Archive for the ‘Panic Disorder Support’ Category

Fear of Fear -Pt. 2 (Cause and Key)

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 1, 2008| 4 Comments »

 

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Up to this point we have seen that Paul, in our example of someone who had the fear of crossing bridges, did not know what was happening to him and his problems kept getting worse.

We looked at two things he had to understand in order to be an overcomer of these fears.

1.  His fear was real.

2.  His fear was wrong and sinful.

Now we are going to look at some other points:

3. His fear was not of bridges; it was a fear that had become associated with bridges.

It is very important to understand this. He needed to recognize that the bridges did not cause his fear.  There is no reason to be afraid of bridges.  Kim, the person in our example that is afraid of cars, needs to recognize that the cars themselves are not her problem.  The car does not cause the fear.

My first panic attack occurred at work.  It was the most horrible experience I had ever had up to that point in my life.  I was terrified and thought for sure I would die. I was convinced it was my heart. But I didn’t die.  I went to the doctor and he said I’d most likely been overdoing it and to take a couple of days off and rest.  He also gave me some tranquilizers if I remember correctly.  I followed his instructions.  But, at the end of those days off I had to go back and face the same place where I had that traumatic experience.  As I think back that was a VERY stressful period in my life and it is no wonder my body said, “enough.”  Physically, I was out of shape.  I didn’t eat right or exercise.  I drank and smoked, and partied all I could.  I was emotionally upset a lot with relationships and work stress.  And, I was spiritually bankrupt, as I didn’t know Christ as Lord and Savior.  It is no wonder I had that first frightful panic attack.

A little time passed and I had another attack at work.  I didn’t know what I was having were panic attacks, I simply called them “spells.” I don’t think the doctors even knew what they were back then. I was completely in the dark. I went into a downward spiral.  I truly became afraid of my office.  I didn’t want to go and as I got more tired and stressed out I began to miss days, I showed up late, and tried to find peace in more drink.  It didn’t work.  Soon, I had a panic attack in the grocery store.  Another place to fear.

Next, it happened in the bank as I waited in line.  Lines became an issue with me. My point is my world became smaller and smaller.  I quit my job.  I fell out of society and stayed at home all I could.  I got other people to do the necessary things for me and I hid out in my “safe place.”  I had Agoraphobia. It didn’t have a life anymore, I only existed! I felt hopeless.  

I get many emails from people just like I was.  They feel hopeless and helpless.  They don’t know where to turn. Perhaps you can identify with me too. The good news is that I did become an overcomer and I believe you all can if you just realize what is going on and learn how to deal with it. 

4. Paul’s real fear was of the experiences.  (The cause of fear)

The bridges were not the cause of Paul’s fear.  The car is not the cause of Kim’s fear.  And, all those places: the store, my office, the bank, the post office, and so many more were not the cause of my fear.  Once I found that out, it did help me.  I was experiencing fear of fear.  I was afraid of those awful feelings I had experienced in those places.  It took me a long time to see that, but when I did it was a real eye-opener.

Fear of fear is dreading to go somewhere or do something because some time before when we went to that particular type of place or did that particular thing we had a bad experience and were terrified with the emotions and symptoms that flooded us. That was fear and we wanted to escape.  Now we fear having that same fear again so we avoid those situations.  That is fear of fear.  We are not afraid of the place really, but of the feelings of fear we got there.   

So, bridges, cars, the workplace, grocery stores, banks, the post office, or doctor’s office, don’t produce these experiences. I hope you can see this.  It is so important. We know logically that cars and bridges don’t produce panic attacks.  We know that. We’ve all been over many bridges and we’ve all been in many cars.  They are not the culprits. 

Romans 8:15 (NIV) “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship.  And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”

We don’t have to live as a slave to fear.  We can change. 

5. The key to becoming an overcomer.

It is our own thoughts that produce panic attacks.  We have had panic attacks, we produce them ourselves by the bad thought habits we have picked up, and that means that we can stop producing them by a change in our thought habits.  Isn’t that wonderful?  There is hope after all.

Psalm 34:4 (KJV) “I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears”

God wants to deliver us from all our fears.  Isn’t that wonderful?  That is His will for us.

