“As we’ve seen, anxiety arises from an excessive desire to be freed from pressing evil or to obtain some hoped-for good…..Whenever you urgently desire to escape from a certain evil or to attain a certain good, strive above all else to keep a calm, restful spirit. Steady your judgment and will, then go quietly and easily after your goal, taking all the appropriate means to attain it.
By “easily” I don’t mean “carelessly”, but rather without hurry, trouble, or anxiety. Otherwise, instead of obtaining the goal you seek, you will hinder it, adding more and more to your perplexities.
Examine yourself often, at least every morning and night. If your soul has become anxious, make it a priority to bring it quietly back into the presence of God, placing all your hopes and affections under the direction of His holy will.
When you become aware that you are growing anxious, commend yourself to God, as the Apostle Paul urges, and resolve firmly not to take any steps whatever to obtain the result you desire until your disturbed state of mind is altogether quieted. Of course, this is the approach to take uness it’s necessary to do something without delay. In that case, you must restrain yourself from acting impulsively, even when you must act immediately.
Frances De Sales 1567-1622, a bishop of Geneva, Switzerland, was well known as a preacher and writer.
.Discipleship Journal, May/June 2009, Issue 171, “Soul Disturbance”, p. 66
- I love that he talks about waiting on the Lord AND going after your goals. We tend to think that "goals" are new, are business....yet this preacher, hundreds of years ago, gets it!
- I also love that he talks about taking "appropriate means" to attain your goal - go after it! People think waiting on the Lord is inactivity, waiting for God to move, to drop the answer from the sky, into the lap....yet we have to move forward, take a step.
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