G(L)AD

by Macy Johnson

“Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous;

sing, all you who are upright in heart!”

(Psalm 32:11 NIV)

 

She caught me crying in the examination room. I was there for a routine checkup when suddenly the dam broke loose and all my anxieties spilled out onto the floor. After several probing questions, the nurse practitioner determined I needed help. “You have GAD,” she told me.

 

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is described as persistent and excessive worry that interferes with daily activities. That couldn’t be me. I was a happy, go-lucky, always-positive disciple of Christ.

 

But it felt like life was out of control. In the spring of 2016 my car was totaled only a few weeks after we moved into our cabin. We were unsuccessful in selling our house and getting a builder while I was changing jobs. Nothing happened the way I had planned. It was a wake-up call to not let stress push me over the edge.

 

She gave me a prescription and sent me home. I was thankful for the mild medication, but gladly quit cold turkey one morning a year later when I woke up with vertigo. Another wake-up call to let go and let God.

 

The name El for God means might, strength, and power, which is exactly (L) what I needed to put in the middle of my disorder. He changed GAD to GLAD!

 

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything,

by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

(Philippians 4:6-7 NIV)

 

When anxious thoughts knock on the door of my mind, God is there.

 

I will deliberately slam the door on encroaching anxiety and lay it all at Jesus’ feet. I hope you will, too!