First Things First
When you feel lost and confused, what should you do? Someone is plagued by fear, and you want to help them, where do you start? According to Jesus we should “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:32). That is what should have happened to the lady in the following testimony, but she tried almost everything else first, before her pastor led her through the Steps to Freedom in Christ:
For the past 35 years, I have lived from one surge of adrenaline to the next. My entire life has been gripped by paralyzing fears which seem to come from nowhere and everywhere – fears which made very little sense to me or anyone else. I invested four years of my life obtaining a degree in psychology, hoping it would enable me to understand and conquer those fears. Psychology only perpetuated my questions and insecurity. Six years of professional counseling offered little insight and no change in my level of anxiety.
After two hospitalizations, trips to the emergency room, repeated EKGs, a visit to the thoracic surgeon, and a battery of other tests, my panic attacks only worsened. By the time I came to see you, full-blown panic attacks had become a daily feature.
It has been three weeks since I’ve experienced a panic attack! I have gone shopping and to church services. I played for an entire worship service and made it through Sunday school with peace in my heart. I had no idea what freedom meant until now. When I came to see you, I had hoped that the Truth would set me free, but now I know it has! Friends have told me that even my voice is different and my husband thinks I’m taller.
When you live in constant state of anxiety, most of life passes you by, because you are physically/emotionally/mentally unable to focus on anything but the fear which is swallowing you. I could barely read a verse of Scripture at one sitting. It was as though someone snatched it away from my mind as soon as it entered. Scripture was such a fog to me. I could only hear the verses that spoke about death and punishment. I had actually become afraid to open my bible. These past weeks, I have spent hours a day in the Word, and it makes sense. The fog is gone. I am amazed at what I am able to hear, see, understand, and retain.
Before The Bondage Breaker, I could not say “Jesus Christ” without my metabolism going berserk. I could refer to “The Lord” with no ill effect, but whenever I said “Jesus Christ” my insides went into orbit. I can now call up on the name of Jesus Christ with peace and confidence and I do it regularly.
Dr. Neil
For Spanish, see http://www.ficmm.org/blog
