Easy as 1, 2, 3...

Proverb 4:20 My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart;
22 For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.


We all have struggles. Our struggles can sometimes weigh us down and if left unkept can take over. We can often be paralyzed by the things going on around us or the things going on inside of us. How do we defend? How can we possibly get past this thing, this thought, this sin? I know that by myself I'll never be able to stop. Sure I may stop for a season, but eventually, I'll fall right back in if I don't give it over to Him and let Him speak to me instruction.

So what do you do when you fall right back into stuff like doubt, worry, worhtlessness, fear, anxiety? Well I'm sure in all of this God has at some point given you some words, some instruction, some comfort and now your job is to continue based on those words. No you may not feel like moving, but since when did this walk have anything to do with feelings? Around this time last year, a friend of mine gave me the above verses and with them a three step process to helping me overcome garbage. It may sound simple and some people may think it is so beyond them, but try it and see what happens.

1. Give attention to my words, incline your ear to my sayings

As Jesus said, "He who has ears, let Him hear." Listen to what God is telling you, look for His voice. As God said in Mark 9:7 to the disciples, "This is my Son, hear Him!" Before you even start go find that verse that the Lord gave you that morning you cried out and prayed, that night you went to bed feeling defeated. Find those words of life that your Father gave you. Notice it says give attention to and incline your ear. This means you can't just read them and keep going. You have to give them attention and by attention, I would say undivided.

2. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart

Plenty of people do this with verses at work or at home. Take those words and write them out. Put them in places your eyes will see. Places where you can constantly be reminded of them. The second half of the verse is key. Remember that Christianity isn't a religion. When people those self-help courses, they often think that repetition will fix their issues. This goes beyond repition, keep them in the midst of your heart. Pray that the Lord opens the eyes of your heart and makes it reality in you.

3. For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.

Don't take lightly to the fact that God spoke to You. The God of the universe, the Creator of everything, spoke to you. Despite our tendency to doubt His words, understand it is God speaking to you. The result of the above two steps with time will yield life and health to you.

Again, this probably sounds very friendly like one of those make yourself feel good devos, however, I don't mean for it to be that way. Remember in Joshua 4, when God commanded the children to set up stones as a remembrance of what He did for them at the Jordan river. So often we act like the man in James 1:23-24. We see what God has shown us, and we walk away and forget, don't let it be the case. Never forget what God has spoken. Hear His words and respond. Don't let fear or worry grip you. Don't be like the children of Israel in Numbers 14 who were afraid to enter into the land. I bet if they had really remembered what God has done for them that lead to that point, they would have stormed Canaan and wrecked everyone.