Why We Exist

The more discussions I've had with people, the more I've realized how prevalent anxiety is in our culture.

It seems like everyone is dealing with it on some level.

Anxiety and Depression Association of America states that it is the most common mental illness in the United States and that it affects around 40 million adults aged 18 and older.

That’s close to 20% of the population every year and doesn’t even include children and teens, who have also seen a rise in cases over the past few years.

It has also run in my family for a long time and I learned this when I started experiencing a few of the physical symptoms for the first time.

It started during the transition between college and a full time job.

There was so much uncertainty surrounding my future and what would come next that it began to directly affect my physical health. I started feeling shortness of breath, an increased heart rate, and even a couple minor panic attacks.

I didn’t know what was going on.

It got so bad that I finally had to talk to someone about it, so I reached out to my dad.

But as I was telling him about it, I was a little surprised by his reaction..

He acted so calm..

Like these things were no big deal..

You would think he’d care a little more about his son’s health..

But I soon learned it was because he knew exactly what it was.

It was nothing new to him.

He had dealt with it before and so had his dad before him and probably many more before them.

I wasn’t alone.

And this began to change the way I felt.

Simply knowing it wasn’t just me.

Soon after this conversation, I graduated college and moved back home for a little while.

It was there I noticed a sign that had been hanging at my parents house for a long time that simply reads, "be at ease".

I never paid much attention to it before, but all of the sudden it took on a whole new meaning.

It was a reminder to fear not.

To not be anxious about anything.

It is a phrase that literally means to be free from labor, pain, concern, or anxiety.

And it is a reminder that so many of us need to hear right now.

This reminder is one that is also spoken through different people in different words throughout Scripture.

Jesus tells his disciples to not let their hearts fear.

Paul tells the Philippians to not be anxious about anything.

Isaiah reminds the people of God to fear not because God is with them.

God’s people needed to be reminded daily to be at ease.

And so do we.

It’s not always easy. Things happen that are out of our control.

But I believe this little phrase can serve as a great reminder that we have hope and can choose to believe the best.

Sometimes that’s all we need.

My hope is that through Be At Ease Co. we can begin to build a community of people who want to help others learn to be at ease.

We can be encouragement and strength to those around us.

We can be a group of people you can talk to, like my dad was for me.

There is power in community.

You are not alone.

Let’s learn to be at ease together.