6. There is not some mysterious thing going on.

It is really very simple.  Our thoughts effect how we feel.  We think ahead about going to the store, riding in a car, or crossing a bridge and because we associate our former bad feelings with these things we blame them and think it will happen again.  But, in reality we are anticipating anxiety.  We are looking for it. We set ourselves up for it.

We develop or produce it by worry.  Our minds center on what we think might happen.  We get vivid mental pictures of what might happen when we cross the bridge, drive the car, and shop in a store.  These pictures take on the “what if,” scenarios. We worry about “what if,” I get shaky, “what if” I pass out, “what if” my heart beats too fast, and everything else we can imagine.  When we do this our bodies react as though these things were happening right then and releases adrenaline, which in turn brings about the symptoms we are so afraid of. Sometimes we say, “it just came over me, out of the blue.”  But, it didn’t just come over us out of the blue because we allowed our thoughts to get control and take advantage of us.  The answer is to work on the way we think. 

II Corinthians 10:5 (NIV) “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 

It is possible for us to be in control of our thoughts.  If it weren’t God would not have said so. 

Dear God, I lift up those who are reading this now.  Lord help them to see that there is a way out of the bondage of fear.  Help them realize that you are the answer.  Lord, please set them free.  Your Word says you came to set the captive free, and I pray that for any here who are slaves to fear.  In Jesus’ name I pray. Thy will be done.  Amen.

Next time we will dig a bit further into this subject.  Stay tuned! 

Check out my blog at www.hatchcreek.wordpress.com

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Fear of Fear -Pt. 1

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Religion, Scripture, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 26, 2008| 3 Comments »

Mister Woodpecker looking for a tidbit!

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Kim talked about having bad panic attacks when in a car.  She does pretty well at home but even the thought of going somewhere in the car starts her anxiety level to go up. This has become a serious problem for her and she can no longer enjoy taking rides or trips with her family. She struggles with this every day.

I’ve been reading some things by Jay E. Adams who is a highly respected Bible counselor.  In The Christian Counselor’s Manual, 1973 Zondervan Publishing House,  he talks about a man, Paul, who was afraid of driving over bridges.  It all started when he had a terrifying experience while crossing a bridge.  This was actually caused by a significant sleep loss.  After this experience whenever he approached a bridge he became uncontrollably fearful and agitated.  These later episodes were not actually from the previous sleep loss but stemmed from the fear of the previous experience.  Adams says, “He had associated the experience with  bridges, and in his anxiety over whether it would occur again while crossing the bridge, he had emotionally spiraled himself into a panic.” After that even the thought of crossing a bridge brought him a sense of apprehension. 

Most of us can identify with Kim and Paul’s problems. Paul’s sounds very much like what is happening with Kim only she has associated her bad experiences with a car?  She has had bad experiences while driving or riding in a car so now she gets nervous and starts to build up anxiety whenever she even thinks about going somewhere. She is anticipating panic.

Jay Adams said that the man “had to recognize certain facts and act in a Christian manner in accordance with them.”  We will look at some of them.  I’ve also added some of my own as I’ve gone through panic attacks myself. This my take more than one post, but here is part 1: 

1. His fear was real. 

There is real fear.  Paul’s was a fear of bridges, and Kim’s is a fear of cars. 

Maybe your fear is of the grocery store, bank, post office, driving, or something else.  I had many fears that kept me from living a normal life for many years.  I missed out on the most productive years.  I pray that you will learn something here that will keep you from following in my foot steps.

And, if you have already have had panic attacks for years don’t give up!  I truly believe that you can change too!  All with the help of our Wonderful Savior!  We just need to realize what is actually going on.

2. His fear was wrong and sinful.

We’ve talked about Dr. Claire Weekes’ books and how she taught acceptance.  She said we should accept those first feelings or symptoms and then kind of float through or past a panic attack.  I can understand what she is saying. If we get that first feeling then say to ourselves, “so what,” and kind of float by it we can sometimes keep ourselves from having a panic attack.  When we accept the feeling we don’t tense up so much and instead of tightening our muscles and bodies we relax a little bit and that takes the bit out of the attack.

