70. Feeling Anxious at the Start of a New Year? Recognize Your Triggers and Overcome Them with God's Peace

The start of a new year often brings excitement, but it can also spark uncertainty and anxiety. In this episode of Curious for Christ, I dive into the root causes of anxiety and share how you can recognize your triggers and overcome them through God’s peace. Using practical steps and biblical insights, you’ll learn to surrender your worries and rely on God for strength and calm.

What You’ll Learn:
1. What is Anxiety?
• Anxiety is a response to stress but often stems from trying to control the uncontrollable.
• Common triggers include overwhelming responsibilities, people-pleasing, fear of failure, loneliness, and overthinking.
Key Verse: 1 Peter 5:7 – “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”
2. Recognizing Your Anxiety Triggers:
• Reflect through journaling, asking yourself key questions like:
• Am I avoiding deeper issues?
• Am I overly consumed by others’ opinions or problems?
• Pay attention to recurring stress patterns.
Key Verse: Matthew 6:33 – “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
3. 5 Steps to Overcome Anxiety:
     • Step 1: Shift Your Focus to God
Start your day with prayer or scripture.
Isaiah 26:3 – “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in You.”
     • Step 2: Surrender Control
Pray, “Lord, I release this situation into Your hands.”
Philippians 4:6-7 – “Do not be anxious about anything…but present your requests to God. And the peace of God…will guard your hearts and minds.”
     • Step 3: Take Captive Every Thought
Replace anxious thoughts with God’s truth.
Joshua 1:9 – “Be strong and courageous…for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
     • Step 4: Be Present in the Moment
Trust God with tomorrow’s worries.
Matthew 6:34 – “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.”
     • Step 5: Build Healthy Habits
Create a routine that includes time with God and set boundaries to reduce overwhelm.
4. God’s Promise of Peace:
God’s peace doesn’t remove problems but gives strength to endure them.
Matthew 11:28 – “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

Action Step:
- Identify one anxiety trigger this week, bring it to God in prayer, and ask Him to replace your worry with His peace.
- Need Help with Discipleship? Are you struggling with anxiety or a lack of peace? Do you desire to connect with God and learn to trust Him more deeply? I’d love to walk with you on this journey. Click HERE to connect with me, and let’s take the next steps together.

Closing Prayer:
“Lord, I give You my anxiety. I surrender this situation into Your hands. I trust that You will bring peace and guidance. Help me focus on You and Your will for my life. In Jesus' name, Amen.”

Thank You for Listening!
If this episode blessed you, share it with a friend and subscribe to Curious for Christ. May God’s peace fill your heart this week. Until next time!

