Finding Peace in the Midst of Anxiety
This is the first blog post from my eight-week email newsletter series, “He Is With You,” which aims to explore God’s faithful love and presence in our lives as we navigate seasons of joy, grief, doubt, and hope.
I chose to begin the new year with this series because, if I’m honest, the start of a new year can be challenging for me. While it’s often exciting and full of anticipation for what’s ahead, it’s also a time when I battle seasonal depression. For a long time, I didn’t recognize this struggle—I thought I was just pushing through. But now, I see that I was avoiding the truth. And the truth is, we all face challenges. For some, it might be seasonal depression; for others, it’s a constant battle of a different kind.
Even a heart devoted to God will face trials in this life. Scripture assures us of that. The disciple, John, recorded the words of Jesus on this issue, and he said, "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33, NKJV)
What should stand out to us here is this–the world will give us trouble, but we can find comfort in knowing that Jesus has overcome the world and that in Him we will find peace.
With that in mind, let’s explore our theme for this week: how God is with us in our anxiety. We all face anxiety in one form or another, but His peace can meet us right where we are.
Scripture Spotlight
““Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.””
Let’s reflect on that for a moment. Have you ever been able to give yourself the kind of peace that surpasses all understanding? I surely haven’t, and there have been plenty of times I wished I could have.
My friends, peace that surpasses all understanding is above our pay grade. We aren’t qualified to give it. Any peace we find within our own hearts and minds is temporary, unsatisfying, and could easily be blown away by the breeze.
Anxiety often feels like a storm within us—unpredictable, overwhelming, and impossible to silence through sheer willpower. No matter how many strategies we try or how much control we exert over our circumstances, peace remains elusive when we rely solely on ourselves. The truth is, the kind of peace that calms the storm in our hearts, the peace that surpasses all understanding, doesn’t come from us.
It comes from Jesus, the true Peace Giver, who meets us in our anxiety and replaces our striving with His perfect calm.
The Gift of True Peace
When faced with the struggles and anxieties of life, I turn to Scripture—diving into the context of those passages. I immerse myself in the stories of the Bible, imagining its characters as real people with flesh and bone, not just names on a page. In those moments, I connect with Moses, draw strength from Ruth and Naomi, relate to Esther’s courage, and feel seen through David’s heartfelt praises and laments in the Psalms.
God’s word comes alive through its stories, and I’m in awe of what I see God doing, not just what He says.
Well-known scriptures, like Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” hold weightier meaning when we know what God has done–not just in our own lives and in the lives of those around us, but in the lives of those who were chosen to be written down for all of history to read.
Like us, our Bible characters were real people with hopes and dreams. And, like the rest of us, they had relationship issues, doubts, fear, and all the struggles of this world.
Throughout scripture, God calls on His people to be strong in Him.
When I think of being strong or having courage on my own, I often reflect on how it felt to be outside at night when I was younger. If you grew up feeding animals and needed to walk from the house to the barn and back again in the dark, you might know exactly what I’m referring to. The further away from the house, the more fearful I became. What was once easily seen in daylight was now covered in darkness, and who knew what lay in wait for me among the shadows?
If you can relate to that, you’ll likely understand what I mean when I say that drifting away from God, even subconsciously, is like walking farther and farther from the lights of home.
The other day, after starting my morning in God’s word, listening to Christian radio as I got my boys ready for school, and praying as I drove to town for groceries with my daughter, I was hit with an anxious, irrational thought. One thing led to another, and by the end of the day, I was oppressed by anxiety. My mind bounced from fears of the future to regrets of the past.
Our thoughts can create great stumbling blocks and deep canyons of anxiety that we feel helpless to climb out of. Thankfully, God himself is the light we need to keep away the darkness. He is the pathway out of the pit we’re lost in and the truth that sets us free from anything in this world that binds us.
Hannah Pours Out Her Heart to the Lord
One story that deeply resonates with me is that of Hannah in 1 Samuel.
In her anguish and anxiety over being childless, she poured out her heart to the Lord in prayer. Her example reminds us that when we’re oppressed by anxious thoughts, we can bring them to God, trusting Him with every burden, just as Hannah did.
And just like He heard Hannah, He hears us too.
When I think about the word of God, I think of Matthew 4:4, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” The Bible I hold in my hands is God’s word and is meant for me to live my life by. Also, as Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
God’s word is God-breathed, meant to guide us and strengthen us, it’s to be our lifeblood. So, when I read about Hannah crying out to God, pouring her heart out, letting anxious thoughts and feelings flow like tears rolling down her cheeks, I know that I’m right to do so, too.
I’m comforted by Hannah’s grief and anxiety, knowing that my own is not too much for the Lord. Just like Hannah, I know He hears me.
When we first meet Hannah, she is a woman weighed down by grief and longing. She carries the heavy burden of childlessness, enduring years of provocation from her husband’s other wife, Peninnah, and feeling the depth of her unmet desires. Yet, after pouring her heart out to the Lord in fervent prayer, something remarkable happens. Scripture notes an immediate change in Hannah—she begins eating again, and her face radiates peace and hope. (1 Samuel 1:18)
This transformation didn’t come from receiving an immediate answer to her prayer, as she hadn’t yet conceived a child. Instead, it came from laying her burden before God and trusting Him with her deepest pain. Before this moment, Hannah is described as bitter of soul, unable to eat, and overwhelmed with sorrow.
But in surrendering her anguish to the Lord, she finds a renewed sense of peace.
Hannah’s story shows us the power of bringing our anxieties to God.
When we pour out our hearts to Him, as she did, we create space for His peace to enter in. Her experience reminds us that peace doesn’t necessarily come from our circumstances changing; it comes from knowing that God hears us, loves us, and holds our lives in His hands.
As we reflect on Hannah’s story, we’re encouraged to bring our struggles to God in prayer, trusting that He can carry what we cannot. Like Hannah, we may find that peace and joy are not far off when we release our burdens to Him.
Reflect
As you go through this week, I encourage you to take every anxious thought captive and surrender it to Christ. Start by writing down what’s weighing on your heart, then pray over it, asking God for His peace.
Finally, meditate on the truth of Philippians 4:6-7 and allow His Spirit to guard your heart and mind.
As a reminder, Philippians 4:6-7 says this, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Pray
Dear Heavenly Father,
You know the anxious thoughts that weigh on my heart. You know the anxiety that keeps me awake at all hours of the night and the anxiousness that preys upon me during the day.
Help me to cast every care upon You, knowing You care for me. Fill me with Your peace that surpasses all understanding and remind me that You are with me in every storm. I ask for your peaceful presence in my life today and every day.
In the precious and holy name of Jesus, Amen.