Physical Side Effects of Stress and Anxiety

I’m going to start out and say that stress and anxiety is a spirit of fear. Physical side effects of stress and anxiety Fear is a sin. Why do I say this? One, Fear is the opposite of faith. Also the Bible says “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Hebrews 11:6.

; therefore, it has to be dealt with as any other sin through confession and repentance. There are over 4000 types of fear according to the medical community.

Freedom is gained and maintained by walking out the truth and implementing the 8 R’S

Goals: Recognize the damage that fear does to you physically, emotionally and spiritually.
Fear comes from not having a right relationship with God, self or others.
Reveal what will defeat fear in our lives Participate in a ministry session for deliverance to stop the physical side effects of stress and anxiety.

WHAT IS FEAR? Fear: being afraid, scared, worried, anxious, concerned that a bad thing is going to happen. Fear projects into the future. Fear comes in two forms:

Fight or flight. When you’ve had a traumatic event in your life, especially as a child, the spirit of fear comes in that operates like stress that can manifest as anxiety. The Hypothalamus doesn’t know the difference between these two types of fear, that are basically the same. Stress is a lower level but if not taken care of, can lead the anxiety. Anxiety is a manifestation of stress that is a spirit of fear. Our bodies were not designed to live in continual ongoing fear. We are to live in peace with our Heavenly Father. If we do not know how to live in peace, then fear can cause many problems in our health and well being.

Stress can be dread, worry about tomorrow, someone we love, worry about finances, worry about a loved one not saved, etc. All these aspects is a spirit of fear.

FEAR IS A SPIRITUAL PROBLEM –

Fear is not an emotional problem; fear is a spiritual problem. The Bible identifies fear as a spirit in 2 Timothy 1:7. If you were programmed by a spirit of fear, then you are going to live in constant stress in your body.

” 7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

The Bible is saying that the spirit of fear can have manifestations that did not come from God.

2 Timothy 2:19 Rx for longevity;

“19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”

Philippines 4:8-9 God tells us over and over not to fear. We can put our trust in Him.

“8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.”

Physical side effects of stress and anxiety – what opens the door for fear manifesting as stress:

Broken heart

Trauma (car wrecks, rape,

Abandonment through divorce, etc.

Betrayal

Someone else’s sin (sexual abuse of all kinds)

Growing up in a conditionally loved home where you had to perform to get love

Growing up walking on eggs from a parent(s) that was unpredictable

Born out of wedlock – fear and rejection enters into you

Bitterness (separation in 3 areas – self, others or God). Is there someone you cannot forgive? Unforgiveness is a big reason why people do not get healed because it is against God’s Word.

Read Philippines 4:6 Luke 12:32 Matthew 6:25 Matthew 6:31 Mark 4:40 (read story v.35) Matthew 14:27-28 (Peter)

FEAR IS SIN- Anything that is not of faith is sin. Why, because it is the opposite of God’s character. It is a lack of faith in Him to meet our needs. It is doubt and unbelief. Fear drives and faith leads. If you are not being lead, then you are probably in fear. If you are driven to perfection and cannot rest, then there is a spirit of fear operating. That also means you are being driven by fear and not lead by faith.

Romans 14:23 – Fear and Faith are alike in this dimension: Both project into the future and Both demand to be fulfilled. Faith projects good into the future and Fear projects bad into the future.

“23 And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”

FEAR CAN BE DEFEATED:

God = Power, Love, Sound Mind Power = Holy Spirit Love = The Father Sound Mind = The Word of God Our RELATIONSHIP with the Godhead can defeat The Spirit of Fear

The expression and physical side effects of stress and anxiety – known as fear:

Fear is expressed in a lot of ways… You may say, “I just don’t have enough faith” Romans 12:3 Hebrews 11:1

“3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.”

“1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

We many times look at our circumstances in front of us because fear is so very connected to our senses of what we hear, see, feel, taste, etc. You have to look beyond what is happening in front of you. The things in front of you are not eternal but the things you cannot see are eternal. You have to trust in the Word of God and stand on the word of God. Learn to cast down fear according to 2 Corinthians 10:5. You have the authority!

If you have hope you have all the faith you will ever need.

That is why I said it is important to renew your mind. We can remove the spirit of fear, but you have to create new means or new protein synthesis with the Word of God. You have to make a decision (resist) and speak it out to God through meditation of the word that you don’t want fear in your life any more. You need to make a bold declaration to the Lord. When a specific fear is coming on you, you say “I don’t accept this fear in my life any more.”