I believe Dr. Weekes is a wonderful person and has helped a lot of people over the years.  I myself have all of her books in my library and they helped me understand the physical side of panic attacks.  I learned what was going on in my body when I had all those strange feelings.  This is good but it is not the total answer to being healed.  Her books are not written from a Christian perspective but from a secular world view.  Anyone can be helped to a certain extent from her books, believers and unbelievers alike.

But, as Christians we have something special.  God have given us the Holy Spirit to live within us and with Him all the power that we need to be overcomers of anything in our lives.  Our resources are different from those of the world.  We have the Word of God, the privilege of prayer, the Holy Spirit to teach and guide us.  I hope you realize how much more we have in Christ.  We are not the same as unbelievers and we do not have to live the same. 

Let’s go to the Word of God and apply what God says to our problems.

Psalms 1:1-2 NASB How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!  But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.

God tells us not to get our counseling from the world but from His Word.
We should love the Word and take delight in it.  Keep it in our hearts and think about it all the time.  

Psalms 73:24 NASB With Your counsel You will guide me, And afterward receive me to glory.

He will guide us as we follow His Word, and when we die He will receive us in Heaven.  That is wonderful!

Isaiah 9:6 NASB For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

Jesus is our counselor.  And one of His names is Wonderful Counselor!  How great is that?

We’ve learned in past posts that there are different types of fear.  We looked at; fear of the future, fear of man, and fear of death. These fears are sinful fears. 

But, we also saw there are good fears as well.  These are natural fears (which keep us from hurting ourselves) and most importantly the fear of God. These are holy fears.

Proverbs 29:25 NASB The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted.

Philippians 4:6 NASB Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

2 Timothy 1:7 NASB For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.

We can plainly see that God tells us in the Word that we are not to fear.  I remember when I first saw the verse “Be anxious for nothing…” It really shook me up.  Here I was an anxiety-ridden, wimpy person who didn’t dare to hardly exist, and He said “don’t be anxious?”  I was dripping with anxiety!

I put that verse in the back of my head for awhile and didn’t deal with it.  That was a mistake.  I wondered if it really meant what it seemed to.  It did. As I studied my Bible more I had to admit that worry and anxiety were indeed sinful.  That was a hard lesson for me. 

Matthew 6:27 NASB “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?”

Matthew 6:34 NASB “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

It is clear that God does not want us to worry and fret.  He is Sovereign and will take care of us.  If He tells us not to do something and we go ahead and do it, that is a sin.  I’m sorry, but it is true.

It means we are not to be anxious and we are not to worry.  They are both sins.  That is heavy stuff isn’t it?  It is a hard pill to swallow, but when we face it head on in Truth we will become overcomers.

Wayne & Joshua Mack in The Fear Factor, 2002 Hensley Publishing, said this, “The root meaning of phobo, the Greek term for fear, is “flight.”  That’s the nature of fear.  Fear causes us to run away from things that frighten us.  And fear becomes sinful when it causes us to run away from the things God has commanded us to do.”

He goes on to tell us that fear is the opposite of power and is the same as weakness.  When we can’t use our gifts and when we are not fulfilling our responsibilities and obeying God’s commands we are weak.  I can certainly identify with that.  I was so weak and fearful that I did not do anything constructive for a very long time.  I could not even go to church let alone be a helpful person there.  I could not have a social life.  I could not work.  I could not live a fulfilling life. I could not help others very much for a long time. One plus, I did pray a lot for others.  It took me a long time to learn the things I’m about to share with you. 

We will close on those thoughts for this time.  But, I want you to know that there is hope for you.  You can learn how to overcome those awful panic attacks with the help of our Mighty Savior.

May God richly bless you today!

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Good Kinds of Fear!

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Gospel, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 17, 2008| 1 Comment »

Mourning Dove

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In my last post we looked at different kinds of fears.  We saw that they were the fear of man, the fear of death, and the fear of the future.  A lot of our fears fall under these groupings.  These are all sinful fears. 

Today I want to address some good kinds of fears.  Yes, there are good fears!  Our goals should not be to eliminate all fear but to distinguish between what are the good kinds and what are the sinful ones.  After all, God made us with the ability to fear. 

