Life is Hard
I’m stating the obvious: Life is hard. There is so much to learn, so many skills to develop, so much to remember, so much to accomplish every single day!
Set the alarm clock so you’ll wake up on time. Have the self-control to actually wake up when the alarm goes off. Climb out of bed.
Walk through all the mindless steps we follow like robots: go to the bathroom; shower; brush teeth; comb hair; get dressed; eat; take care of the pets; take care of the kids; then drive safely to work or wherever you remember you need to go for the day.
That doesn’t even begin to cover everything your job requires (if you’re working): everything you have learned to do at work; all the people you have to work alongside; new trainings you have to take; every detail you have to remember in order to avoid major blunders.
On top of all that, the world is in a bit of chaos lately: the news says everything is getting worse; you have to be careful what you say to people on an assortment of topics for fear of offending; your kid isn’t talking to you since you grounded her.
And, just for fun, also remember to: pay your bills; fill the car with gas; schedule a date night with your spouse; send your mom a Mother’s Day card; repair the squeaky screen door. Then set your alarm so you can do it all over again tomorrow. What could go wrong to ruin a day like that?
We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to get everything right! We have such high expectations that when we mess up any of these things, we feel like we are failing, and we feel like the world is judging us. Probably because it is. According to social media, you are losing and your childhood enemy is doing much better in life than you are. It’s no wonder so many people worry, have panic attacks, and feel lost in the dark clouds of depression.
To make your life even more of a struggle than I’ve already described, whether you acknowledge it or not, you have an enemy who is trying to ruin your life! Jesus describes this enemy (Satan) by saying in John 10:10 – “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy”.
So yes, on top of everything that could go wrong, you also have an enemy trying to make sure that if it can go wrong and ruin your day, it will! Yikes!
Those of you who struggle with anxiety, I imagine right now you’re not exactly sure why you came today. I’m guessing this introduction didn’t help you relax; but I wanted to help us all understand that – you know what? – Life is hard. And because of that, it’s OK not to feel OK. Satan doesn’t want you to believe that, but you can’t trust anything he says. (More about that later.)
As you know, today we’re continuing our series called “Anxious for Nothing,” based on Philippians 4:4-9. Last week I challenged you all to try to memorize this passage over these next few weeks or at least to read it regularly to become more familiar with it. With that in mind, let’s read it together now.
Philippians 4:4-9 – 4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8Finally, 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. 9Whatever 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.
In future weeks we will dive into the advice Paul gives on finding the peace from God described in this passage. Today, we will begin by looking at the lies Satan tells you to trap you in your anxiety and despair. Remember, he wants to ruin your life! He’s your opponent who is trying to destroy you. Like any team preparing for a big game, you are more successful when you study your opponent and recognize their strategy and tactics. That is what we are going to do today.
Satan is a Liar
How you respond to the moment-to-moment situations in life is completely shaped by what you believe to be true. Essentially, your actions are shaped by your beliefs. That’s why people respond to challenges differently – because they hold different beliefs. When it comes to anxiety:
- If you believe you are such a mess that no one will understand, then you will try to hide your feelings.
- If you believe that Christians should all experience easy lives because of their relationship with Jesus, they you will feel guilty when you struggle.
- If you believe that anxiety is simply your lot to bear in life, then you will lose all hope for your life to ever get better.
Back to our opponent – Satan. One of his primary tactics in all of life (not just mental health) is to skew what you believe about yourself, your God, and your situation, and to trap you into a never-ending cycle of worry and despair. He wants you to imprison yourself with your feelings and worries. He wants you to miss out on everything good God made for you.
Jesus tells us Satan is the father of lies.
John 8:44 – You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
A huge part of fighting for your mental health is understanding the lies you are believing about yourself and your situation, and replacing these lies with the truth from God’s Word. I know – in your darkest moments these lies may FEEL like truth, but they are not! They are the walls Satan has set up to confine you in a life of misery. You must understand that Satan is lying to you and it is time to stop believing his lies!
Exposing the Lies
LIE: Christians Shouldn’t Struggle.
People often mistakenly believe that if you trust Jesus you shouldn’t have mental health struggles. The peace and joy described in the Bible should be yours so long as you have enough faith. Therefore when you DO struggle you feel it is a stigma that marks you as one without faith. So you hide your struggles while your shame and embarrassment eat away at you, forcing you to put on your mask each Sunday and tell people you had another great week. Or worse, it pushes you away from church altogether so you can simply avoid the awkward question “How are you doing?”
It’s OK if you struggle! Being a Christian isn’t a guarantee of perfect health, a perfect family, perfect kids, or perfect mental health. At this church we are all imperfect people pursuing a perfect God, and it’s OK to struggle in your imperfection.
Tied to that, some people think mental health struggles are always tied to faith, and so the only answer is to work on your spiritual life. However, a great deal more goes into mental health. True, there are spiritual solutions that will help with your anxiety, but there are sometimes medical solutions or therapeutic solutions. In addition, basic pieces of advice like getting enough sleep and eating healthier meals play a role in helping a person find healing and wholeness.