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Transcript

0:00

Welcome to curious for Christ. And for those who have been here in 2024. Welcome back I'm Alexandra. And I'm so grateful that you're here today. I want to start by sharing something personal. I've had my share of moments where anxiety sneaks up on me. It's like the weight of life worries. Whether they're big or small begins to consume me. And the strange thing is sometimes I don't even know what triggers it. Right up the bat. It's almost like my mind becomes a whirlwind of uncertainty. Maybe you can relate. The start of a new year, definitely brings a fresh sense of possibility, but also uncertainty. Doesn't it. You might be asking questions, like how can I be more present this year? What's going to happen with my family or my health or my finances. And as we navigate these unknowns, anxiety can creep in. And it can be hard to make sense of it. So today's episode is all about recognizing anxiety triggers, understanding their roots and learning how to overcome them with God's peace. So I'm not a psychologist or therapist, so we're not going to dive into psychology or therapy today. Instead I'll share from my own journey and the wisdom that's helped me. God's word has given me the peace I need. And I want to share how you can tap into that same piece. Let's go. Welcome to Curious for Christ. Do you ever find yourself lying awake at night, wondering about God's plan for your life? Maybe you wake up with big dreams, but feel unsure where to start or what your next step should be. If you're curious about exploring your faith and finding purpose, then you've come to the right place. Hi, I'm Alexandra. I too felt lost, unsure of the direction my life was taking. I yearned to understand my purpose and have someone guide me. But I kept telling myself I was too busy, the timing wasn't right, and my lack of clarity prevented me from being consistent, until I found Christ. He brought peace into my life and revealed the way to find purpose, by anchoring myself in Him. In this podcast, we'll journey together exploring the Bible to gain a deeper understanding of Him and cultivate your own personal relationship with Christ. So open up your Bible, put in those earbuds and listen up because God is speaking to you. He is making everything new and you don't want to miss it. Let's get started. Segment one. What is anxiety and why does it persist? So anxiety is a natural response to stress, but when left unchecked. It can easily take over our lives. It makes us feel out of control, like a wave of fear that doesn't stop. Anxiety often arises when we feel like we can't rely on anything or anyone, we may start trusting in our own ability to control the situation and that. When the worry sets in. So there are common triggers of anxiety and there's many reason that we can feel anxious. I've identified five of the most common ones. Number one, overwhelming responsibilities, especially when we feel alone or unsupported. Number two people pleasing tendencies and taking on others problems. Number three failure, fear of failure or feeling inadequate. Number four loneliness or feeling like we like purpose number five, overthinking. Our minds racing, never allowing us to rest. So from a spiritual point of view, anxiety often thrives. When we try to take everything into our own hands, when we rely solely on ourselves, we feel the weight of the world, but God's word gives us a powerful reminder. In first Peter five verse seven. Which says cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. He doesn't want us to carry that weight. We can trust him with it. Segment two. Recognizing your anxiety triggers. So the first step in overcoming anxiety is recognizing what triggers it. And here are a few ways to reflect on it. When you start to feel overwhelmed. Try journaling your thoughts and ask yourself. What am I really afraid of right now? And notice if they are recurring stress patterns in your daily life. Common questions to ask yourself. So these questions can help you get to the heart of what's causing the anxiety. Do I feel anxious when I'm alone? Am I constantly consumed by others' problems or opinions. When I was doing this myself, I realized recently how much I was dependent on my husband. And I do not like that. I like to think of myself as independent. But it's there. And by God's grace, I'm able to see myself in a more accurate way. And so he showed me where to grow next. It's bad news and good news at the same time. But if we're able to face ourselves in our emotions, Then that means that we're growing. Right? Because we able to see something that we didn't see before, because we weren't able to see it. We wouldn't know what to do with it. Or it would be too overwhelming sometimes to see what's inside of us. And so with God. We have that opportunity and the strengths. To grow. Past. Those patterns that we have been living with and that's growth. Also another question. Do I find myself avoiding deeper issues? Or is my to-do list affecting my sense of self worth. That can definitely be, an anxiety trigger. So anxiety often grows when our minds are divided, or our priorities are out of alignment. Matthew six verse 33 reminds us to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all the things. Will be given to you as well. So when we focus on God first, Everything else starts to fall into place. And Matthew six, that whole chapter is about. Do not worry. It's about worrying about all the things. Just do that one thing, which is to seek God first. And his righteousness, his kingdom, where he rules. So if something else rules in your life, You are not living in God's kingdom. So seek that. Segment three overcoming anxiety through God. Step one, shift your focus to God. Start small, take just five minutes, five to 10 minutes a day to pray or read scripture, even in the busiest moments. Gave God the first part of your day, this simple shift can help set the tone. Isaiah 26 verse three says you will keep in perfect peace. Those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you. Step two. Surrender control. Much of our anxiety comes from trying to control the uncontrollable. We have to release it to God. One of the most powerful prayers you can pray is Lord. I release the situation into your hands. Once you realize when he is showing you what it is, Give it to God. Remember, Philippians four verses six through seven. When we bring our requests to God, his peace will guard our hearts and minds. Steps. We take captive. Every thought this is a practical exercise. You can try whenever an anxious thought, enters your mind. Take it captive. We place it. With God's truth, for example. If you're worried about loneliness, counter it with the truth from Joshua one verse nine. God is with me always. Step four. Be present in the moment, anxiety thrives when we focus too much on what's coming next. Practice being present with God. In the moment. And back to Matthew six, this time, verse 34. It reminds us to not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself. Focus on today and trust God with the future. Step five, build healthy habits. We all face this directions and sometimes. Anxiety arises when we feel overwhelmed by inconsistency. Focus on building intentional God centered habits. For instance, create a morning routine. That includes time with God. Set boundaries with work or other commitments. Learn to say no for instance, or decide when work and it's not about perfection again. But progress, just start and see what arises. There may be some anxiety. Feelings that will arise, but that's okay. It doesn't mean that you're making the wrong decision by saying no, or you're going to miss out. It's just that you're growing. So again, go back and surrender. Thought in those triggers to God and then go journal your thoughts and then move on. Also, one way to build intentional gut centered habit would be to rely on God's strength for discipline. Rather than your own. So that is something we have to do on a regular basis so that we can grow into that. Segment for God's promises of peace. God's peace. Isn't about the absence of problems. It's about his presence in the midst of them and the problems. Have a purpose to they're here for a purpose. We grow through them. And his peace doesn't make everything go away, but it gives us the strength to walk through it. With him by our side. So the problems don't consume us because God has taken to center please of your heart. You have found God's kingdom in this moment. So I want to share a quick story. There was a time in my life when I felt totally overwhelmed. As soon as I got married and it turned into a decade. And. As I would go to God in prayer, I began to experience. His peace in ways. I had never known before. It didn't change the circumstances it's still took as long as it took. But it changed me. And that's the victory. Matthew 11 verse 28 says, come to me all you who are weary and burdened. And I will give you rest. God is inviting you to lay your anxieties at his feet. He offers peace, rest and comfort. No matter what you are facing. So as we close today's episode, I encourage you to identify one anxiety trigger this week, bring it to God in prayer and ask him to help you surrender it and give you his peace. Let's pray together, Lord. I give you my anxiety. I surrender this situation into your hands. Today. Because today's all I have. I trust that you will bring peace and guidance today. Help me focus on you and your will. For my life one day at a time in Jesus name. Amen. That's all for today. My friends, if this episode spoke to you, I'd love to hear your thoughts or testimonies. You can leave a review. It would mean so much to me or email me directly at hello. At Alexandra Alvarez, coaching.com. If you feel like you need someone to walk with you in discipleship to help you understand where you are in your journey with God and to go deeper in your faith. I'd be honored to journey on alongside you. Visit. VAT dot L Y slash curious for Christ discovery to book a time and connect with me. Let's talk. Thank you for joining me on curious for Christ may God's peace and presence guide you this week. Until next time. Hi, I hope you enjoyed today's episode. If so, would you like to take 30 seconds and share it with a friend who may also struggle with knowing God and His purpose for their life. Also, leave a review on applepodcast. com. Podcast, and let me know what topics you'd like to hear about in the future. Your voice matters. I'll meet you back next Friday for another episode.