Natural Fear:

Proverbs 22:3 NASB The prudent sees the evil and hides himself, But the naive go on, and are punished for it.

This shows that man sees the danger ahead and takes steps to avoid it.

The fear of falling off a cliff, for example, is a natural kind of fear.  It is healthy to prevent us from taking that next step when we come up to the edge of the cliff.  Also, the fear of a wild animal is a natural good kind of fear.  It helps our bodies rev up so that we can run and escape. 

However, when we have  a panic attack our bodies go into this kind of fear when there is no real danger. This is not healthy. There could be many reasons why this happens the first time.  I’ve talked about that in a previous message where we talked about the physical side of panic disorder.  The problem is that our bodies get sensitized when we continue to have panic attacks and it is easy for us to slip into this kind of fear at the drop of a hat.  The way out of having panic attacks is to make more time between the attacks, by not pushing ourselves, resting, and let our bodies readjust.

Isaiah 7:25 NASB As for all the hills which used to be cultivated with the hoe, you will not go there for fear of briars and thorns;

This is saying one would fear the briars and thorns as they will cut and scrape you and be painful.  That is natural fear.

Wayne Mack says in his book, The Fear Factor, “The problem is, our sinful nature takes this good, helpful emotion and twists, perverts and distorts it.  As a result, it’s no longer productive but paralyzing, no longer natural but sinful.”

Holy Fear:

Proverbs 1:7 NASB The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 14:27 NASB The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, That one may avoid the snares of death.

Psalms 31:19 NASB How great is Your goodness, Which You have stored up for those who fear You, Which You have wrought for those who take refuge in You, Before the sons of men!

Again I would like to quote from Wayne Mack because this is so good.  Here he shows the differences.

“Holy fear and sinful fear are opposites.  Sinful fear destroys; holy fear enlivens.  Sinful fear is a terrible affliction; holy fear is a great benefit.  Sinful fear shortens our days; holy fear lengthens them.  Sinful fear is a source of misery; holy fear is a spring of joy.  Sinful fear leads men astray; holy fear puts men on the right path.  They only way to overcome sinful fear is to replace it with holy fear.”

There you go.  We are back to “put-offs,” and “put-ons.”  We have to put off the bad fear and put on the good kind of fear. 

You may ask, what is this holy fear you are talking about?  It is the fear of God.  There are many scriptures that talk about the fear of God.   

Results of Holy Fear:

1.  It produces a fear of sin.

Philippians 2:12 NASB So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;

Working out our salvation with fear and trembling means that it is a serious business.  We shouldn’t take it for granted.  We need to keep studying the Word and learn how we can obey what God says.  We should not take sin lightly.  We recognize it for what it is and repent and get right with God.

2.  It produces a fear of God’s Word.

Proverbs 16:6 NASB  And by the fear of the LORD one keeps away from evil.

The only way we can know God and know what he expects of us is to read and study the Bible.  As we do we will realize many things that God wants us to change or do in our lives.  We obey out of high respect and honor to God.  He first loved us, and now we love Him.  We should have a heart attitude of pleasing Him.  When we do this we will not fall into sin.

3. It produces knowledge and wisdom.

Proverbs 1:7  NASB “The fear of he Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” 

Proverbs 15:33  NASB “The fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom.

True wisdom and knowledge are found in the Word of God.  We learn what the Bible says and then wisdom gives us the ability to apply it to our lives.

Psalms 119:11 NASB Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.

That is wisdom.

4.  It produces joy and contentment.

Proverbs 15:16 NASB  Better is a little with the fear of the LORD Than great treasure and turmoil with it.

Isn’t that the truth?  I’d much rather have little of this world’s wealth then be rich and have all the problems that it entails.  People talk about winning the lottery and they’d be happy.  I don’t think so.

As you can see the Bible is where we need to turn to discover how to live our lives in a healthy and blessed way. 

The Fear Factor: What Satan Doesn’t Want You to Know by Wayne and Joshua Mack can be found here:

www.mackministeries.org. 

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Kinds of Fear!

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on March 10, 2008| 3 Comments »

 

Pretty Bird!

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In my last post in this series we talked about the fact that we can change bad habits.  When we become a Christian we are literally changed as the Bible says we are  new creations in Christ.