Psalm 27:1 “The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom s hall I fear. The Lord is the strength of my life whom shall I be afraid?

In Ephesians 6:10 “Finally by brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in power of his might .

Defeating the physical side effects of stress and anxiety:

You need to know you are not alone. God is with you! If God is for you who can be against you? Vs. 11 put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

There is warfare going on, where is it coming from? Our battle is not against flesh and blood! Your war is against the invisible kingdom in the second heaven.

Romans 8:13-15 “For if we live after the flesh, ye shall die; but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

Flesh is Satan’s nature in you. It is the sin that dwells in you (Romans 7:17 ). The old nature that is the body of sin.

That is why you need to submit to God, believe the word! A lot of people want to be free and don’t want a relationship with God. You cannot have your freedom apart from the relationship with God. It is inseparable. Why!

Psalm 103:3 He is the one that forgives all iniquities.

You can trust the Lord because He is for you and not against you . When your relationship is restored and you can see what the Lord did for you, you can rest in Him because he cares for you

Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7)

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. —(Matthew 11:28 )

Satan is out to kill steal and destroy – John 10:10 and it is said in the last days through fear. He wants you to get your eyes off of the Lord onto the circumstances around you. It is said in the last days that men’s hearts will fail because of fear (Luke 21:26 ).

WHAT HAPPENS TO US WHEN WE ARE UNDER EXCESSIVE STRESS?

When we experience excessive stress – whether from internal worry or external circumstance – a bodily reaction is triggered, called the “fight or flight” response. This response is hard-wired into our brains and represents a genetic wisdom designed to protect us from bodily harm. This response actually corresponds to an area of our brain called the hypothalamus, which – when stimulated – initiates a sequence of nerve cell firing and chemical release that prepares our body for running or fighting. The hypothalamus works to keep your body in homeostasis.

What are the signs that our fight or flight response has been stimulated? When our flight or flight response is activated, sequences of nerve cell firing occur and chemicals like adrenaline, noradrenaline and cortisol are released into our bloodstream. These releases cause our body to undergo a series of very dramatic changes. Our respiratory rate increases, blood is shunted away from our digestive tract and directed into our muscles and limbs, which require extra energy and fuel for running or fighting. Many other things occur as well. This is a God given protective mechanism. When the threat is over, our bodies return to normal. When too long, it starts to destroy the body.

Your body is made up of several systems working together.

The Endocrine System

The Hypothalamus is called the brain of the endocrine system. It is located in the third ventricle. When the back of your head hurts from tension, this is where you rub your neck. It is the facilitator for many things.

An EI reaction is a direct result of a combination of hormones being secreted by the Hypothalamus, and the central nervous system being activated by fear, anxiety and stress.

When you are continually geared up to fight to flight stressor, there are all kinds of things happening inside your body. Science calls it the mind/body connection. We call it the spirit, soul and body connection.

To be at Homeostasis. The integration of the balance of all body functions to stay at Homeostasis,

Obey God’s commandments

Love God

Love yourself

Love your neighbor

The Limbic System

The limbic system is the connection between your cerebrum, where your brain is, down through to your hypothalamus. It is the connection between the psyche (thought) and the physio (body).

God is interested in not only your spirit that will go to heaven one day, but also in your day-to-day survival. Psychology teaches that there is a conscious and a collective unconscious part of the soul.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blaemeless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”

The hypothalamus is called the “brain” of the endocrine system, but it is not a brain. It is a gland, which is a facilitator and originator of the following life circumstances; fear, anxiety, stress, tension, panic, panic attacks, phobia, rage, anger and aggression.

John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

The limbic system functions in the emotional aspects of behavior related to survival. When you do not feel loved or secure, or have been victimized, you fight for survival. The limbic system also functions in memory and controls most of the involuntary aspects of the entire nervous system.

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

Homeostasis may be viewed as a specific response by the body to specific stimuli. Its mechanisms “fine tune” the body, and if successful, or environment maintains a uniform chemistry, temperature, and pressure. However, if stress is extreme or unusual, the stress triggers a wide-range set of bodily changes called GAS.

GAS does not maintain a constant internal environment. In fact, it does just the opposite. The purpose of these changes is to gear up the body to meet emergencies, known as stressors.

A stressor is anything that causes fear in your life. Fear and anxiety are affecting your body behind the scenes, and you don’t even see it happening.

