Afraid & Anxious 

Fear and anxiety are not the nicest of emotions to feel are they? They can have all kinds of negative effects on our body and mental health.  

Fear isn’t a bad emotion, it’s a natural feeling that can often help us in the face of danger, but it can so easily lead us towards anxiety in future situations.  

Fear focuses our attention on the immediate, anxiety focuses our attention on the unknown, but faith fixes our attention on what is certain.  

We can learn from the example of the disciples when faced with a storm (Mark 4:35-41), they realised the certainty of who Jesus is, and that he was more powerful than the fear and the anxiety that they faced. They found a place of peace in place of their fear.  

How can we fuel our faith? Here are seven passages from the Bible, why not look at one each day for the next week and see how it helps your faith and fixes your attention on what is certain about who God is: 

Day One: Psalm 46:1-7 

Day Two: Philippians 4:4-7 

Day Three: Matthew 6:25-33 

Day Four: Psalm 27 

Day Five: Psalm 34:4-8 

Day Six: Psalm 91 

Day Seven: 1 John 4:18 

Questions: 

1. What has been your experience of feeling afraid and/or anxious? How much did it make you focus on the immediate and the unknown? 

2. What ways can you fuel/grow your faith to help overcome fear and anxiety? 

3. How does having faith help us in the face of fear and anxiety?