In this episode, Bryce breaks down how to overcome anxiety with scripture and Jesus.
Chapter 1: What is the main focus of this episode on overcoming anxiety?
What's going on guys? Welcome back to another episode of the Bryce Crawford podcast. I'm Bryce and today by the title of the episode, you guys know we're going to be talking about how to overcome anxiety. This is something that's near dear to my heart and I want to share this before we get into this. This is the heart of every podcast episode we do, not just this one.
I don't want you guys to ever think I'm preaching to you. Oftentimes the things I'm saying every time are stuff that I need to hear. So rather the podcast episodes, these are just an invite of things that the Lord is teaching me and things that I'm learning about myself and situations I'm going through. And so today we're going to be talking about anxiety.
God set me free of crippling anxiety right when I was 17 years old, the moment I encountered the Lord. But I'd be lying to you if I told you that I don't have anxiety that creeps up on me. So we're going to look at scripture and what Jesus says about dealing with anxiety and look at a specific passage in the Bible where we see the disciples go through deep anxiety and what Jesus does about it.
It's going to be super cool. I'm going to end the episode in a unique, different way, but I'm going to pray into the episode just asking God to move in our hearts today as we listen to it. So Jesus, thank you for today. Thank you for who you are. Thank you for the cross. God, thank you that. All of our anxieties and worries, you've handled it.
Whether we like the outcome of it or not, you've handled everything. So God, thank you for that. We love you. Allow this episode to impact my heart and strength and my relationship with you alongside everybody else listening and watching. God, we love you. Thank you. Praise you. It's in your name we pray. Amen. Guys, we're going to read into the Bible about how to deal with anxiety.
But what exactly is anxiety? Anxiety is directly correlated to fear. And anxiety, I would describe it as the fear of an outcome of a situation, of a person, of something. So anxiety could be correlated with something like, I don't have money to pay my bill. Anxiety could be correlated with, what is this person going to say about me at school? Anxiety could be correlated with,
Where am I going to go after I die? We're going to cover all of this. The first scripture I want to talk about right now is Proverbs 12, 25. where it's laid out pretty clear, anxiety weighs a man's heart down, but a good word makes him glad again. It is no doubt if you struggle with anxiety, I think we can all universally agree that it is wear and tear on your mental and physical.
I mean, it is no doubt, it does something to you physically. When you're anxious, you don't wanna leave, you're worried, you're confused, you don't wanna make the wrong move, so it's like you just wanna stay in bed, you wanna rot, and it kinda can put you in a depressing mood, anxiety can, and then mentally, like it just drains you, man, you just get tired.
Physically and mentally, and it's so draining. And Proverbs is right. Anxiety weighs a man's heart down. But I love the back half of this verse. It says, What could a good word be? There's no amount of self-help books that you can use to make your anxiety go away. There's no amount of alcohol that can numb the pain of your anxiety. There's no amount of drugs.
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Chapter 2: How does personal experience shape the discussion on anxiety?
What does it mean when the Bible says cast your anxieties and burdens on the Lord? It means give it to him. Here's a story from Luke chapter eight that I think correlates well with these verses. See, Jesus says to his disciples, hey guys, we're gonna go to the other side of this lake. They go, okay. They get on a boat. They start sailing to the other side and the storm arises. Jesus is asleep.
This crazy storm arises. This is and that, blah, blah, blah. And they think that they're about to die and they wake up Jesus because they're like, dude, are you kidding me? You're asleep in the storm. What are you doing, Jesus? Do something, we're about to die. He gets up, he calms the storm and he looks at them and he says, why do you have little faith?
Now, when we read this passage, we go, oh man, Luke chapter eight, man, why did Jesus, like, that's kind of insulting. Why did Jesus say, why do you guys have little faith? No, the reason he asked that question is at the very beginning, before they get on the boat, he tells them that they are going to the other side. He goes, hey, we're going to the other side.
They get on the boat, the storm comes, and they're not even focused on the promise that Jesus has given them. They're focused on the storms and trials and the anxieties. I'm about to die. What's going on? And Jesus says, no, no, no. It doesn't matter how hard the storm gets. It doesn't matter how hard the trials get, how hard you suffer. If I've made you a promise, I'm going to fulfill it.