But, we still seem to have a backpack full of old habits that we carry around.  We saw from the Bible that we have to “put-off” off bad habits and “put-on” new acceptable ones.  Hopefully you made a list of the things you need to “put-off” and what you need to replace them with, and are working on them.

I’ve been reading a wonderful book by Wayne and Joshua Mack called, The Fear Factor, What Satan Doesn’t Want You to Know.  Now that I’ve finished it I can highly recommend it to you.  It isn’t about panic attacks specifically, but is about how fear can cripple anyone even if they don’t have panic disorder. So, even when we are overcomers of panic attacks we need to know how fear can still control us.  This book is loaded with good mental health and is truly biblical.

If you are interested in purchasing it you can go here:  www.mackministeries.org

2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Our bad fear habits do not come from God.  I used to think that Satan causes them, but I am now of the opinion that even though Satan likes us to be fearful, he doesn’t keep us that way. We cannot blame him.  If you think about it, there is only one devil and he cannot be everywhere at once like God can, and he doesn’t know everything like God does, and he is not all powerful like God is. I believe he has bigger fish to fry than us, like the leaders of enemy nations, for example.  So, what causes us to continue to fear in an unhealthy way?  I believe it is those old fear habits that we have carried over in our way of thinking.

Today, I’d like to talk a bit about the different types of fears we encounter.  We made a list of them awhile back.

When I had panic attacks I had many fears.  In fact, in my book, Panic Buster, I had a list of 28 different fears. Those were the ones I could think of at the time, there were most likely more.

I want to try to put some of those fears and some of the ones you gave me in categories so that we can see more clearly what is behind our fears.

Fear of the future, fear of death, and fear of man are some of the main categories of fear.  I looked over our lists and come up with the following: 

Fear of the future:

Isaiah 41:10 ‘Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

So many of our fears can come under the heading of “fear of the future.”  If you think about it any fear that has to do with the future even if it is a few hours away can come under that heading.  For instance: fear of going to the store, fear of leaving the house, fear of the weather, fear of losing control, fear of going crazy, the next panic attack. dying and leaving children without a mother (this is also fear of death), stroke, heart attack, blood clots, (health problems),  feeling disconnected from yourself,  fear of the unknown, fear of aging. Any time we put off doing something because we are fearful it could be the fear of the future.

Why should we be anxious and fearful of things in the future when we have God on our side?  We don’t realize that He is big enough to handle all of our anxiety. 

1 Peter 5:7 casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

Psalms 32:7 You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.

Psalms 143:9 Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies; I take refuge in You.

Why are we afraid of the future?  We shouldn’t be.  After all we are in God’s hands.  This is sinful fear.  And, we must repent of it and then go on with God.

Fear of death:

Hebrews 2:15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Many of our fears also come under the heading of fear of death.  Some are: passing out, driving, bees, crossing the street, someone in the house, the dark, losing control, bathtub water, gas fumes, tornados and blizzards, flying. 

The “bathtub water,” one was one of mine.   You might ask why that?  Well, to me it felt like I might go under the water and drown.  It was especially fearful if I was alone.  I know that was in irrational fear.  So many of them were.  Also, if a bee came around I took off in my own flight.  I was so afraid that it would sting me and I would die.  But, I’m not even allergic to them.  

It seems strange now that I could have been so afraid of such things.  I thank God that he has erased most of this from my memory.  I don’t think about all this usually, only when I’m trying to write.   Crossing the street was another big one for me.  I had to cross to get the mail.  I’d wait and wait then suddenly dash across when I thought the way was clear.  I lived in the country so there wasn’t really much traffic.

That was another irrational fear.   

Fear of man:

Proverbs 29:25 The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.

Wayne Mack says, “The fear of man is a broad biblical category for many specific sins.”

Dr. Ed Welch says speaking of fear of man, “it includes being afraid of someone, but it extends to holding someone in awe, being controlled or mastered by people, worshiping other people, putting your trust in people.”

