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Anxiety

In Bible Study, Blog, Luke on
June 20, 2022

Jesus Draws Near to the Hopeless

For many, many years, anxiety has been my nemesis. It looks and feels different from day to day. Sometimes I get this panicky, jittery feeling in my chest or I have difficulty breathing normally. Sometimes I develop stomach aches or become very scatter-brained when I try to think through what needs to get done for the day. Sometimes I’m much more emotional about something than I might normally be. There are some days when I barely feel any anxiety at all, but they are other days when I am absolutely miserable and wish it could all just go away.

I’ve struggled with anxiety for a long time, and I’ve prayed over and over again that the Lord would take it away from me. But He never has. I know there must be a reason that God has allowed me to wrestle with these feelings and symptoms for so long. I know He is no cruel dictator and that He loves me greatly, far greater than anyone else ever could. However, at times, I just feel hopeless, like there’s no hope of ever being free and at peace.

Perhaps you feel the same way—hopeless, like you have no chance of finding any peace or relief from whatever is your greatest struggle. But these people—those who have lost all hope—are exactly the kind of people Jesus draws near to. And we can see this clearly in Jesus’ encounter with a hopeless woman in Luke 8.

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In Blog, Prayer, Theology on
April 17, 2022

Prayer Basics

Without communication, a relationship will never survive. I’ve had many friendships fade away because I just lost contact with them. And the same is true with other kinds of relationships, too. Marriages that lack communication often end in divorce. Miscommunication between bosses and employees tend to result in missed deadlines and uncompleted tasks. Parents who never communicate or cultivate relationships with their children are often estranged from them later in life.

Our relationship with God is no different. While a lack of communion with God won’t end in divorce or loss of relationship, forsaking practices like prayer and Bible reading can hinder one’s fellowship with God, making them feel like God is far away from them. Bible reading is a fairly straightforward discipline, and it’s rather easy to recognize how God speaks to us through His Word. But many Christians struggle with prayer. Who do we pray to? When should we pray? What should we pray for? Even people who have been believers for years are asking these questions, and all of them and more will be answered in this Prayer Basics post!

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In Bible Study, Blog, Luke on
January 31, 2022

Jesus Draws Near to the Powerless

I cannot imagine what it must be like to never be able to walk or run. I cannot fathom what it must feel like to never be able to stand up and stretch and move around. As a person who likes to be in control of her life, I can’t conceive how frustrated I would be and how powerless I would feel that I couldn’t do normal, everyday tasks, like buying groceries, or putting on clothes, or going to the bathroom.

It can be easy for able-bodied people to take these things for granted, to forget how many things we need our legs for. I thank God that He has blessed me with legs that can run, walk, bend, stretch, skip, jump, crouch, and squat. But the unimaginable, the unfathomable, the inconceivable, the frustrating powerlessness is a reality for many people, including the paralyzed man in Luke 5.

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In Attributes of God, Blog, Theology on
May 10, 2021

He is Omniscient

I love being “in the know.” I love knowing what’s going to happen ahead of time so I can be prepared for what’s ahead. I don’t like feeling like I don’t understand something. Maybe you’re the same way? Our culture is obsessed with instant knowledge. When you want to know what the weather will be like this afternoon, you look at your phone’s weather app. When you want to know what’s going on in your friends’ lives, you go on Instagram, Snapchat, or Facebook. When you want to know the average lifespan of a chicken, you Google it (it’s five to eight years, by the way).[1] Unfortunately, we don’t know everything. We can’t! And we can never be fully prepared for the future because we don’t know what the future truly holds. But guess who does know everything, including our futures? God!

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In Anxiety, Blog, Theology on
April 26, 2021

Cast Your Cares

One of the greatest struggles in my life is anxiety. I’m constantly asking, “What if?”, and thinking through every situation that could ever possibly happen. But sometimes my anxiety is more than just overthinking and overanalyzing. A couple months ago I got contacts for the first time. When I was trying to practice using contacts, I was having a hard time taking them out, and I could feel my anxiety starting to bubble up. My hands started shaking, I felt light-headed and dizzy, and it was almost hard to breathe.

Maybe you can relate. Maybe you have anxiety that hits you out of nowhere and takes your breath away. Maybe you panic at the thought of potentially awkward social situations, or you overanalyze what your friends or co-workers think of you. Maybe you feel like you just can’t help thinking through the worst-case scenarios. As believers, we’re often taught that we should never feel anxious, and this may make us feel like we’re failing as Christians. But this is not quite what the Bible teaches.

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