and at the end a reward is received. 

Facts of life to be mindful of when facing adversities (trial):

  • Realise the reality of trials. Problems are inevitable. “Blessed [happy, to be envied] is the man who is patient under trial and stands up under temptation, for when he has stood the test and been approved, he will receive [the victor’s] crown of life which God has promised to those who love Him” (James 1:12). See also 1 Peter 4.
  • Trials are custom made and come in various types.
  • Our trials have purpose.

Reasons for our trials:

  • Problems purify our lives
  • Problems are test of faith (testing of our faith)
  • Problems (as testing of our faith) bring or produce perseverance. “Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).

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Living a Life of Worship unto God in the Holiest

TEXT: Hebrews 10:19-25

As I studied this passage of scripture I was enlightened and encouraged by the truths that came alive to me, thus, I am delighted to share them with you. May you too be enlightened and encouraged, enough to let the Word be manifest in your life.

Firstly, I was reminded of the fact that, since we have access to the Holy of Holies by the power and virtue in the blood of Jesus; we can enter in at any time with full freedom and confidence, knowing that Jesus has initiated, dedicated and opened a fresh (new) and living way for us through the separating curtain, which is the veil of the Holy of Holies, through His flesh by dying on the cross.

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Talitha Cumi – Daughter Arise from the sleep of Death

TEXT: Mark 5: 22-43

Have you ever experienced a situation that was at the point of death, for which you had hope it will be restored to life but the process of waiting on God seemed too long, therefore death occurred? 

The story is told in Mark 5:22-43 of one of the rulers of the synagogue name Jairus who went to Jesus for help because his daughter at the age of twelve (12) years was at the point of death. There was a sense of urgency as the text states Jairus prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and begged Him earnestly to go and lay His hands on the girl so that she may be healed and live. However, on the journey to Jairus’ home, there were some delays as Jesus had to stop to deal with the issues of others which included the woman with the issue of blood for twelve (12) years. While He was dealing with the woman with the issue of blood persons from Jairus’ home arrived with the news that his daughter had died, therefore, they need not bother Jesus any more. Apparently Jesus stayed too long. I like Jesus’ response to what he overheard. He ignored what they said, turned to Jairus and told him, “Be not afraid, only believe”.

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The Antidote for Anxiety and Depression: Trust in Abba Father’s Care – Pt 3

God Keeps His Promises to You. Fear Not, Only Be Glad!

Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the Lord will do great things. Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength. Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with wine and oil. And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.

– Joel 2:21-27

The day began for me with much enthusiasm and expectations. I had an interview at Service Commissions Department for the position of “Youth Worker” and I was confident that I would get the job.

A few days prior to being called for that interview I received a Rhema Word from God from Joel 2:21-27 that says, “Fear not O Joanne, be glad and rejoice for the Lord will do great things. Moreover, God promised to restore me the years I had sown in tears. Therefore, I declared that I will praise the name of the Lord my God for He has dealt wondrously with me, and I will never be ashamed. And I and everyone else shall know that I AM (the Lord) is in the midst of us and that I AM the Lord my God, and none else: and I shall never be ashamed.”  

Hence, to me getting that job was the ‘great thing’ that God was about to do for me since at that time I was unemployed for seven years after I graduated High School. In addition, I felt that getting that job was the means by which God was going to restore to me the seven years of unemployment and frustration that I had sown in tears. Besides, during the time I was unemployed, I seized every opportunity to qualify and develop myself within the means available to me then. Therefore, I had training in “Working with Adolescent”, “Substance Abuse Counselling”, Basic Counselling Skills, and had many hours of voluntary Youth Work at Marion House.

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The Antidote for Anxiety and Depression: Trust in Abba Father’s Care – Pt 2

Is God’s Peace Ruling Your Mind and Emotions?

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

– Colossians 3:15

When I was a student at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus in Barbados, I had an experience that was very profound. My host at that time had taken me to the bus stop in Rockley and showed me the buses and the bus routes that I needed to take to get to the university. The morning I went to take the bus for the first time on my own, I waited at the bus stop for more than two hours and the bus I thought I needed to take didn’t pass by the time I thought it should have passed. I then got anxious that I had missed the bus and fear of the unknown stepped in. I became so flustered that the questions foremost in my mind were, “did I really miss the bus or was it that I just couldn’t remember what time the buses passed?”

