The post When Anxiety is a Focus Issue {The Atlanta Journal-Constitution} appeared first on Soaring With Him Ministries.

“Cast your cares on God; that anchor holds.” — Frank Moore Colby

Just a look at her eyes and posture, and I knew it: She needed me. My friend suffers from anxiety and knows how that demon plagued me for many years; therefore, she has asked me to become her accountability partner.

As she sat down, downcast, she started sharing her burden.

“It happened all of a sudden. I was sitting there and started feeling anxious about this issue,” she said, teary-eyed.

I know the feeling.

Sometimes it happened when I least expected — sitting in front of my computer, working on a project. It started with tingling in my hands and feet, the dreadful signs of an upcoming anxiety attack. Then my heart started racing, and awful, often senseless fears filled my mind. I was also young and did not know what was happening to me. I did not feel comfortable talking to anyone since anxiety or depression were taboo subjects several years ago. There were no commercials about it, and people certainly did not talk about dealing with these taunting monsters.

I held her hand.

“I know what you are feeling. But I also know the truth. And you do too,” I said, confidently.

“Yes. But …”

“No. There are no ‘buts.’ Let’s talk about what you know. Let’s cast an anchor into this stormy sea.”

My friend knows it — she read my book. I call verses of Scriptures “anchors” and have several written in small notes posted around my house.

“What does God say about being anxious?”

“Be anxious for nothing,” my young friend whispered.

Yes. But Scriptures also tell you how to do that. And so, I pulled the verse in Paul’s epistle to the Philippians on my screen, and we read it together:

“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.”

We then talked about how to take anxious thoughts captive before they took over, and instead, pray about her concerns.

Take anxious thoughts captive before they take over, and instead of panicking, pray about your concerns. #MondayMotivation #MondayDevotional #AJC
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She then prayed a sweet, childlike prayer, tears streaming down her cheeks. I held her close, all too aware of the confusion and fears gripping her heart.

I printed the verse and handed it to her. “Put it where you will see it all the time. Memorize it.”

In my opinion, there hardly is a better metaphor for Scriptures than that of an anchor.

Anchors have been used since ancient times to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent it from drifting due to currents or strong winds.

The earliest anchors were probably rocks, and many have been found on the seabed dating from at least the Bronze Age. Pre-European canoes, called Maori Waka, used hollowed stones tied with flax ropes as anchors. Ancient Greeks used baskets of rocks, giant sacks filled with sand, and wooden logs filled with lead. Regardless, ever since men started navigating earth’s bodies of waters, anchors have been used to keep vessels from drifting away or from being destroyed by the storms.

There is no question that there are situations in which people need medication to help them heal from anxiety and depression. However, I truly believe that the only way to consistently overcome forlorn or anxious thoughts is by anchoring our hearts and minds in what we know to be true.

I truly believe that the only way to consistently overcome forlorn or anxious thoughts is by anchoring our hearts and minds in what we know to be true.
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Whether in the Tanakh (Hebrew Scriptures) or the New Testament, we repeatedly read the accounts of men and women of God who, during times of distress, fear and doubts, would counter-attack the afflux of negative thoughts by remembering God’s faithfulness to His people. From Abraham to the persecuted old-testament prophets, from Jesus when tempted by Satan in the wilderness, to the apostle Paul in prison waiting for his execution. We have been taught, by their example, that the secret to surviving life’s strongest storms is to anchor our hearts in the unchangeable character of God.

From Genesis to Revelations, Scriptures teach us that the secret to surviving life’s strongest storms is to anchor our hearts in the unchangeable character of God.
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I don’t dismiss it as an easy thing to do. It has been a lifelong process for me. But rather than allowing my thoughts to wander into dark places when trials come, I have learned to remind my heart of the many times God rescued me in the past, and that there is no reason not to believe He will do it again.

And so, I share the story, hoping that just as my friend’s heartbeat slowed down as she started praying instead of fretting, someone out there will pause today to pray, trust and believe.

