Overcoming Anxiety & Depression

Overcoming Anxiety & Depression
Thistlebend Discipleship Bible Studies

The most effective and powerful antidote for anxiety is thanksgiving and praise. When we feel it coming on or even begin to think about the possibility of it coming on we want to nip it in the bud. We want to immediately stop and "BOW." Here are three things to help us find the calm when we are encountering the overwhelming waves of anxiety.

BOW
Bow before Him. Bring all of your cares to Him! Lay them at His feet. Humble yourself before Him. Honor Him as God. He knows all. He can handle it all. Bring Him your heartache, your children, your spouse, your finances, your day, your future, your life — all of your concerns. He knows what is best, and He works all things according to His wise and loving will. Cast all of your cares upon Him believing that He cares for you. He is able. You are not. He is God. You are not!

Offload your angst. Humbly hold each thought up to the Word of God. Take your worry, your anxiety, your fear, your unbelief, your anger — all of the sin that is weighing down your little water craft — and confess them to the Lord. Throw each and every one overboard, and let them fall to the bottom of the sea of His grace.

Worship the Lord. Fix your eyes upon Him. Take your eyes off of yourself and off of your circumstances and set them securely upon your Lord. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and come into His courts with praise. Thank Him from the bottom of your heart following the example of the psalmists. Humbly acknowledge that you can't see all things, but He can. Worship Him in the spirit of holiness, praising and thanking God because He knows what is best. He is all powerful. He is in control. He knows what He is doing. No one can stay His hand. And He has you in the palm of that mighty hand.

Take a moment to practice taking these truths to heart. Turn to Psalm 96 in your Bible and bow before God. If you are not able to bow literally, humbly bow before Him in your heart. He is God. He loves you with a love that knows no bounds. He is good, and He is working on your behalf even as you pray. BOW before Him now.


Verses:

“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭100‬:‭1‬-‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord or fully declare his praise? Blessed are those who act justly, who always do what is right.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭106‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story— those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭107‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭4‬-‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