We might not recognize this fear as much, but it is there.  Fear of people, crowds, witnessing for Christ, doctors, dentists, talking to people, being honest, telling about our fears.  I remember hiding my fears from my family and doctor.  I did not know what they would think of me.  I also became very dependent on other people instead of God.   I had the fear of man.  That was behind my fears in this area.  Do you sometimes not do something or say something because you are afraid of what others would think of you?  We’ve all done it.  If this is one of your habits you need to work on replacing it with good ones. 

Fear of God:

Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Someone  said “fear of God, seeing and hearing Him.”  Guess what?  That is a good fear.

There are both holy fears and sinful fears.  We have to distinguish between the two.

Blessings,
Bonnie

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You Can Change Bad Habits!

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Gospel, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Testimonies, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 3, 2008| 3 Comments »

 Wintry Blast of Ice and Snow!

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We’ve been looking at the spiritual side of our lives.  We have seen that once we are saved we are a new creation.  God gives us a new heart and the ability to change.  Isn’t that wonderful?  What I like about this is that God makes it possible for us to change.

We have many old habits that tag along with us and keep right on popping up in our lives.  We have to get rid of them.  The Bible tells us that the way to do it is to put-off the old habits and for every one we put off, we are to put-on new habits. It out with the old and in with the new!

As we study the Bible we need to evaluate all that we think, say, and do, and see if it lines up with scripture.  When it doesn’t then need to change.

Romans 6:12-14 NASB Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Isn’t it great that God has made a way for us to change?  We do not have to be a slave to sin again. 

Let’s take a look at some of the “put-offs.”

Ephesians 4:25-31 NASB Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another. BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity. He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.  Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.  Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.

Colossians 3:8 NASB But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,

When we notice a habit that we need to change. We must confess our sinful behavior to God.

1 John 1:9 NSAB  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

In order to change from our old bad habits, we not only have to put off the old habits, but we must replace them with good habits.

Romans 6:19 NASB  I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.

Now let’s take a look at some of the “put-ons.”

Colossians 3:10 NASB  and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him–

Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another.

Ephesians 4:28-29 NASB He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.

Ephesians 4:32 NASB Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

Colossians 3:12 -17 NASB So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

2 Peter 1:5-8 NASB Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Study these lists of put-offs and put-ons.  Then, you could make a list for yourself.  On one side write the “put-offs” and opposite of that write down the thing you need to “put-on” in place of the old bad habit.  When we replace bad habits that are not Biblical with good habits that are Biblical we will see a lot of growth in our Christian life, and God will bless us for it.

Yes, we can live as believers and not as unbelievers.  Our Lord is  gracious in that He gave us His Word so that we can really get down to where the rubber meets the road and make changes that He desires for us.  He made us and knows how we should live.  We came into this world and got caught up in it.  It has influenced all of us in a negative way.  We all have things we need to work on and I pray that is study will help you change your habits.  

Blessings,

Bonnie

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Believer or Unbeliever?

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, Gospel, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on February 25, 2008| 1 Comment »

              

February2008 001

Previously we talked about how different we are in God’s eyes when we are not saved and when we are saved.  We saw from the Word there is a great deal of difference.

Now that we are believers are we living like a believer, or are we still living like an unbeliever?

If you are not living as a believer, then you must examine yourself as the Bible says.  If there is any doubt in your mind about whether or not you are truly born again, please write to me privately, and we will go over it together.  This is very important because the things we will learn will not work for the unbeliever. 

2 Corinthians 13:5 Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you–unless indeed you fail the test?

“When you see our situation the same way you would if you were still an unbeliever, you are failing to realize what a great gift God has given you.”  (Wayne Mack, The Fear Factor, Hensley Publishing, pg.18.)  That gift is the Holy Spirit and all the resources God has.

You see we don’t have to live the same as before.  We don’t have to carry all our old baggage with us when we become believers.  Take a look at your own life.  Can you see any changes in your before and after picture?  Did you have panic disorder before you were a Christian?  I did.  When I became a Christian I did not know that God had made a way for me to be rid of fear.  But, it was still true.  It took me many years of Bible study to learn this.  That is why it took me so long to get better. 

When we become a true believer something wonderful happens to us.  God creates in us a new person.  We are not the same.  It is a supernatural work that the Lord does. We don’t look any different in our bodies, it is a spiritual new birth.  God gives us the Holy Spirit to come and live inside us.  Knowing this gives us the hope we need to be overcomers of any situation that comes up in our lives.

