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That's a stunning promise coming from the Creator of the universe. (Just think if this promise came from 10 Downing Street, and if the PM would be there for you 24/7!)

With that assurance, we go to promise no. 2. That one is contained in 1 Peter 5:6-7, and says that if we humble ourselves and give our anxiety and cares up to God, He will take those burdens off us, because He cares for us.

This is a hard one to call upon sometimes, but necessary for us to see victory. We must get rid of the emotional burden of worry. We must accept God's offer to take it off of us. Sometimes we start by simply declaring that, out loud, even when we don't feel the benefit right away. We might even say something like this: "Lord, you've promised to take the emotional burden of this thing off of me, and I am calling on you, as my Daddy, to honor that promise." It may at first feel as if you are just making words, but persevere, and you will experience breakthrough.

Finally, we call on the third promise. It is contained in James 1:5, which says that if we humble ourselves and seek wisdom from God, He will give it to us abundantly and without criticism.

By giving up the disabling, immobilizing emotional burden of our problem to God, we quickly get into the mode of "what do I do now?" That means that we are asking for guidance on how to walk through the problem on a day by day basis (or sometimes hour by hour, or even minute by minute).

What has happened in this process is that the matter has gone from a context of our feeling helpless, to a problem-solving issue with God as our guide.

Sometimes this is not a straight line: we may have to go back to the first P ("Perspective") to get strength to proceed. We may need to draw on the first two promises when fear starts to creep in again.

Try this out. Every breakthrough we have in this area builds our faith in dealing with future problems. Each breakthrough becomes part of our own history and testimony, empowering us and others with whom we share it. CR

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.