Anxiety | His Glory My Joy, a blog of Author Luana Ehrlich

Need Comfort?

October 7, 2024 Leave a comment

Body language experts are on the news a lot these days. Because it’s an election season, they’re asked to interpret the subtle, nonverbal cues that give insight into a political candidate’s feelings.

One particular observation got my attention recently, because I had never heard anyone put a name to certain gestures a speaker makes, like clutching hands together, putting hands to the face, or massaging an arm. Body language experts call these “comfort gestures.”

Such actions serve to soothe the speaker and indicate the person is feeling anxious, stressed, or uncertain. One expert says that everyone has these “self-comforting movements,” which we all engage in many times during our day.

Although we may not be aware of how often we feel the need to comfort ourselves, the Bible is full of verses that address our universal need for comfort. I immediately thought of several, which made me curious, so I did an internet search and discovered over 100 verses that either mention comfort directly or describe how God provides comfort to us. Bible verses that speak of how God comforts us.

Here’s one of my favorites: “Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.”
2 Thessalonians 2:16-17.

This verse tells me that Jesus Christ himself will comfort our hearts, and He does so on the basis of His love for us, a love that caused him to give “his life for us, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16.

Now that’s comforting!

Categories: Anxiety, Believe, Comfort, Devotionals, Doubt, Faith, Fear, Hope, Trust, Worry Tags: Anxiety, Bible, Comfort, Faith, God, God's love, jesus, Love, Stress, Trust God

What Does God Know About Worry?

July 29, 2021 Leave a comment

Everything, of course. That’s why we should follow his instructions about living a worry-free life. “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life.” Matthew 6:25.

Even though it’s worded a little differently each time, the command not to worry appears in all of the gospels, including a double warning in the gospel of John. “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” John 14:27.

Paul also teaches the worry-free life in his letters. “Do not be anxious about anything . . .” Philippians 4:6. As clear as that command is, the “how to” of dealing with worry is equally straightforward.

Philippians 4:7, “but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Not surprisingly, Peter echoes Paul’s solution to worry in 1 Peter 5:6-7: “Humble yourselves . . . casting all your anxieties upon him, for he cares for you.”

The writer of Hebrews says we can be sure of his help when we are troubled. He writes, “So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear . . .” Hebrews 13:6.

According to God’s Word, by bringing our worries and cares to the Lord, we are rewarded with the strength and peace to deal with life’s inevitable anxieties.

And, because God is always overflowing in his care for us, He promises to do this for us anew every morning. Lamentations 3:22-23, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning . . .”

What does God know about worry? Everything.

Trust Him. He’s got this. Leave your worries with Him.