“Anxiety is a sin, a lack of faith in God’s providence.”
This (and I paraphrased) is what I came across today as I was reading Jerry Bridges book, “Respectable Sins”. At first, I was appalled and confused, even angry and, admittedly, a bit anxious, but once I began to process my own experiences with anxiety through the lens of God’s truth in His Word, I think I began to agree. Now, hear me out; I fully believe — and can speak from firsthand experience — that anxiety is also a mental illness that many people struggle with. In fact, it is the most common, and there are many ways to treat it, but may I suggest that first having a deep trust in God is the most effective way to combat the fear that comes with everyday decisions and troubles? What would happen if we decided to put our utmost faith in God and not in our own ability to predict and solve every worrisome predicament in our lives? What if we truly took a look back on our lives and realized how good and faithful God has been to provide, and how He works all things for our good (Romans 8:28, James 1:2–6)?
Now, let’s start to unpack this a little bit.
Recently, I have been doing a little bit more in-depth research on what anxiety really is and how I experience it personally, from the lovely counselors and mentors at Lancaster Bible College. Surprisingly, some of the most practical and beneficial things I learned were from a simple facts sheet! Here are some of those for your reading pleasure and mental stimulation. Hopefully this may clear up some of the confusion or negative stigmas, as it did for me:
As a 20-something, millennial, Bible college student, you-name-it, I can see the toll that anxiety takes on my peers; however, many are unable or unwilling to talk about it in a healthy way, and sometimes the resources are inadequate. IN this case, it is helpful to understand some of the facts and numbers, so that we can better address this issues on our campuses and at home. In 2017, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that in 2017, 18 million students were enrolled in college, and 3 out of every 4 experienced “a sense of overwhelming anxiety”. An article published by the American Institute of Stress reported that, “People experiencing chronic anxiety often avoid places and activities that may trigger these feelings, which negatively affects their quality of life. They often downplay the impact of anxiety on their day-to-day lives, or they simply may not realize they are dealing with a potentially serious mental health condition.”
Some of the most striking things for me from these pages and article were the most simple. Learning that my constant feeling of physical unrest, mental distractedness, and emotional instability, was partially due to adverse experiences from my childhood and the influx of cortisone and adrenaline, and partially due to my unwillingness to submit to God’s plan, purpose and peace, has been very freeing. I had bought into the lie that anxiety controlled me and that I had no hope to heal the emotions, thoughts, and chemical imbalances that came with the diagnosis I received when I was very young, but after years of learning about anxiety’s effects on me and others, and hearing countless truths from compassionate people who care about me, I cannot say the same. Seeing ‘worry’ -as Bridges puts it- laid out in this matter-of-fact way brings light to a once dark place, as just another opportunity for me (and you) to turn to God and experience restoration. Yes, the habit of resisting the urge to fight or flight will take a lot of practice (and breathing exercises), and some repentance is in order for the times that we have given into frustration and doubt in the Lord, but if we are willing to put our trust in the Him and “submit to and cheerfully accept His agenda” (Bridges, 65), I promise you, peace will come.
*Some Questions that this topic raises:
- How can you say that anxiety is a sin?!
- What does God say about anxiety in the Bible?
- Where is the line between clinical anxiety and sinful anxiety?
- What are some practical ways that I can surrender this struggle to God?
- Why do some people experience more levels of adrenaline or cortisone, and when does the fight or flight response become unhealthy?
*feel free to reach out to me with your questions and concerns @ skippyg12@gmail.com , I would love to talk about this in more detail, but I figured if you are anything like me you would not want to read a lengthy blog post ;) I in no way claim to have all the answers, but I can say confidently that it is in God’s hands, and this struggle does not define me, nor should it you.
