Book Review: Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing

In this post, you will read a book review of Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing. It discusses why you should and should not read the book, its summary, and the lessons you will learn from it.

Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing is among the most inspiring and powerful Christian books on worries, fear, and anxiety. In this post, let me give you a quick book review and book summary to give you an idea of whether this book is worth your time or not.

The Book in 3 Sentences

Anxious for Nothing discusses how you can find calm in a chaotic world through the lens of Philippians 4:6-7. The book helps you understand why you get anxious and fearful. Most importantly, it shows you how God’s lasting peace can bring you healing from all the damage anxiety has done in your life.

The author

Max Lucado wrote Anxious for Nothing. Max Lucado is among the most inspiring and prolific Christian writers today. He has served churches in various places both in the US and abroad. On the side, he loves writing and that’s where we got some of his powerful books. Max has already printed more than 140 million copies of his numerous books.

(If you want to read more about Max Lucado’s other books, read my blog, “The Top 11 best Max Lucado Books You Should Never Miss!”)

Book Summary of Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing

Anxious for Nothing is about overcoming anxiety, fear, and worries in life. It discusses in detail Philippians 4:6-7 where Max Lucado derived his C.A.L.M. acronym, which stands for:

  1. C – Celebrate God’s Goodness
  2. A – Ask God For Help 
  3. L – Leave Your Concerns With Him 
  4. M – Meditate On Good Things
Why You Should Read Anxious for Nothing by Max Lucado

The CALM acronym also serves as the four sections of the book. Anxious for Nothing comes with 11 chapters:

  1. Less Fret, More Faith 
  2. Rejoice in the Lord’s Sovereignty 
  3. Rejoice in the Lord’s Mercy
  4. Rejoice in the Lord Always 
  5. Contagious Calm 
  6. Prayer, Not Despair 
  7. Great Gratitude 
  8. God’s Peace, Your Peace
  9. Think About What You Think About
  10. Cling to Christ 
  11. C.A.L.M.

At the end of the book, there are three more sections, which include the following:

  1. Questions for Reflection
  2. Scriptures
  3. Notes

Why should you read Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing book?

There are a lot of reasons why you should read Anxious for Nothing. Here are some of them:

  • The book gives you a deeper understanding of Philippians 4:6-7. Yes, this verse is quite popular, but not all really have a real grasp of its profound meaning. So, if you like to know more about Philippians 4:6-7, this should help.
  • The book helps you overcome anxiety, fear, and worries. Since these are common problems and emotions many people experience, it is most likely that you also suffer from them. So, this book is super helpful to help you with your bouts with negative emotions in your life.
  • Anxious for Nothing teaches you how to trust God not just in times of peace and happiness, but also in times of difficulties and chaos.
  • Max Lucado uses the acronym CALM as a teaching tool in this book. The meaning behind this acronym can help you live a more peaceful and less chaotic life.
  • The book helps you understand how to properly respond to different circumstances in your life in such a way that you are reflecting God’s will and purpose.

Why you should not read Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing book?

While the book is admittedly a wonderful piece of literature, there are a few things you might want to know.

First of all, the book is short. It has only 240 pages. Moreover, a huge part of the book is devoted to reflection notes, which might not be something most people look forward to.

Moreover, if you are suffering from severe anxiety, this book might not be enough to completely solve the problem. While the book comes with wonderful, inspiring, and insightful pieces of advice, the book lacks practical strategies or step-by-step instructions.

For me, people who suffer from anxiety should meet with a qualified therapist, but this book would undoubtedly be a great companion during the journey to recovery.

I believe the book is more about preventing anxiety than solving it. Of course, it can still be a great book even if you are battling anxiety already.

Lessons I learned from Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing

The best lessons from Anxious for Nothing are the following:

  • Focus more on God’s goodness when you become anxious. When you look to God, you look away from the cause of anxiety and fear. It allows you to become more conscious of what God can do for you rather than what fear can paralyze.
  • Realize that God’s help is always available to overcome anxiety, fear, and worries. The problem with some people is that they try to solve their problems by themselves, which is, in most cases, ineffective. However, if you entrust your worries and fears to God, you’ll see that your burden would be lighter and easier to bear.
  • Gratefulness is a potent antidote against anxiety. It allows you to fill your mind and heart with thankfulness instead of worries and fear. It purges your life of the negative emotions that can easily lead to anxiety.
  • The problem with having anxiety and fears in your mind is that it occupies a lot of space. If you don’t get rid of these negative emotions, there will be no enough space for positive emotions. That’s why, you need to constantly meditate on whatever things are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtue, and anything praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8).
  • Anxiety, worries, and fears can be overcome. Don’t ever think that it is a hopeless situation. Never give up. All things are possible with God and that includes overcoming crippling anxiety, depressing worries, and disease-causing fear. With God, you can win your battle against these negative emotions!

Best quotes from Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing book

Max Lucado is no doubt a wise and thoughtful writer. So, it is no wonder that you’ll also find note-worthing quotes from the book.

These are the following:

Anxiety and fear are cousins but not twins. Fear sees a threat. Anxiety imagines one.

The presence of anxiety is unavoidable, but the prison of anxiety is optional.

Rather than rehearse the chaos of the world, rejoice in the Lord’s sovereignty.

Your anxiety decreases as your understanding of your father increases.

Others see the problems of the world and wring their hands. We see the problems of the world and bend our knees.

The mind cannot at the same time be full of God and full of fear.

There is a reason why windshield is bigger than the rearview mirror. Your future matters more than your past.

The contagiously calm person is the one who reminds others, “God is in control.”

Peace happens when people pray.

A specific prayer is a serious prayer.

Do you want to be happy tomorrow? Then sow seeds of happiness today.

It does you no good to obsess yourself with your trouble. The more you stare at it, the bigger it grows. Yet the more you look to God, the quicker the problem is reduced to its proper size.

Face God before you face your problem.

Should you read Max Lucado Anxious for Nothing?

Definitely! I highly recommend this book. It comes with wonderful answers to the question, “How to overcome anxiety, fears, and worries?”

The book Anxious for Nothing allows you to have a deeper understanding of how to live a life full of peace and calm and not anxiety and worries.

By entrusting your life to the One who controls everything, you will eventually see the power of God in handling negative emotions in your life.

So, if you wish to get more understanding of anxiety and how to overcome it, then let Anxious for Nothing help you!