Those of you that know me know that I have struggled my whole life with anxiety. Years ago I was diagnosed with OCD. I have read countless books on how to faithfully deal with anxiety and fear. But I have to tell you, the best book that I have ever read on the subject has to be Struck Down but Not Destroyed by Pierce Taylor Hibbs.

Rather than trying to make anxiety go away, Hibbs encourages the reader to lean into it:

Anxiety seems necessary to cultivate and strengthen my relationship with God… In other words, God has faithfully used my anxiety to turn my head away from everything else, to close my mouth, to open my ears, and to fix my gaze on him. Anxiety has a purifying effect: it simplifies life to a single relationship. What Earnest Hemmingway said of war we can say of anxiety: It burns the fat off of our souls.

Now that I have children of my own who seem to exhibit the same symptoms, I use this book as a tool to teach them how to faithfully trust the Lord in the midst of anxiety and panic attacks. I simply cannot say this loud enough: If you deal with anxiety, depression, OCD, or the like… BUY THIS BOOK. It is well worth the read.