Cortisol

Cortisol is a very important hormone in the body in fight or flight. However, the long-term, over-secretion of cortisol destroys your immune system, and according to the medical community has direct physiological effects on a lot of bodily functions (you can read about this on page 152 of AMEW).

Proverbs 17:22 “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine; but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”

When this happens, this can adversely affect the immune response, among other somatic conditions. It is thought that 50-80% of all diseases are a result of excessive stress. Stress involves the dynamic interaction of the body and mind- brain and behavior.

Examples of these stress-induced changes included the following:

Enlargement of the adrenal cortex, a gland that produces stress hormones.

Constant release of stress hormones; corticosteroids released from the adrenal cortex.

Atrophy or shrinkage of lymphatic glands (thymus gland, spleen and lymph nodes).

A significant decrease in the white blood cell count. This effects the immune system.

Bleeding ulcerations of the stomach and colon.

Death to the organism.

Many of these changes were very subtle and often went unnoticed until permanent damage had occurred. He referred to these collective changes as the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS), a process in which the body tries to accommodate the stress by adapting to it.

Come and hear more what fear does to the body!

OUR CHOICE! Satan and his kingdom are standing by to bring about your FEAR God, the ruler of all things, is standing by to bring about your FAITH; based on your hope in His Word, His Truth and His Being Fear is not just a feeling…

Fear is a statement that leaves God completely out of the picture An evil spirit of fear is going on our past experiences which have been based on a lack of knowledge or no knowledge of what God’s Word says…

WHAT CAN WE DO? We can start making faith statements and expecting what God’s Word says… How do we learn faith statements?

Proverbs 15:13 Proverbs 17:22Our physiological wellness can be affected by victimization and by rejection of others…

Proverbs 15:13 A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.

Proverbs 17:22 22A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.

AN IMPORTANT SCRIPTURE: This scripture is foundational for the healing of many diseases pertaining to fear is in 1 John 4:18 Antidote:

1 John 4:18 (4 parts) There is no fear in love Perfect Love casteth out fear Fear hath torment He that feareth is not made perfect in love Drugs are a poor substitute for the peace of God John 14:27

Practical steps to freedom from fear!

Make a decision (resist) and speak it out to God that you don’t want fear in your life any more. You need to make a bold declaration to the Lord. I do not accept the fear in your life any more.

Ask god for discernment how fear is impacting your life. Find out where fear entered in your life.

Repent to God for specifically to each way you have given into fear and not trusted Him and not believed in His Word. You have to do that when fear is present. That means when you are having a panic attack or struggling to fear, repent to fear because fear is a sin because it is opposite to God because everything about God is faith. Fear is a spirit according to 2 Timothy 1:7 “He did not give us a spirit of fear but of sound mind…

Ask god to forgive you for these sins or fears you have entertained and to work in your heart so that you can truly trust and believe God and be free from fear.

Walk in this every day. How do you break old habits? You are developing new habits by doing this daily until you have God as your faith instead of being ruled by fear and anxiety. That means ask God to deliver you from this spirit of fear.

When fear tries to come, quote the word at it or at the enemy. 2 Timothy 1:7 for God has not given me a spirit of fear but of a sound mind. The word is a spiritual weapon. Ask the Lord to help you to believe his word as truth and will not believe what fear is saying to you any more. Look up the promises of God in scripture to combat fear.

Find a ministry that understands deliverance that is able to work and bring you to freedom. Especially if a person has had trauma. Trauma brings in fear that can grip so look for a ministry that will deal with the spirit of fear.

Every time we feel fear rising up in you, you have to decide what you are going to believe. When you believe in God’s word which declares repeatedly that when you trust God and believe Him, He will protect and care for you and save you from all of your trouble or anxiety. Or will we believe the fear that speaks against the word of God? This is a part you play to get fear defeated in your life. You have to continually choose that you will believe God no matter what things might look like to you in your natural eyes or seem like to your natural mind. Then, you will have a living faith in the word of god to come to past in your lives.

Psalms 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear. The Lord is the strength of my life whom shall I be afraid?

I break your power spirit(s) of ________ and cancel your assignments on ____________, I cast you out spirit(s) of ______________ and consign you to the dry places.

Father God, heal the places where the spirit(s) of fear have been and filled that place with your peace, love, healing and restoration. I break the programming and the old means (old memories) and ask you lord to create new memories and new means (protein synthesis) now in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

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