A Little UnSteady

A Little Unsteady: Finding Freedom from Anxiety

A Little Unsteady: 5 min read by Chris Rea

One year ago today was probably the worst day of my entire life.

I had a mental breakdown that began as a series of severe anxiety attacks and a trip to the ER which resulted in 5 of the most miserable weeks of my entire life.

How’s that for a heavy way to start a blog post?

Why did I start that way? To tell you this: If you’re walking through anxiety or depression HEAR ME:

You’re not crazy. My heart is with you and I KNOW there are brighter days ahead of you.

Now, back to me.

You know that song, “Unsteady,” by X Ambassadors? That was my life. I didn’t know which way was up or what each hour, let alone day would be like. Everything became unpredictable. And as a person who’s normally very confident, it was terrifying. I remember continuously crying out to God and needing my wife to, just like the song says, “hold onto me, cause I’m a little unsteady.”

And yet, it was in the darkest time of my life God revealed how I ended up in this place. And showed me the way to a freedom I didn’t even know existed.

A Little Unsteady

Now, I don’t know about you, but my Christian experience has appeared like a roller coaster at times; thrilling extreme highs followed by plummeting, discouraging lows. I’ve experienced incredible “mountaintop” times with God, never doubting He is with me and working in my life.

But then there have been other times, seasons when I lost hope, and lived in despair.

I am no stranger to the pain that makes you feel so small it causes you to question if God is even there, or if He cares about you at all.

But that was then.

Fast forward one year. This morning, I was praying on my way to work and I felt like the Lord dropped this phrase in my heart. I love when He does that.

One little phrase and it was this: “Steady Faith.”

A Little UnSteady

Something clicked in my heart when I realized, “Steady Faith” is what most Christians long for, but can never quite achieve. But I say this to you as someone who has ridden every inch of that emotional roller coaster, because I believe God has better for us. So much better than just riding the ups and downs of our faith. And I believe He not only longs to bring peace and steadiness to our lives-even when they feel crazy-but I believe He has the ability to do it.

[bctt tweet=”God has so much better for us than riding the ups and downs of our faith. ” username=”NoSmallLife”]

If you’re longing for the “Peace that surpasses our understanding” (Phil 4) to be the defining characteristic of your life, can I tell you a few things I learned last year?

 

Because it was in my darkest moment that God not only met me, but set me free.

And throughout that time, I found 2 keys to having a Steady Faith:

 

1. Getting your soul healthy

During my emotional breakdown, the Lord showed me two things about myself I didn’t know.

The first, was that my soul was not healthy.

I can’t even tell you how shocking that was to me. I didn’t know it! I thought I was healthy. I thought I had forgiven everyone there was to forgive, yet I found myself in a season full of stress and toxic thinking.

I felt like God revealed to me that getting inner healing for my soul would be the key to unlocking and releasing all the anger, anxiety, and toxicity I was feeling.

 

So I want you to take a minute. Right now. Stop what you are doing. And ask yourself these questions:

Do you get angry easily? Do you feel guilt and shame often? Do you struggle with insecurity? Do you often feel like you are not enough? Do you find yourself easily getting an attitude with people? Do you struggle with a particular sin? Do you struggle to have a consistent time with God?

If the answer is yes, chances are you have a soul problem, not a behavior problem. So often we try and try to correct behaviors, but we completely ignore the root of the problem. Behavior is what we see, but the root cause of behavior is hidden in your soul.

For more on that, here is a 3-part audio series I did called, “How to kill a spider.”

GET IT NOW

It teaches and walks you through how to get your soul healthy and how to get to the root of your problem.

And I promise, pushing through any hesitancy or temporary discomfort you may feel towards facing your pain and getting your soul healthy, is 110% worth your freedom.

[bctt tweet=”Pushing through the hesitancy or discomfort you may feel towards facing your pain and getting your soul healthy, is 110% worth your freedom.” username=”NoSmallLife”]

Without a healthy soul, you will never have a steady faith, you will never have complete peace and you will never have consistent behaviors.  You are adored by the God of Heaven and He has so much more for you than the broken pieces you’re desperately trying to keep together.

 

2. Prayer

Prayer is usually one of the first things to go in the life of a Christian. It’s so interesting to me because when we first became Christians, we would pray and read God’s word and it was like a revelation every time we did it. But over time, as we experience life disappointments or we just get busy, prayer is the first thing to go. Others avoid prayer because they just don’t know how to do it.

 

We overcomplicate prayer a lot of times, don’t we? Prayer connects us to the Father’s heart. It is the key to understanding who He is and it is the key to having a transformed heart.

