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Pastor Levi Lusko says now is ‘not a time to falter,’ offers advice to those struggling with anxiety

Pastor David Nasser talks with best-selling author and pastor Levi Lusko online in Liberty’s studio.

On Wednesday, bestselling author and pastor Levi Lusko encouraged Liberty University students via an online video chat to not be shaken by the uncertainty of COVID-19, but to instead remember that the Lord has us in this situation for a purpose.

“We have a lot of time, and we get to choose how to use this quarantine,” Lusko said during the school’s online Convocation. “It can either be the worst thing or the best thing.”

“A big part of this time is having a purpose and not being aimless,” he added. “When you help others and take your eyes off yourself, it’s proven that it brings you through the trial.”

In a discussion led by Liberty’s Senior Vice President for Spiritual Development, David Nasser, Lusko said that this is the first time in history that a virus has matched up with a viral culture, a platform that presents more awareness but also increased opportunity for anxiety. He explained that this is a great time for Christians to both preach the Gospel and to live it out in their communities by helping those in need.

Lusko said that the Lord has been reminding him that as a pastor, he has a responsibility to be the shepherd that the Lord has called him to be.

“God has really been speaking into me that this is not a time to falter,” Lusko said. “This is not a time for us to fall apart. God is going to hold us accountable as leaders for what we did as shepherds.”

Lusko advised viewers not to place a COVID-19 virus end date on their calendars but to instead be tenacious in persevering each day, knowing that this time of hardship will eventually subside.

In Lusko’s most recent book, I Declare War, the Montana-based pastor opens up about his lifelong battle against anxiety, night terrors, and panic attacks.

Lusko spoke briefly about his own struggles and warned viewers to not become numb to situations because the problems they are facing will not disappear. The solution is to take comfort in the Lord by replacing your fixation on a concern with fixation on Him.

“Don’t delete anxiety, but instead replace the thought,” Lusko said. “You are going to see more of whatever you are looking at. You see where you stare.”

Lusko believes that this is the opportunity the church has been waiting for. As the COVID-19 pandemic fear grows, the world may be more receptive to hearing the Gospel than ever before.

“God’s trying to wake up a sleeping church, and He’s trying to touch this world,” he said. “This is our chance.”

On Friday, Liberty’s online Convocation will feature Jay and Katherine Wolf at 10:30 a.m.

 

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