The world teaches us that the key to success is to “believe in yourself.”  Have “self-confidence” and good “self-esteem.”  Well, no matter how much you believe in yourself, and feel good about yourself it just won’t hold up.  We are not that powerful.  We cannot stop things from happening in our lives.  God is the only one who can control everything.  Isn’t that true? 

Look at the verse below.  It plainly says that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature.  The old things passed away and brand new things have come.  Isn’t that amazing?  We are actually new creations in Christ! 

2 Corinthians 5:17 ‘Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

I love that verse because it tells me I am now different.  It is possible for me to change.  It gives me hope.  I want you also to have that hope.  You can change too.  Fear and anxiety, or whatever other thing plagues you, don’t have to dog us all the days of our lives.  We can be victorious.

Here is a story to illustrate this:

Suppose there was a very poor person who had a job but didn’t have any way to get there.  So, everyday, that man had to get up extra early to walk the five miles to work.  Then, after putting in a full-days work he had to walk all the way back home.  He was exhausted, and all he could do was eat some soup and go right to bed to be ready for the next day.  He didn’t have a home life with his wife and children.  All he did was toil and rest.  Sounds like a pretty boring existence doesn’t it?

Then one day along came a rich man who saw this man’s plight and said to him, “Here I will give you this brand new car.  It has a full tank of gas.  Oh, yes, take this, it’s a gas card so that whenever you need a refill you can fill up the tank.”  The poor man was very grateful and carefully parked the car in his driveway.

The next morning he got up and walked to work again and then walked home that evening as had been his habit. He continued on this same way ignoring the wonderful free gift the rich man had given him.  Oh, he would take the car out on Sunday and drive it to church and back but that was it.

What is wrong with this picture?  It is plain to see that the poor man was not taking advantage of the free gift that was given him.

Isn’t that how some of us live the Christian life?  We have been given so much from the Master, but do we really apply it to our lives?  He has made us a brand new creation spiritually in Christ. Not only that, He has given us the fuel to run on, the Holy Spirit.   That is similar to how the gas in the car gives the car power to run on.  The Holy Spirit gives us the power we need to do whatever God asks us to.

But, we too, can be like the man in the story and not use what has been freely given us.  It might be because we don’t realize what we have.  Or, it can also be like the man who was so used to walking to work that he could not change his habit.  We have many old habits that need changing, and God has given us the power and the ability to change them through salvation and the Holy Spirit. 

Sometimes we are like the man in the story and only show our spiritual side on Sundays when we go to church.  We go, sing songs, listen to a message, and go through the motions, but then just leave everything there behind us. When Monday morning comes along we act like we leave our spiritual side at home.  What a waste!  If we do this we need to examine ourselves and see if we really are in the faith. 

Being a Christian is far more than a Sunday habit.  We need to be in the Bible everyday, pray, and meditate on the Word.  Then, we can activate the power in our lives to conquer fear and anxiety.

Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

That is another amazing and wonderful scripture.

Blessings,

Bonnie

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A Renewed Mind

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 16, 2008| 6 Comments »

Morning Sunrise  

A New Day

When we become Christians we can aquire a renewed mind.  Just as dawn bursts   forth with a new day, we can have a mind that is at peace with the world.

Philippians 4:6 (NASB) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

God doesn’t want us to be anxious about anything.  Our minds are precious to Him and he wants us be at peace.  He tells us not to worry but to pray. We can ask God for anything that is in His will.  He also, say that we must be thankful in our prayers.  We have much to be thankful for.  When we pray and give thanks and then petition God we will want what He thinks is best.  Then, we can leave the problem at His feet and rest in peace.

When we do He goes on to say: 

Philippians 4:7 (The Amplified Bible) “And God’s peace (be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace) which transcends all understanding, shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

Wow!  I think we’d better meditate on that for awhile, don’t you?  These verses are loaded with help and hope for us who are anxious and worry warts.

Wouldn’t you like to have that peace deep down in your soul?  We can be assured that we are saved through Christ and know that He is in control of all things.  We can learn to be content in whatever situation we are in.  This kind of peace can’t even be comprehended in our own finite minds.  This kind of peace will actually guard our thoughts when we are in Jesus Christ.