 

If you have been married for a while, people will begin to say to you, “You and your wife think alike, you say the same things, you act the same way.” Some people even start dressing alike.

FYI: Your matching sweatshirts MAY be crossing a line.

But the point is this:  The more you live with a person and communicate with them, the more you become like them.

Prayer helps us to become more like Jesus. Because we get to connect to His heart. When we become more like Jesus, our faith becomes steady and we’re able to love people better because we can love them with and through God’s strength. Not spending time in prayer severs our lifeline. We’re basically spinning our wheels trying to do life on our own, without being connected to our source, and it doesn’t work so well.

 

When I was “a little unsteady,” the Lord put Psalm 1 in my heart.

I’m paraphrasing a bit, but the essence of that chapter is this: If we meditate on God’s word and His ways, we will be like a tree planted by the stream of water and whatever we do will prosper. But the key is to be planted by the water.

A Little Unsteady

When you spend time in prayer, God becomes your source and several things happen.

 

You have peace.

You prosper.

You avoid the temptations of this world.

Your heart is transformed.

You care more about what God cares about.

 

If you find yourself with an unsteady faith or if the lyrics, “Hold onto me, cause I’m a little unsteady,” are resonating with you. Try these two things. Get your soul healthy and spend time in prayer.

 

Fair Warning: When you begin the process of inner healing, it can drudge things up. Sometimes, you can actually get worse before you get better. Be prepared for that. It’s normal, but not your new normal. The end result will be a freedom like you have never experienced. You’ll actually feel as light as a feather. Your joy comes back. You look forward to things and you began to laugh again. If you are in the Detroit area and are looking for a recommendation for someone to walk you through a process of inner healing, send us an email @ nosmalllifebooking@gmail.com and we will point you in the right direction.

Megan and I are praying for you today friend; your life is not small and we believe there is great freedom ahead of you if you’ll allow it.

Here’s the link to that 3-part series; it’s totally free and it’s going to help.

GET IT NOW

Until next time,

Chris

 

PS. Would you let us deliver 1 weekly post FILLED with hope, healing, and humor right to your inbox each week? I mean, why not right?!

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A Little Unsteady

 

18 Comments

  • Love this Chris! I’m so grateful for your voice on this issue, you are an encouragement to so many that are struggling. Love you guys!

    • You are such an encourager Sandy! Appreciate you cous, I know you haven’t had an easy road, but you are such a fighter!

  • Chris I love how transparent you and M are in your posts. Thank you for speaking the truth bravely and helping so many others. Love you two

  • So much of your writing here resonates with my own.
    I am currently in process–penning my journey which does too, include a breakdown and God meeting me in a very unexpected place.
    So glad to have found your blog over at Holley’s.
    Blessings to you!

    • Meghan, we’re such huge fans of your blog. I’m so sorry for what you’ve walked through, but I can tell you from experience, when you share your journey it’s amazing the domino effect of freedom you get to see in the lives around you! So glad you stopped by today! 🙂

  • Thank you for sharing so honestly. And for using your experience to help others. My worst time ever was 2016, and it took me at least a year to dig myself out of severe, daily anxiety and depression, with God’s help of course. I, too, have written a lot about my journey to try to help others, too. Sometimes, that’s one of the best things that can come from our experiences, using our hard times to help others through their hard times. And of course, the BEST thing that comes out of it is seeing how it purifies and strengthens our faith, if we let it. Thank you again for sharing your story. God bless.

    • Heather, wow, thank you for sharing that. I would love to read some of your thoughts and experiences with this topic.

  • “Steady” is such a good word and such a worthy goal in this world that wastes so much time longing for “flashy” or some lesser but more compelling way of being in the world.

  • Yes, yes, Chris. God meets in those darkest most desperate seasons. And it’s there that He not only heals, but gives our lives new purpose, a new call.

    To walk out of the pit and become a wounded healer ourselves.

    Look where He’s brought us from! I’m so grateful …

    • Linda, thank you so much! It sounds like you have walked through something similar and have found freedom. I am so happy for you!

  • I love your vulnerability and honesty here! Thank you for laying out the fact that your soul wasn’t healthy. I think, too often, we sacrifice our souls for so many things, and the results are devastating! Thanks for sharing your struggles and process for getting healthy 🙂

    • Kristen, thank you. It is hard to be vulnerable sometimes! My prayer is that my story and my journey will help others who are walking through similar things. Investing into our emotional health is so essential.

  • Thanks for sharing your story of how God has worked in your life. I’m sure it will bring hope to others. I love Psalm 1 and the image it gives of a steady faith that continues whatever the circumstances.

    • Lesley, that is so true. Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to add your insight. Very Wise!

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