Overcoming Anxiety, Depression, Low
Self-esteem, Abuse, Addiction, & Trauma
Anxiety
Anxiety stems from the root of fear. It is essentially the feeling that you have no control. That's right, you don't have control. Do you feel as if anxiety has taken over your world? Do you feel overwhelmed by your job, family and day-to-day activities? Maybe we could just call it "life". It's time for you to take YOUR life back and to find joy in the midst of everyday circumstances. As we gain wisdom and knowledge, not of this world, but in God's Word, you will be able to overcome those anxious thoughts and learn to trust the Lord through life's most difficult challenges.
Depression
You are not alone. More than 264 million people of all ages suffer from depression. According to the Mayo clinic "Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think, and behave, and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems." Let's be honest. In today's world, it is so easy to hide emotions that are in any way related to sadness. We want to pretend that they are not there and that everything is "fine." We want to appear strong and independent. So we suppress those emotions and bury them in the recesses our hearts; hoping that they will go away and not interfere with the relationships that we have or the life that we are currently living. But deep down, we wonder if things will ever change. We wonder if life will ever get better. I'm here to tell you that it CAN! And it WILL!. But we have to do things differently if we want different results. Jesus once said: "I have come that they may have life and that they may have it abundantly." Healing comes in the light. It comes when we open up to God and to others. I want to encourage you to surround yourself with people that can help you live in the truth of God's word. It's time to face this thing head on. It's time to be honest with yourself and win this battle. YOU can do it!
Self-Esteem
Low self-esteem is a thinking disorder in which an individual views him/herself as inadequate, unlovable, and/or incompetent. Once formed, this negative view permeates every thought, producing faulty assumptions and ongoing self-defeating behavior. Psalm 139:13-14 says: "For it was You who created my inward parts; You knit me together in my mothers's womb. I will praise You because I have been fearfully and wonderfully made." Fearfully, when translated from Hebrew, means with great reverence, heart-felt interest and with respect. The Hebrew translation for wonderfully means unique and set apart. This is God's word. There is no one like you. He wants you to know that your identity is in Him, and in Him alone. You were created for a purpose...for such a time as this. What would your life look like and feel like if you stopped comparing yourself to others? The time is now to be everything that He created you to be. It's time to live and walk in FREEDOM.
Abuse
Abuse damages our ability to have healthy relationships. Leslie Vernick says, "All abuse is emotionally destructive and negates the personhood of the victim." It can be incredibly easy to minimize abuse when we encounter it. Why? Because we don't recognize it when it occurs or it has become the norm and we don't think that we are worthy of anything better. If you truly believe that you are loved and worthy of being treated with respect, then you wouldn't find yourself in these never-ending toxic relationships with no way out. When we fail to set appropriate boundaries, this toxicity can spill over into other relationships that we have within the workplace, between friends and at home. Please hear me. You deserve BETTER. It may be difficult to believe, but you should be treated with dignity and respect. It's time to stop making excuses for poor behavior that is directed towards us. It's time to expect good things. It's time to pursue a life of purpose and happiness. It's time to let the cycle of abuse die.
Addiction
Addiction is the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically forming such as narcotics. This is a lonely road. I know because I traveled it for eight years. You may feel as if there is no hope and that you will never change. You may feel defeated and scared to face the truth that this is slowly killing you. What if today was the day that you said: "No more"? What if today was the day that the dream of a new you became reality? The enemy wants you to believe that you can overcome this by yourself. That's a lie. You can't. You need help, and today is the day to make a choice. Choose life by bringing this addiction to light!
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Trauma
God's word says in Genesis 50:20: "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good." Our most intense battles with pain can sometimes be tied to the greater purpose that God has for us. Jesus endured the pain of the cross because of the joy that was set before Him. He did it because He loves us. As we walk with Him by faith, He can bring beauty for ashes. One of the most frequently asked questions when we have endured trauma is, "If God is so good, then why would He allow bad things to happen to me?" It's hard to wrap our minds around a loving God when there is so much evil in the world. We will dive into these questions and into God's Word as we unwrap the truth of who He is. No more running from the pain. Let's face it together so that you can move forward in God's truth!