If we can attain to these scriptures, and we can by the power of the Holy Spirit, we will be living in peace with God and with ourselves.  Anxiety and fear will not have a grip on us anymore!

Then he goes on in verse 8 of Philippians  to tell us what we should think about instead of worrying and fretting.  I will quote this too from the Amplified version of the Bible, as it is so good.

“For the rest, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things—fix your minds on them.” 

When it says, “fix” you mind on them means to get a tight grip on them.  Hang on to them, don’t let them go.  They are actually a good prescription for our mental health. 

Do your thoughts line up with the above?  We have to examine our thoughts and practice to think God’s way in order to renew our minds. It always amazes me to contemplate the fact that God loves us so much that he even cares about what we think.  Isn’t that amazing?  I mean do we really care about what others think?  Or, if we did, do we have any way to know what someone else thinks?  I’d like to know what my husband thinks sometimes, but then again it is probably better that I don’t.

God tells us to “renew our minds.” 

Romans 12:2 (NASB) And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

You see if you work on what you think about you will renew your mind.  And if you keep reading and studying the Word, you will renew your mind.  We all need a mind makeover.  We don’t need to worry and be anxious.  That is not a part of what God wants for us.

Philippians 4:9 (NASB) The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Paul says to practice what you have learned, received and heard and seen in Him.  He had taught them and was an example and role model for them.  And he says to model your way of living in it and then the God of peace—which is of untroubled, undisturbed well-being–will be with you. 

I think the key word in the above verse is “practice.”  You see it doesn’t happen automatically.  We must practice just as an athlete practices and trains for an event.  Practice what you think about and how you think and it will become a habit.  You will be truly blessed by God with peace that passes understanding.

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Faith or Fear?

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Praise, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , , , on November 7, 2007| 3 Comments »

                     Golden Autumn

Golden Autumn

Are you stressed out?  Are you anxious and fearful?  Do you want to be at peace?  Do you realize that your finding peace has everything to do with faith? Without faith you will not become free from anxiety. I can say that with certainty. 

God has given us many promises in the Bible and we need them to live the type of victorious Christian life He wants for us.  But, in order to make those promises active in our own lives we must have faith.  It must be the right kind of faith.

First we need to believe in God.  Second believe in the finished work of Jesus Christ, His son, and third believe that the Word of God is true.  Then, we must take God at His Word.  When He says something, believe it, stand on it, and know that God will not let you down.

We need to apply our faith (in Christ) to the problem of fear and anxiety. We can do this.

We can see God’s handiwork in creation all around us.  That is a good example of something that can help us.  When we get those thoughts of fear and anxiety, we can refocus our minds by taking a good look around us.  We can see God’s handiwork and give thanks and praise to God for his creation, and in doing that we can turn off our stressful thoughts and replace them with God honoring ones.  Do you see how this can help you?

I’m not just coming up with some theory, but I’ve actually done this in my own life so I know.

Also, faith in and of itself has no value. There has to be an object to your faith.  And, that is Jesus.  It is because of Him that we can have faith.  Faith is a gift of God given to us to enable us to know Him and live our Christian lives. 

Colossians 1:4 “For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus (the leaning of our entire human personality on Him in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness) …  Amplified Bible. 

I love this Amplified version of the Bible as it brings out what is clearly said in the scripture. 

I want to challenge you today.  Do you have that kind of faith?  Is it in Christ Jesus only?  Do you have absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness? 

I also want to warn you that there are a lot of teachings out there today that are not truly Biblical.  One such false teaching is the prosperity gospel.  They declare that if you have enough faith you can be rich, and healthy, and have whatever you want.  Do you want a new car?  They say “just believe for it.”  This is a “faith in faith,” kind of thing.  It is almost like having faith in yourself, that you have enough faith to make things happen, or enough faith to make God do something.  That is not scriptural.  We cannot make God do anything, and we shouldn’t try. 

So, let’s be sure that we truly understand what God is talking about when he tells us to have faith, live by faith, and walk by faith. 

For more study on faith read Hebrews Chapter 11.

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