Our story begins with the death of Lazarus in John Chapter 11, the beloved friend of Jesus Christ has died.  Jesus arrives to find those that had come to comfort Mary and Martha, sisters to the deceased Lazarus. It was a time of mourning and when Jesus arrives, and He does not hold back his tears and weeps with those that had gathered.  The Bible tells us in John11:35 KJV “Jesus Wept” and this moment is significant because no matter who you are, we have all gone through some difficult times recently, some more than others.  

We have all had suicidal thoughts, thoughts of depression, moments of deep sadness and times of anxiety that seem to last longer than we would admit.  Now if Jesus was able to allow himself a moment to sympathize with others and show us that weeping is not a sign of weakness but a sign of being human, then we need to remember to acknowledge our feelings, cry, admit we are struggling (ask for help through whatever avenue you are comfortable with), and then we need to replace those negative thoughts and feelings with good ones.

How do I do that? You may ask.

There are a number of ways to do that, the first being JOY.  Joy in Galatians 5:22 is one of the fruits of the spirit, alongside love, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness and faith.

The kind of Joy I am referring to is not person dependent, nor is it situation dependent it’s a fruit of the Holy Spirit, so It comes from the Christ on the inside of you, and the way to unlock the Joy of the Lord is through reading the word of God and constantly transforming your mind with the good news of salvation, praying, and meditating on those things that are good.  That is how we unlock that Joy and subsequently overcome any kind of anxiety, stress and depression.  Joy as a tool to overcoming anxiety is not a quick fix, it does not happen overnight, but as you build habits around immersing yourself and mind in those things that are positive, the Joy of the Lord begins to become our greatest weapon against negative feelings and thinking.  And Acts 2:28 NKJV “You have made known to me the ways of life; you will make me full of joy in your presence” will come alive for you.

And I am not saying that if you begin to allow Joy to have its full work in your life that you will always be happy and in a good mood, I am saying Joy is a change in mindset.

If we go to Phil 4:8 NLT “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing.  Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honourable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable.  Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

This scripture is one of my personal favourites, and it reminds us to constantly think on those things that will bring, Joy in our minds as well as our lives.   Meditate on the good things, and you will begin to see the anxiety begin to melt away little by little.  Now I don’t know what those things are for you, the good things I mean, but for me, it is reading the word of God and finding scripture that encourages me and calls me victorious, listening to praise and worship music, praying and lastly meditating on the promises of God in my life, and let’s not forget occasionally imagining the world’s most amazing walk-in closet.  Whatever and however you do you, make sure to make Joy a part of your daily life.