I'm going to fulfill it. And so when the Bible tells us to cast our anxieties on God, Psalms 55, 22, cast our burdens on the Lord, it's saying give it to him because he's already handled it. God, thank you that you're a promise keeper. Thank you that you got this under control. And thank you that you answer my prayers and my situations, whether I like the answer or not. God, you've handled it.
Thank you for who you are. Thank you for the cross. I love you, Jesus. That's what it means to cast your anxieties on him. Matthew 11, 28, Jesus says, come to me, all who are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest. The reality of anxiety and pressure is that you were never meant to build the pressure. The reality of this is that you were never meant to handle the pressure and anxiety.
So give it to him. Jesus' yoke is easy and light. That's the crazy thing is the yoke was a farming tool that you put on. It was like a heavy farming tool. And whenever you're trying to carry this anxiety, carry the burdens of your life, carry your sin, whatever it may be on your own, it weighs you down.
But when it says take on the yoke of Christ, the yoke of Christ is actually removing the burden of anxiety and sin and suffering and giving it to him. That's the yoke of Christ. Putting on Christ's yoke is actually giving him all your junk. And that's what gives us rest, knowing that he's handled it.
Knowing that he is a perfect almighty God that humbled himself and came down on this earth so that he could bear the burden because he did on the cross. And we got to give it to him. Why are we still carrying something that was killed on the cross? Why are we still carrying this junk that was killed on the cross and defeated when he was raised from the dead? Philippians 4, 6 through 7.
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Chapter 3: What scriptures provide guidance on dealing with anxiety?
And I'm talking to myself right now, like, man, Bryce, I really need to hear this. And then there was a moment on the plane There was no self-help book. There was no amount of facts. It was safer to fly in the air than it is to be on the highway. There was nothing that was helping me in my situation. And I literally go, I need my dad. I need my dad. I need my dad. God, I need you. God, I need you.
God, I need you. And then all of a sudden I wasn't shaking and I wasn't gripping the thing and I was calm. And my tears went from tears of fear and sadness to tears of joy and gladness of Wow, God, thank you that in the middle of this thing that feels unconquerable, God, thank you that you give me this peace. And that was the moment. It was the peace that surpasses all understanding.
The peace that just does not make sense to my brain because Bryce is deathly afraid of planes, but I'm super calm and composed, not out of my own strength, but I'm calm out of the strength of the Lord, knowing that despite the circumstance, I can't control it. God's got it under control. And God loves me and he'll give me a peace. And all I had to do was just call on to him. That's a crazy thing.
It's like when we go through things and hard times or trials come, it's like, oh, let me call my friend or let me call my mentor or let me make a post on my private story on Snapchat about this to gossip about it. It's like we want to do everything first other than I need my dad. I really need my dad. When anxiety comes, like go to your dad, go to Jesus. God, I need you. God, this sucks right now.
Do something about this. Man, this is awful. I mean, really, how many hours do you add on to your lifetime by worrying? You don't add any hours. It's like you lose time, you lose willpower, you lose strength. And the reality of it is there's no amount of worrying that will do anything about your situation. When are we going to understand that worrying doesn't do anything?
Like Bryce, when are you going to understand, Bryce, that worrying doesn't do anything about your situation? Oh, where am I going to go when I die? Christ has paid the price. It's in him that we find eternal life. What am I going to do about money this month? God takes care of his children. Don't be greedy. Just trust in him that he's got it. God, I'm losing my friends.
What am I going to do about friends? Find friendship in me. God, God says find friendship in me. Look for friends that love me. Good company. I will give you new friends. I will mend your friendships. God, what do I do about my family? My family's broken. I can't do this. God, I got this for you, my child. I got you. That's why I want to close with Matthew chapter six. I'm not going to explain.
I'm not going to break down what each word means and the Greek of this and that, whatever, like we did in Philippians. Instead of praying to close, I'm going to read this passage. And if you're watching this or listening to this, whatever you're doing, I want you to stop right now and let the words of Jesus Christ comfort you in the midst of your anxiety.
Therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life. what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on? Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air. They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
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