LORD, come down and rescue me. Where there is doubt, build trust. Where there are insecurities, be the foundation of everything I believe in.
During different parts of my life, different verses really speak to my situation. Sometimes I just read a Psalm and go, "That's exactly how I feel!"
A while ago, I repeatedly recited 1 Peter 4:1 to myself. Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, army yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin.
The verse was a strong reminder to keep my eyes on Christ throughout all suffering. He went through much more pain than I, and his attitude was, well, God-like! Despite the hatred against him, Jesus Christ never faltered or failed. He was good.
But my verse changed from 1 Peter 4:1, and soon I began digging into Psalm 55. I felt like David did, pleading "Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea; hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught." (Psalm 55:1-2.)
So much worry, lies, minor depression weighed me down. So much confusion kept me from looking to God to cure my anxieties. I longed, like David, to "fly away and be at rest" (from vs 6) But I couldn't run away from my own thoughts, which plagued me until I couldn't sleep, eat, enjoy life.
Yet, if God has taught me anything in these past three years, it is that He will not forsake me. In Joshua 1:9 (one of my favorites) God says to Joshua, Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.
In our discouragement, we forget this promise. When we are depressed, we cannot feel God beside us and for that reason, we begin to believe that He's abandoned us. When these lies penetrated me, I was discouraged further--because if God had left, there would be no end to this trial!
But later in that same Psalm, the fifty-fifth, David in his anxiety and troubles says this: Cast your cares on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall. (Vs 22)
He is there, even when you feel like you're shattering. You're losing it. You feel hopeless, because there's nothing left to do.
Yet, can I say something very important for you to hear? God is faithful. What you are doesn't really matter, in sight of all that He is.
When I am afraid,
I will trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I will not be afraid.
What can mortal man do to me?
-Psalm 56:3-4
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