By Nancy Virden (c)2023

How many times have you wished you had a map of your life, pointing to all the best choices and treasures along the way?

What if I marry the wrong person?

What if I take the wrong job?

What if I retire too early?

Perhaps we would experience less anxiety if all our decisions were made for us. Or maybe not.

What if I do not like the choices laid out for me?

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the 15th -21st focuses on anxiety. I do not claim to be anxiety-free. Some life experiences tend toward future anxiety as if our brains have been taught to expect trouble. Abuse, betrayal, and violence are among those experiences.

Verbal put-downs may also play a part in producing anxiety as we face big decisions. I have learned and continue to discover a need for a firm foundation. Otherwise, I emotionally shake and quiver as if on shifting sands.

One of the firm foundations for me is going to the Bible for wisdom. No, it will not read “Go take such and such job”, but it does turn my thoughts to the care of God, and is sometimes explicit about what to avoid. The Bible promises to give light to our path (Psalm 119:11).

Here is my verse for “anxiety-week.” Psalm 119:130, “The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” I will read it and find peace of mind.

-COMMENTS WELCOME

Today’s Helpful Word

Psalm 119:74

May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I have put my hope in your word.

If you are feeling suicidal, or concerned about someone who is, in the U.S. call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, or for a list of international suicide hotlines, go here.

If you are suicidal with a plan, immediately call 911 in the U.S. or go to your nearest emergency room. In the EU call 112. (For other international emergency numbers, go here ). Hope and help are yours!

Always the Fight Ministries (ATFM) has been displaying compassion for those fighting mental illness, addiction, or abuse since 2012. Nancy is the founder and voice of ATFM and openly shares her emotional resurrection from despair. NOTE: Nancy is not a doctor or a mental health professional, and speaks only from personal experience and observations. In no way is this website intended to substitute for professional mental or behavioral health care.

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