--- title: "Book Club: Small Efforts Move Us from Fear to Faith" description: For our Book Club, Ginny Kochis sums up three steps for shifting our mindset away from anxiety and toward hope. image: https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/Give%20Up%20Worry%20Book%20Club.jpg --- [![catholic-mom-logo-v2](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/images/catholic-mom-logo-v2.svg "catholic-mom-logo-v2")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) [![search-icon](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/search-icon.svg)](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/book-club-small-efforts-move-us-from-fear-to-faith#) [BOOKS](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/tag/books) # Book Club: Small Efforts Move Us from Fear to Faith Mar 20, 2021 1:00:00 PM  |  by [Ginny Kochis](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/ginny-kochis) ![featured image](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/Give%20Up%20Worry%20Book%20Club.jpg) *For our Book Club, Ginny Kochis sums up three steps for shifting our mindset away from anxiety and toward hope.* One thing that has always vexed me about anxiety is the question of moving away from it:  How are you supposed to walk away when the fear of change is anxiety-inducing, too? For someone like me (a chronic, clinically anxious individual with an overactive imagination) the mere possibility of climbing from the deep and into the sunlight is terrifying prospect. Really. Because anxiety is a tricky mistress. She worms her way into your neural pathways and sets up a comfortable shop, relying on your brain's tendency to follow the path of least resistance: to stick to what it has practiced and what it knows. And what does it know? That the anxiety-prone are thrown into a panic by the possibility of *what if. * It knows that we’re afraid of change and the unknown, whether it be in our plans, our lives, or our futures. It knows we're intimately acquainted with two-thirds of the word static’s varied definitions:  ­1. in one place; immovable; unchanging 1. crackling or hissing noises on a telephone, radio, or other communications device  *Translation: we’re afraid of forward momentum (among other things) and unable to hear God’s voice through the chaos. * Fortunately for the anxious, ironclad worrier, Gary Zimak is a gentle guide. In this fourth week of Lent, Zimak approaches our particular brand of stasis with suggestions for a shift in mindset. He doesn’t expect anyone to turn off worry automatically. Rather, he encourages small efforts that lead us away from fear and anxiety into faith, trust, and hope.   #### First, find miracles I tend toward negativity as a rule. My MO is to bury myself under a pile of frustrations and worries, ignoring the good and the beautiful in my life. Speaking from his personal experience, Zimak suggests that I turn my attention to even the smallest of God’s moments in my day-to-day, a gradual way to turn negativity on its head. So, instead of fixating on the fears and moments that make me miserable, I’m endeavoring to seek out goodness. I’m retraining my brain to seek the His presence before I run headlong for the anxiety hills.   #### Next, start small While there's no denying the clinical, medical nature of my anxiety, I do think anxiety can still become a habit of sorts. As I mentioned earlier, it’s the brain’s way of sticking to the most comfortable, familiar pathways and processes. Like humanity in general, the brain prefers what it knows.  This is why I love Zimak's encouragement to just take the next small step. Like when I catch myself catastrophizing over the very (not) real possibility my runny nose means I have sinus cancer, I can pray a decade of the Rosary instead. Zimak has helped me see that the more I replace negative thoughts with deliberate moments of trust and prayer in a crisis, the easier it becomes to leave anxiety behind. #### Finally, learn to listen The world is busy. Social media is ever-present. It’s all noise that’s hard to filter out. I’ve felt so far away from God lately that prayer, Mass, and even the sacraments feel like I’m participating via dial-up internet. The connection is super slow, and that screeching, dial tone-esque cacophony just doesn’t want to quit.  But Zimak comes to my rescue again, offering a communication tip I had woefully forgotten about. He recommends finding a moment to rest in the silence and ask the Holy Spirit to help you hear God’s whispers. Like the oft-repeated suggestion to ask the Holy Spirit’s guidance in prayer time, this technique isn’t just effective, it’s comforting. What a beautiful reminder that I don’t have to do this anxiety thing alone.  Yes, anxiety is a tricky mistress. She does her level best to keep me trapped in a loop of catastrophe and avoidance. But with Zimak’s advice and the Holy Spirit’s presence, I’m feeling more confident in my efforts to drop anxiety by the wayside. I’m pretty pleased by my efforts to give up worrying for Lent.   #### Discussion questions:  Take a moment to reflect on God’s presence in your life, the little miracles you’ve witnessed but might not keep in the forefront of your mind. How do these moments show God’s providence in your day-to-day?  What small steps can you take to replace negative or anxious thoughts with God’s peace? Repeating a verse of scripture? Praying an Our Father? Something else?  How often have you asked the Holy Spirit to help you hear God’s voice? What are some reminders you can put in place to help you remember to do just that? > [Zimak approaches our particular brand of stasis with suggestions for a shift in mindset. #catholicmom](https://ctt.ac/Zh64T) ##### Did you miss this week’s Facebook Live with author Gary Zimak? Review it now!    #### Purchase your copy of *Give Up Worry for Lent* from Ave Maria Press and save:  Use promo code **LENTCM** to **save 20%** off the cover price of the book and get **free shipping** too! This promo code expires April 30, 2021. [![Order your copy today](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/60c26c28-6512-4838-a466-6a3943945e47.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/60c26c28-6512-4838-a466-6a3943945e47)   #### Stay connected! [![Catch up on our Book Club articles](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/a53cba5c-903d-44bd-b370-0b6a1802b16e.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/a53cba5c-903d-44bd-b370-0b6a1802b16e)     [![Sign up for our Book Club newsletters](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/78171057-58eb-45ac-b5d0-9c2729ae9f68.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/78171057-58eb-45ac-b5d0-9c2729ae9f68)     ![Give Up Worry Book Club FB and IG](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Give%20Up%20Worry%20Book%20Club%20FB%20and%20IG.jpg?width=1000&name=Give%20Up%20Worry%20Book%20Club%20FB%20and%20IG.jpg) --- Copyright 2021 Ginny Kochis Images courtesy of Ave Maria Press ### Share this article [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbook-club-small-efforts-move-us-from-fear-to-faith%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbook-club-small-efforts-move-us-from-fear-to-faith%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbook-club-small-efforts-move-us-from-fear-to-faith%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Book%20Club%3A%20Small%20Efforts%20Move%20Us%20from%20Fear%20to%20Faith) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbook-club-small-efforts-move-us-from-fear-to-faith%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fbook-club-small-efforts-move-us-from-fear-to-faith%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) ** #### About the Author ![Ginny Kochis](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/Contriubutors/GINNY%20KOCHIS.jpeg) ### [Ginny Kochis](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/ginny-kochis) Ginny Kochis is a Catholic wife and homeschooling mom to three differently-wired children. She founded the [Not So Formulaic](http://www.notsoformulaic.com) community to support Catholic moms raising out-of-the-box kids. Ginny believes God gives curious, creative, intense children the exact mother they need to thrive. ## Related Blog Articles [ 3 Fruitful Steps for a Mother's Discernment Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/2017/07/25/3-fruitful-steps-mothers-discernment) [ Your Children Make You Holy. Here's Why. Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/2017/01/24/children-make-holy-heres) [ Lies Moms Believe (and the saints who tell the truth) Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/lies-moms-believe-and-the-saints-who-tell-the-truth) ## Comments ## Donate now [![Support Catholic Mom](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545) [![CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png?width=1806&height=731&name=CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png "CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) ##### Subscribe to Catholic Momcast on iTunes or Spotify [![itunes-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/itunes-logo-black.svg)](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catholic-momcast/id1362352357)[![spotify-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/spotify-logo-black.svg)](https://open.spotify.com/show/15CoipHL7z61IDcYErV0b8?si=hqaQJSxDQgq7S1hxCwsoxQ) ##### CatholicMom on Social Networks [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) ##### About Catholic Mom [Who We Are](https://www.catholicmom.com/about-us) [Contact Us](https://www.catholicmom.com/contact) [Support CatholicMom.com](https://www.catholicmom.com/support-us)   ##### Associated Links [Holy Cross Family Ministries](https://www.hcfm.org/) [Family Rosary](https://www.familyrosary.org/) [Family Theater Productions](https://www.familytheater.org/) [Congregation of the Holy Cross](https://www.holycrossusa.org/) [Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C.](https://www.fatherpeyton.org/) [The Peyton Institute for Domestic Church Life](https://www.peytonfamilyinstitute.org/) ### **Stay connected!** Don’t miss a thing! 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