Benjamin Spock once said (or was it Mr. Spock on Star Trek), "Trust Yourself. You know more than you think." Many people panic when the pressure is applied for them to perform from the depths of their knowledge. I remember my first time delivering a speech before my Toastmasters club members where I had to have the speech memorized. My heart pounded, my pulse raced, my mind cluttered and I just about backed out of the speech.
Anxiety can deflate people very quickly. Just recently I saw this in two of my church members. One is preparing for a life change with a new job while another is a middle school student about to embark on an academic quest. One is concerned about how well she will do when faced with helping a patient as a nurse while the other is worried about missing an answer that may cost her teammates. When I talked to them the other day I tried to encourage them to trust what they know.
What feeds anxiety is the fear of irreversible failure. One woman is fearing the loss of health or even life if she makes a mistake while the other is fearing the loss of a contest which would hurt her team if she answers a question late or wrong. All we can do is trust ourselves to know what we know and apply it as well as we can.
But we can make one simple preparation. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your rrequests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6, 7 Not surprisingly God understands our anxiety and will help us.
God's blessing of peace in the face of mounting pressure is a blessing that many forget to invoke. God's peace is a calm of the spirit that protects the heart from fear and the mind from doubt. It is ours through the blood of Christ who faced the greatest pressure anyone could face as He looked toward the cross. Trust what you know. Remember, what you know is the Lord Jesus Christ.