I stood at the bus stop in uncertainty, crying as fear and anxiety enveloped my emotions. As a result I had a panic attack. Precipitously, in the midst of the panic attack I heard a still, small, comforting voice deep within; a voice that I knew right well as it had spoken to me in situations of the past. It was the voice of Abba Father. The voice said to me, “I know how you are feeling. You feel like an eaglet that had just been tipped out of its mothers nest by the mother eagle to learn to fly. But do not be afraid for I am your mother eagle, I am right here with you, and I will not let you fall.”

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The Antidote for Anxiety and Depression: Trust in Abba Father’s Care – Pt 1

To God You are Worth Much More than the Birds of the Air and the Flowers of the Field!

Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

– St. Matthew 6:25-34

I will never forget an object lesson that the Holy Spirit taught me a few years ago while I was on a psychiatric ward in a hospital in Barbados. I was a full time university student in a foreign country with no financial support when I took ill. Therefore, I was perpetually uneasy about how I was going to afford the hospital bills, medications, et cetera. That constant worry and anxiety compounded the illness.

One day New Dimensions Ministries (NDM) – the Church I attended in Barbados sent me a bouquet of flowers. I remember how I admired the beauty of those flowers and how much they lifted my soul in times of deep depression. So much so that I wanted that bouquet of flowers to last for a very long time, hence, I watered the oasis the flowers were in every day. Nevertheless, after a while all those flowers died.

On the bedside table I had a bowl of fruits and some birds flew into the room and ate my fruits. As I sat on the bed and watched the birds as they ate my fruits, I thought, “Well imagine those birds, they did not provide my fruits, they did not work for them, neither did they ask my permission to have them, they just showed up and ate what was already provided.”

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When the Odds are Against You

It is said that the cemetery is the richest place on the earth. Why is this so? Because it holds millions of people who died with numerous gifts, talents, potentials, dreams, et cetera that they never used to accomplish their divine purposes and God given assignments in their life time.

When I think of this saying, I can’t help but wonder, what could have prevented those persons from accomplishing their purposes and assignments in life?

The reality of this phenomenon hits home to me when I think about my own father who passed on in June 2009. He was a man of many talents and very intelligent. He was a musician with a dream to build an academy of music for the youths in his community (Steal Pan in particular). He desired to pass on his musical skills to the younger generation but he died without realizing his dream even though he tried. Why? The odds were against him.

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The Power of a Praying Woman

A praying woman understands the need to pray, hence, she lives a life of prayer: She continues in prayer. To her, praying is ‘second nature’. Her life of prayer results from her knowing her God and not merely knowing about God. Her knowledge of God comes from her having an intimate relationship with Him. A relationship that is nurtured by the Word and worship in ‘The Secret Place’. It is in ‘The Secret Place’ she obtains her power as the Most Powerful One – “the same Power that raised Christ from the dead dwells in her” (Romans 8:11). In Luke 9:1, “Jesus called together the twelve [apostles] and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases”. He told them in Luke 10:19, “Behold! I have given you authority and power to trample upon serpents and scorpions, and [physical and mental strength and ability] over all the power that the enemy [possesses]; and nothing shall in any way harm you”. This same power and authority is available to us today and a praying woman takes a hold of them. As a result, she experiences the manifestations of her prayers.  Daniel 11:32b tells us “…but the people who know their God shall prove themselves strong and shall stand firm and do exploits [for God].” She knows “…what things so ever she desires, when she prays, believes (trusts and be confident) that she receives them, and she shall have them” (Mark 11:24). Smith Wigglesworth in a sermon on this Scripture made a statement so profound that ignited my desires. He said, “Desire towards God, and you will have desires from God; and He will meet you on the line of those desires when you reach out in simple faith. A praying woman desires towards God and has desires from God and He meets her on the lines of those desires when she reaches out in simple faith. Therein lays the ‘Power of a Praying Woman’.

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