From Anxiety, to PEACE....

Of all the promises God offers us in His Word, the one I have always prayed for and claimed for myself can be found in the book of Phillipians.

"Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.  If you do this, then the Peace of God that passes all human understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus (Phil.4:6,7  NLT, emphasis added.)

The Peace of God....
How on earth do I get that?

As a professional psychotherapist, I have seen many clients with a variety of complaints, but the problem I found to be almost universally common is anxiety.  Human beings seem to be wired to worry!  We worry about our finances, our health, our children, our relationships-- you name it, someone's worrying about it!
If we'd only get it into our heads that God is the only source of true peace, then we could stop worrying!  Whatever your concern,  God has it handled.  I'm sure you've heard the saying: Let Go, Let God!  But even though God has promised us this peace, If we do as He says above in Philippians, most of us don't claim this promise!  Don't you long for that peace?  Oh, how I longed to receive it!

The book of Psalms is a great source for verses related to the subject of peace.
"For you are my hiding place, you protect me from trouble.  You surround me with songs of victory!" (Psalm 32:7)
"The Lord gives His people strength.  The Lord blesses them with peace." (Psalm 29:11)
" I will lie down in peace and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe." (Psalm 4:8.)

As I said, I have treated many people with anxiety, or even panic, but I also have had a personal relationship with anxiety.  Before I had a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and before I finally experienced the peace that only He can provide, I worried about anything and everything!  I was scared to death of life, and scared to death of death!  "What am I doing here?"   Oh, I can't even tell you how many nights I tossed and turned, worrying about my future.  God addresses this worry of the future for us too.
"For I have  a plan for you, a plan to prosper you, and not to harm you.  A plan to give you a hope and a future (Jer. 29:11.)  I repeat this verse over and over again, when things aren't going my way, and I just praise His name that he is in control, that He does have a plan to prosper me, and that anything else I am told about my future is a total LIE of the enemy!  God's promises are for you!  And for me, too!  As a matter of fact, they are for anyone who believes!!!  STAND ON HIS PROMISES!

To be at peace with someone, be it a spouse, parent, friend, or God, is to be in a harmonious relationship with them.. When we ask Jesus Christ to come into our lives, to cleanse us of our sins, and make us brand new creations in Him, we are requesting. and should seek out, a harmonious relationship with God.  You may have accepted Jesus as your Savior, but do you really know Him?  What does a relationship with God look like, and what do you have to do to really be in relationship with God?

First of all, you must believe that not only does God exist, but that YOU MATTER to Him!  He created you in His image (Gen.1)!  You are His child, and He is your Father!   Knowing this, consider prayer.  And I don't mean the kind of repetitive prayer, that was written in some prayer book written by man, I mean REALLY TALKING TO GOD! Tell Him what you are thinking!  He already knows anyway, so you don't have to worry that He'll be shocked by whatever you tell Him.  Tell Him what your true desires are.  Tell Him that you are so grateful to Him for saving you, for making you whole!  Tell Him what you need!  He'll take care of it, if it is in accordance with His will!  But remember this:  if all you do is talk to God in the morning for a minute or two, and then get off of your knees, out to your job or to see to your children, without giving any thought to the fact that God may be TALKING BACK...then you are missing out on a giant part of the relationship!
I remember going out on a first date with a young man that my sister "fixed me up" with.  We went out to dinner together, and as soon as we sat down at the table, he began to tell me all about himself.  I was meeting him for the first time, so of course I wanted to know some things about him.  But because he was so busy talking, to the extent that I never got a word in edgewise, he left that dinner date, not knowing a single thing about me!   I figured he didn't care.  And so it is with God.  If you talk to God, without intently listening with anticipation at what He wants to say to you, you will not get to know what His will is for you, and you will not feel that you have a good relationship, and although I have no proof of this, I imagine that He might wonder why you don't listen.  Relationships go both ways!  Its all about conversation, meditation, communication~~ waiting on God to answer your prayers!  After a while, you'll start to be more sensitive to times when God is trying to show you something, and you WILL hear from Him more often!  And when you are in an ongoing dialogue with Jesus Christ, only then can you really feel that peace...the peace of God that passes all understanding.