“Cast your cares on God; that anchor holds.” — Frank Moore Colby #MondayMotivation #Mondaydevotional
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This article was originally published on Patricia’s column for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Saturday – October 12, 2019.

The post Proven Anchors in Anxious Times {The Atlanta Journal-Constitution} appeared first on Soaring With Him Ministries.

These words in the book of the Prophet Isaiah have been especially significant to me for many years. I came across them for the first time shortly after becoming a Christian 25 years ago, and they caught my attention, because of the eagle metaphor.

Eagles have been my favorite animal from an early age. Childhood friends would list puppies and horses as their ideal representative of the animal kingdom, but my heart placed the king of all birds on top of the list.

It all started when my mom brought home an article about eagles when I was about 9 years old. She had seen it in a magazine and painstakingly copied it word by word on a sheet of notebook paper. I sat down beside her, curious about the content as she carefully unfolded the sheet. She then proceeded to dramatically read a beautiful story about an eagle in the face of adversity. I cannot recall the details but remember that the message captured my heart. When she finished, she folded the paper and handed it to me. Looking me in the eye, she held my hand and said:

“You are my eagle. Remember that. The sky is your limit. You can do anything and go anywhere, as long as you persevere and work hard.”

Ever since that day, I have collected eagle statues, eagle pictures, and eagle stories. I have watched the Eagle Cam at Berry College and named my ministry “Soaring with Him” – inspired by the timeless words in the 40th chapter of the book of Isaiah. It’s a borderline obsession.

For centuries, these majestic birds have fascinated and inspired humanity with their brilliant survival and leadership characteristics. The bald eagle is the symbol of our country, its image engraved in the national seal, certain flags and monuments. In some religions, high-soaring eagles are believed to touch the face of God. Mexican legend holds that the Aztecs so revered the bird that they built Tenochtitlan, their capital, at the spot where an eagle perched on a cactus.

While sharing a friend’s prayer request with my husband this morning, I remembered an aspect in the eagles’ makeup that sets them apart from other birds: the way they face storms.

If you were to see an area filled with birds when a storm approaches, you would see two distinct reactions between an eagle and all other feathered creatures. While other birds would try to flee or hide, eagles would take off, in the direction of the dark clouds. Fearlessly, the eagle would fly into the fierce winds, using the storm current to rise higher quickly. The pressure of the storm is used to help them glide without using their energy as their wings’ unique design allows them to lock in a fixed position amid the violent storm winds.

The eagle instinctively knows it: Just past the storm, in the high heavens, there is peace and security. It is the perfect hiding place.

The eagle instinctively knows it: Just past the storm, in the high heavens, there is peace and security. It is the perfect hiding place.
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My friend is facing a storm which my husband and I know well. As she shared her struggles with me, I could hear the uncertainty, fear and confusion in her voice. “I thought I was doing God’s will.” “I don’t understand why the door will not open.” “Should we move? Should we change something?

”Oh, how well do I know the feeling!

Maybe you do too. You may have done everything, obeyed God and said yes to His direction, blindly trusting that He would come forth with the deliverance, provision or healing. Yet, months and sometimes years go by, and the storm does not seem to die down. You certainly do not seem to be rising above it either.

Can I encourage you today, dear reader? I soar “on wings like eagles,” joyfully and above some vicious, fierce storms.

Unemployment? Check. Cancer? Check. Betrayal? Check. Regardless, I can testify that God indeed used each storm to shake my faith so that fragments of unbelief would fall out. Then, as I courageously locked my wings, determined not to give up, He rose me up. Above each tempest… and in His time. Every.single.time.

Strength indeed comes to those who patiently and wholeheartedly trust in the Lord.

God uses storms to shake our faith so that fragments of unbelief may fall out. As we courageously lock our wings, determined not to give up, He raises us up. Above each tempest... and in His time.
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This article was originally published in Patricia’s column for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Saturday – August 3, 2019.

The post Learn from the Eagle: the Challenger of the Storms {The Atlanta Journal Constitution} appeared first on Soaring With Him Ministries.