LIE: You Are Crazy.
In the middle of a dark time it is common to feel like there is something wrong with you, as if you are flawed or losing your mind. You may begin to feel like a freak or a misfit or that you are worse than others who don’t have these struggles. When the lie that you are crazy begins to take root in your mind, you must remember that we all are broken – just broken differently. We all wrestle with the results of sin that made this world a mess.
Some struggle with physical disease, some with addictions. Some struggle with temptations for greed, power, or lust. And you struggle with worry. Not worse, not better – but certainly not crazy!
The truth is that you are highly prized and made in God’s image. You are so loved by God that He sent His Son to die for your sin and your mess so you could be adopted into His family, even with your anxious thoughts. You don’t have to defeat this issue to gain God’s approval. Hebrews 4:16 tells you to “approach God’s throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.” His arms are open with for you to go to Him and tell Him how you feel – exactly how you feel! He won’t judge you.
LIE: You Are All Alone.
Satan loves to make people feel like no one could relate to their feelings, so you might as well not tell anyone. You’d be wasting your breath. Or worse, people would think you were crazy. So you believe the lie that you are the only person feeling this way, which is ironic because mental health problems are the most common health issue in America. In THOSE moments, though, even though you might know the facts, it’s still easy to believe nobody has it as bad as you.
So you try to hide how you feel. You don’t share you real doubts and worries with anyone. You isolate yourself so you can ruminate on your anxious thoughts all night, keeping yourself from healthy relationships and sleep. Even in a house filled with family members who care about you and worry about you, you might still feel all alone. If that’s you, I want to assure you, you are not alone. Many people have felt how you feel, and many people want to help you feel better.
The Bible is filled with the honest feelings of heroes who are so depressed that they feel as if they are totally alone and death is right around the corner.
David felt it – Psalm 42:5-9 – “Why, my soul, are you downcast Why so disturbed within me? . . . I say to God my Rock, ‘Why have you forgotten me?’”
Paul felt it – 2 Corinthians 1:8 – “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself.”
Even Jesus felt it – Matthew 26:36-38 – “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.”
At least you can know you’re in good company.
When you feel all alone, it helps to talk to others about how you feel. Talk to a parent, a friend, a therapist, a pastor. You must break the silence. You must share the load you are carrying with others who can help.
We often look at Ecclesiastes 4 as a passage about marriage, but what if you thought about it in terms of your mental health support team?
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 – Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor; if either of them falls down, one can help the other up, but pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them, up.
Stop allowing your feelings of shame or embarrassment (based on the LIE that you are all alone) keep you from reaching out for help. On your own, you won’t beat this. With a team of people who want better for you, who will walk this road with you, and who will carry you when you have nothing left to give, this will end.
LIE: This Will Never End.
That’s the final lie Satan whispers in your ear. You have suffered for so long – maybe as long as you can remember – and so you feel that this is simply your lot in life. You believe the lie that this will never end; there is no hope for better. So is life even worth it anymore? This is where anxiety often is tied with depression and hopelessness.
Fortunately, God is a God of comebacks. Like a good movie that shows the down-and-out fighter finally triumphing, God wants to see you break free from the lies of the enemy and experience victory over your anxiety.
We see this storyline time and time again in the Bible.
Joseph, the kid with the colorful coat, was put into prison for doing nothing wrong. And yet, in the end, God exalted him to prominence under Pharaoh.
Moses was banished to the wilderness for 40 years to serve as a shepherd for another man’s sheep. And then, in a burning bush, God called him to something greater.
Even Jesus’s disciples looked like scared little children, scattered and hiding when Jesus died on the cross. And yet, the disciples became the pillars of the Church as it expanded all around the world.
Philippians 1:6 – He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
This means God finishes what He starts. He will not let all your prayers and pleadings fall on deaf ears. He is a God who wants to make you whole again.
Conclusion
If you are struggling with worry and anxiety, I encourage you to reject Satan’s lies and see the truth of God’s Word. Yes, the enemy’s statements may FEEL true in your darkest moments, but you must understand that your feelings are subjective. The objective truth is that these are all arrows of lies shot from the mouth of your adversary trying to derail you. God wants you to know:
- You are a loved and valued child of God. Imperfect, yes; but loved nonetheless.
- Others have felt like you feel and have worked through those feelings.
- You need to talk to people you trust and let them help you carry this burden.
If someone you love is struggling, I hope this helps you understand their struggle a bit more. I want you to remember those lies and refute them.
Share words of encouragement with those you love. Tell them:
- It’s okay to struggle.
- You are not crazy.
- You are not alone.
Those words are like balm to people who allow their worries to spiral into even bigger worries about their own thought life.
Remember where I began this message, showing you the words of Jesus about our enemy who wants to destroy us. Let’s see what He said next:
John 10:10 – “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.”
Jesus wants you to experience the abundance of a life filled with hope, joy and peace. That life is attainable. The goal for every person is that “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7) May that be your prayer as you learn to reject the lies of the enemy and fight for your peace.
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