This is week four of my program to help you remove anxiety from your life… forever. It is not an easy task, but the one that will most help you live a happy, healthy and purpose-driven life. If this is the first blog you have seen for a while, I encourage you to look at the last three to see the campaign that has been launched against the powerful and devastating enemy that is anxiety. The good and bad news is that we create anxiety in our own minds, and, we are responsible and in control of erasing it, forever. So, this week, let’s look at the final anxiety buster!

I write about this stuff regularly, but as you know, from my last few blogs, I still haven’t got it nailed all the time, and I still suffer from anxiety periodically. As logical as everything I write is, and as much as I believe it, I still don’t always follow it. That is me being open, honest and human, and, I think anyone who says they have it all together and never suffer from anxiety, at times, would have to be described as, ‘liar-liar-pants-on-fire’! I am good at this stuff most of the time, but there are times that I just am not, like my recent anxiety that I talked about last week.

As I explained last week, I had a discomfort in my ‘man-bits’ and, for some reason, I started focusing on the worst possible scenario. My thinking quickly spiralled into anxiety and, no matter what I tried, I couldn’t shake it. The answer was actually very obvious for me, yet in the midst of allowing my anxiety to take a hold, I didn’t pay attention. I was in Church on Good Friday, the service was over, and I was sitting with my head in my hands praying for healing. Just then, one of the pastors came over to me, put his hand on my shoulder and said, ‘Andrew, God has just told me that whatever you are worried about, it’s okay.’ He then walked away, and I was left in awe, and feeling immediately better.

Well, even with that prophecy from God, it wasn’t long before I was back in a negative spiral and feeling anxious again. In my mind, I couldn’t understand why I just didn’t have faith. Why would this man come to me and share that message with me, if he hadn’t heard from God and it wasn’t true? There is no logical reason. In that moment, I focused on the wrong things and I had allowed my faith to be clouded with my own doubts. Well, you know the story, as I explained last week, I had my appointment with the doctor, and it was all clear. My God was right, I didn’t need to worry. This was another powerful lesson to me about how what we focus on is critical, but we must also have the faith to just know it will work out. This faith will take that focus and turn it into something magical. I am a changed person as a result of this experience.

Combine positive focus and powerful faith!
One of my favorite definitions of faith is by author Phillip Yancey, and he says; ‘faith is believing in advance what will only make sense in reverse.’ I love it because, there are many times in my life, and yours too I imagine, when I achieved something that at one point seemed impossible, but, looking back made sense. Are you with me? One of the greatest stories in the Bible, David & Goliath, is testament to this. David was no match for the massive and dangerous Goliath, but he had a powerful faith that God would lead him to victory and a laser focus on slinging a stone to hit Goliath between the eyes. His focus and faith bought his victory over the ‘unbeatable’ giant. Now, whether you believe in the stories from the Bible or not, this is a concept that is worthy of your attention, if, you want to kill anxiety forever and create abundance and joy in your life.

Back in the year 2002, I was working unreasonable hours in two businesses, losing money in one of those businesses and wondering what I could do to get myself out of this hole. Then an idea to write a book came into my head. It was a totally illogical and unreasonable idea because; I was working over 100 hours, seven days per week, was not a reader and had no experience or qualifications as a writer. All I had, back then, was focus and faith. I focused on the impact that the book would have on people’s lives, how it would transform my own, and, I had faith that if I would just get started, take one step per day, the way forward would open itself to me.

Was I anxious? No way, I was excited, empowered and determined. With those three emotions on my side, I got to work to somehow write a book that gained a publisher, that went on to become a bestselling book, that totally transformed the direction of my life. Today, as write this and look back over the seventeen years that have gone past since that crazy decision to write a book, the life that has unfolded for me makes sense. Back then, to have imagined the life I would be living today and the things I would be doing was honestly incomprehensible. But it happened because of two things; focus and faith.

Take a deep breath and start thinking about the things that are currently causing stress, anxiety and worry in your life. Are you finally ready to remove stress, anxiety and worry, and, turn it into excitement, empowerment and determination? Great, then simply focus on what you want and have absolute faith that, if you start moving and keep going, it will become reality. Is your health a concern? Then focus on looking and feeling the way you want, and, have total faith that, by doing what you need to do, you will get there. Money is a massive cause of people’s anxiety, often because they are always focused on not having enough. So, what about starting to focus on financial abundance, then get to work to make it happen, and, have absolute faith that it will.

Is your anxiety there because of; relationship issues, fear of getting rejected, finishing your book, not believing you are good enough, or any other doubt you are creating in your head? You are only anxious because you are either; focusing on what you don’t want, or, don’t have faith that you can achieve what you do want. Can you see why the combination of focus and faith is so critical to eradicate anxiety and move you towards the joy you are after?

I had no logical evidence to possibly believe that I could become a successful author and change the direction of my life. It’s lucky, for you and me, that logic is not a requirement for success, in fact, it may even be a barrier. It is logic that will most likely lead to anxiety. So, are you ready to remove the source of your anxiety? Step one, give logic the flick. Step two, focus on exactly what you want. Step three, get into daily action, and keep going with the faith of knowing that it will work out. Today, you can rid yourself of anxiety forever, with focus and faith.