Crush the Giant of Stress & Anxiety
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV)
I remember when I felt like I was starting to climb back up from the pit of anxiety and depression.
It was shaky ground. Each day felt like I was teetering on the edge of falling back into that darkness. But since I now had worship in my lungs and help surrounding me in every direction, I slowly started taking steps back into the light.
Right about that time, I had a conversation with my doctor. I needed to ask him what every person who has ever wrestled with anxiety has wondered before: How will I know when I’m back to feeling like myself? His answer was simple yet profound, and the general concept still often comes to my mind.
His encouragement was that by making slow, continual progress, you eventually get to a point where you’re more in control than your anxiety. It doesn’t happen overnight, but it will happen. One day, you’ll look back and realize you’ve finally climbed up and out of your pit and that you are free.
I don’t know if you’ve allowed yourself to think that thought, but I want to make sure you hear it. Even if it is only a thread of hope that you can hold on to, this is what you can look forward to.
One day, your giant will fall.
I can’t give you all the specifics of how or when it might happen. It might be later this year or before your next birth- day. It might be after you’ve changed some aspects of your life or made different choices about your physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual practices. There are a thousand different paths that lead toward this moment, but what they have in common is this:
There can be a day in your future when the giant of anxiety in your life has fallen. When you’ve officially put an “X” through your anxiety, and you are living free and transformed by Jesus.
I want to close by thinking a bit about that day. While it’s not always helpful to dwell in the future, I believe there are a few key ways that looking forward can help shape how you fight your anxiety today.
X Marks the Spot
Throughout this journey, you’ve aimed toward putting an “X” through your anxiety. In most instances, the “X” is meant to encourage you to cross out your anxiety through the power of Jesus and the healthy and often hard work of reclaiming your heart, mind, and soul from the giant of anxiety.
But an “X” can also serve as a marker for a final destination. You’ve likely heard the phrase “X” marks the spot, maybe in reference to a treasure map or a fictional adventure. But I like the potential implication of this idea for our fight against anxiety.
When your giant falls, you’re going to have a story. Even in its demise, anxiety will try to convince you to bury the story. To minimize the struggle. It might whisper in your ear, “Fine, you’ve won this time, but don’t talk about your experience. Don’t admit your weakness.”
If you hear those lies of the Enemy, I want you to remember this phrase: “X” marks the spot.
“X” marks the spot where God healed you. Where He saved and redeemed your soul. “X” marks the spot where worship won over worry, where fear fell down before the power and strength of a good and mighty Good Shepherd. “X” marks the spot where light shone through the darkness, where the rod and staff comforted you, where the valley of shadows was no more.
You see, when your giant falls, yes you might have scars, but those aren’t meant to be symbols of shame. The longer you live, the more you begin to realize that everyone has scars. Some people are just better at hiding them than others. Instead, your scars are opportunities for you to point people back to the One who healed you.
Just as “X” marks the spot on a map showing a place of importance, your “X” through anxiety will be one of your great treasures. It will be proof for you and for others that God can bring beauty from ashes and hope from hardship.
Your Scars Show Your Healing
A few years after the Lord helped me through my valley of anxiety, I, along with Chris Tomlin, was on tour to arenas across the nation. I distinctly felt the Lord’s urging to talk about my journey through anxiety and depression—and ultimately, about the power of worship in a talk called Symphony (I Lift My Hands).
Imagine that. Up until that point, I hadn’t really been that vocal about my experience. Of course, people close to me knew and it wasn’t necessarily a secret. But it also wasn’t something I was going around sharing with every stranger on every street corner.
Until God prompted me that I needed to be more open about what He has helped walk me through.
I wrestled with this tension of wanting to be obedient to this prompting but, truthfully, feeling a bit afraid and discouraged at the thought of having to wade back through those dark days. Especially in public where anyone and everyone could judge me. I eventually decided to lean more into my faith than my fear.
And as only God could do, the nights of ministry were better than anything I could have imagined.
Did I enjoy standing up in front of a room of strangers and telling them about my pit of anxiety and depression? Did I like describing the nights of terror and the days where I felt so incapacitated that I thought I’d never work again? No. Not one bit. But I loved getting to the part of the story where I got to show those people that our God is faithful. That He is true to His Word. Worthy of worship. Stronger than fear. That He rescued me, and as a result, He could rescue them.
I learned throughout that tour that our scars aren’t meant to be signs of our failure. They are meant to be stories of Jesus’ victory in our lives.
Even Jesus Himself has scars. Scripture tells us that after Jesus was resurrected, He appeared to the disciples and showed them the nail marks in His hands and the spear mark in His side. His scars were proof of His love for us. Our scars likewise tell the story of Jesus’ victory in and through us.
When your giant falls, you’ll eventually have opportunities to share with others about your experience. Use wisdom as you walk into these moments and know that your scars of healing might just be the most powerful way you can encourage someone that Jesus can help them put an “X” through their anxiety.
Stay Close
Just because your giant of anxiety falls doesn’t mean that you have graduated from being led by your Good Shepherd. Just because a sheep is walked from one pasture to another doesn’t mean that they are suddenly self-sufficient. Sheep know that there will always be a need for a shepherd’s guidance.
Unfortunately, it’s common for us to cling to Jesus when we’re being led through the valley of the shadow of death, but then want to run our own way once we’ve made it through and are back in the light.
The secret to living a life freed from the giant of anxiety is to stay close to Jesus. Stay close when you wake up. When you’re working. When you’re with your friends, family, or neighbors. Stay close when you’re tired and when you’re energized. When you’re rejoicing and when you’re sorrowful.
Stay close to Jesus and you will experience not just life, but life to the full. Jesus is close to all those who call on His name, and He is willing and wanting to fulfill the desires of those who daily draw near to Him.
The Lord is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does. The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them (Psalm 145:17-19 NIV).
As we said at the beginning, every fight against the giant of anxiety will look somewhat unique and tailored to your circumstance. But thanks be to God that the ultimate answer to our anxiety is the same for all of us. His name is Jesus, and He is the Good Shepherd, the Giant Slayer, the One who has your back, and the Savior who helps you put an “X” through your anxiety.
Breaking Free
To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen (Jude 1:24-25 NIV).
