I’m No Longer a Slave to Fear and Anxiety

I love the song, “No Longer Slaves,” by Bethel (available on Amazon for $0.99), and Zach Williams’ live rendition from Harding Prison is powerful. A common theme I’ve noticed meeting and counseling Soldiers over the last several months is fearfulness. Fear is a powerful force that can consume our thoughts and perpetuate worry and anxiety. It disrupts our lives and can make sleep and rest elusive.

How do we overcome it? Philippians 4:4-9 provides the antidote. Gratitude, prayer with thanksgiving, thinking about the things God instructs us to dwell upon make fear flee. But it’s important to think about how the fear originates to begin with.

If you’re experiencing the pain of fear in your life, you need to consider the very real possibility God is giving you a spiritual wake-up call. Fear can activate a passion to undergo change that we wouldn’t normally have. It could be a life-changing opportunity God is presenting you to change course and experience His presence, peace, and joy more deeply in ways you never imagined. Don’t waste your pain. Don’t waste your fear.

Now–back to defeating it. Jonathan Edwards once said, “Conversation between God and mankind in this world is maintained by God’s Word (the Bible) on his part, and prayer on ours.” Prayer is the “voice of faith.”

As a child, my father’s voice comforted me. It reduced worry and fear that I had as an adolescent. Spiritually, we need the same relationship with our Heavenly Father. We need to communicate via prayer and hearing His voice through His Word. We need to think back to how He has provided for us and cared for us and our families to this point (gratitude and praying with thanksgiving).

One way we complete the “think about these things” task is through Bible reading. Another way is being still and seeing His power and majesty through nature. Spend a night camping under the stars. Enjoy a nature hike. Admire His creativity through sunrises and sunsets. Gaze upon the stars in the sky and marvel at His handiwork.

Lastly, listen to music that gives glory to God. Worship music reminds us what we believe and the faithfulness of God. I put together 14 worship songs (below) that I believe God will use to chase fear away from your mind and heart. I encourage you to give them a listen and add them to your spiritual arsenal. God wants you to be free from fear and rest in His faithfulness.