You Are Seen: Encouragement for Teens Who Struggle With Stress and Anxietyনমুনা

Day 4: God’s Love Calms Your Turmoil

You’re Not Alone in the Battlefield of Your Mind
Picture a rocket launch. When the countdown hits zero, the sound of the rocket’s thrust is deafening. But once the rocket reaches outer space and enters orbit, chaos ends, and the rocket coasts. Everything is calm. In the same way, our anxiety can drown out the truth in our minds, but once we recognize God’s love, that love brings quiet and peace.

Zephaniah 3:17 (NLT) tells us:

For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.

You may feel like everyone is against you lately. Even though you know that parents and teachers are supposed to have your best interests in mind, you feel like they just don’t understand you. If we tell ourselves that nobody loves us or that we will face certain failure, then we will experience need­less noise in our heads.

But guess what? Your jumbled thoughts do not have more power over you than the peace God offers in His abounding love. When the noise of your fears and anxiety threatens your peace, come back to what the Bible says about God’s love for you. His delight in you. His joy for you! The next time negative thoughts keep you up at night and burden you during the day, invite God to fight the battle in your mind. There is a real God who is victorious in all things, and He is on your side. The Lord’s love is so powerful that it can calm your fears!

Isaiah 40:31 promises that when we trust God, His strength replaces our weakness. He equips us with what we need to overcome our anxiety. Instead of wallowing in the depths of despair, we can “soar” as if we are riding on the wings of an eagle. God’s promise to help us is real—more real than our fears and anxieties. Rest in His love and let God untangle the worry. What He promised, He will do! You don’t have to hang your head and feel alone. God loves you. Allow Him to calm all your fears.

Reflect:

God already knows the wild emotions you’re feeling. Try telling God how you’re feeling in the moment you’re in right now. What emotions can you release, and ask God to replace with peace?

Prayer:

God, thank You for loving me. There’s nothing I have to do to re­ceive more of Your love. It’s available to me right now. Remove the destructive thoughts that I am broken and unlovable. Nothing I have ever done or will do stops Your love for me. You can change my heart to let love in and to start moving forward with my life. I want others to see me as a loving person who relies on You, and I want the way I love others to help them see You, God. I receive your calming presence. In Jesus’s name, amen.