What does Scripture say about anxiety? How do we take captive our rampant thoughts? Find the way to ease your mind.

Several months ago, I was driving home from work when this presence descended upon me. My chest thumped, and my heart ached. I tried to ignore it, but it gained momentum with each mile I drove. The closer I got to my home, the closer it felt like my heart was to exploding from my chest. I was confident that I was having a heart attack.

Finally, I pulled over, gasping for air. It felt like I was simultaneously losing my grip, and I had been chained to my seat. I called out to the Lord to bring me peace, and I sat there until I calmed down enough to drive home safely. I later realized that I had a panic attack. 

That was a terrifying moment. Honestly, I've never felt more helpless. But the beauty of that moment was once I hit that wall, where I was past my limits and felt like the cracks were going to burst, that's when God met me. Much like Peter, when he walked on water and began to sink, he cried out to God, and that's when Jesus rescued him. 

That's why God gave us the emotion of being afraid so that we can recognize our deep need for Him.

Caught in the Web

Anxiety is a response to stress and fear. When there's some danger or challenge, our body triggers our stress response to be aware. Biologically speaking, this trigger is a great thing. This response was beneficial millions of years ago when our ancestors roamed the land for their next meal. If a wild animal charged them, their anxiety would spike to keep them safe.

But today, our anxiety is often a stress that doesn't have a healthy outlet. Typically, we don’t respond to fear through vulnerably. Let me break that down. God has given us the emotion of fear to lead us to wisdom. In the modern world, we hate the word fear. That comes from a conflation of the fear of damnation or the fear of being exiled. 

When John talks about "perfect love casts out all fear,” that's not the fear you experience before a big presentation. Instead, that's the fear that God will reject you. But in His infinite wisdom, God has given us the gift of fear so that we can respond vulnerably by reaching out to Him and others. 

When we feel fear in our lives, such as job stress, engaging new people, or even driving in peak traffic, that is a doorway for us to open ourselves to vulnerability, and that's a scary thing. Anxiety comes when vulnerability is denied because you didn't want to go there or because you've been shut out. The latter can happen when someone shuts you down, or it can happen when you're lonely and don't have anyone to talk to. So rather than going outward with our fear and stress, it ends up caving in on us. 

One of the most damaging aspects of anxiety is the heavy hand that pushes you so deeply inward that you can't tell anyone. You can't relate to anyone else. You're caught in a web, and that's where the Adversary wants you. He wants you scared because then he has taken full advantage of our doubts and fears. The Adversary begins to poke at us. He asks, "Why do you keep following God when everything's changed and falling apart? Clearly, He can't take care of you." 

Our fear is that we can't measure up in our Christian circles or that it'll be exposed that you don't have enough faith. The doubt tells us that if you could believe that God could take care of you, then why don't you let go and let Him? And the good news is, no, it's not a failure, it's an opportunity for you to reach out invulnerably to others.

I want to call out the Church (not just any one church, but the big C, Christian Church as a whole) about this because I don't think we've done a good job with this issue. For too long, churches have pushed anxiety, fear, and stress to the sidelines. Rather than tackling the problem, leaders are often ill-equipped to handle the issue. Too frequently, the phrase "You just need to have more faith, and it'll go away" gets thrown at those suffering. This phrase couldn't be further how the Church should respond.  

The wildest thing is, the church has THE solution to handling our anxiety issue. The reality is Jesus can meet with us there, in our isolation, anxiety, stress, and depression. This idea is not a pray-it-away mentality. This is an opportunity to open ourselves up to our vulnerabilities and allow God to fill those cracks. The Church should encourage men and women to be genuine in their emotions and share the real truth about when you're not doing well mentally, physically, emotionally, or spiritually. It's time we encourage our members and attendees to share when they're struggling and not to be afraid of who they are. We have to break the stigma. The Church has to step up because anxiety is real, and it's not going away. 

I am fortunate to belong to a small group of four guys who routinely meet to share our souls. I've participated in this one for a few years now, but I need to preface it by saying, it's never easy to air out my struggles. Even though I've been with these men for years, it's still not easy to share in my success and failures. But afterward, I always walk away with the comfort that I am known and heard; my burden has been lifted. 

If you are in a church, and struggling with anxiety, you need to prioritize finding a groups. If you can't find one, create one. Other people are struggling to share, just like you! 

We don't have enough knowledge, wisdom, or power to succeed alone. Yet, we are entirely responsible for all of our choices. That's the paradox of life that we are accountable for our faith, but we can't do it alone. And that's why we need the church. It is meant to be the place where you can depend on others.

Take Anxiety Captive

If you're dealing with anxiety, what would it look like to take your body captive? Many times we feel anxiety in places where there has been past trauma. But what would it look like to bring your body into a posture of worship so that it can be part of the solution?

"For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness, but of power and love and discipline." (2 Timothy1:7)

Do not sit in fear. God is not a God of fear; He is a God of peace. He brings peace to the chaos. We need to start speaking directly into our thoughts and challenging them. Where you hear those inner words of brokenness, we need to look at ourselves and say, "That is not true." And if you can't accomplish that on your own, open yourself up to a trusted friend in your Christian faith. 

"We demolish arguments and every proud thing that is raised against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:5)

If you are struggling with anxiety, a great place to start is by reciting a daily liturgy. This daily prayer can be something simple like, "I pray today in the name of Jesus, that by His blood, and by His cross, that I can take every thought captive." I see that as a way for us to be yoked with Christ in our suffering and anxiety. 

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened." That's the bad news. The bad news is you are weary and burdened. There's nobody out here who is coasting through life. But here's the good news. "And I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy. And my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

We are meant to be yoked with Christ, and He wants to be yoked with us.

In the ancient world, yolks were for two oxen, but one ox had to be stronger. If you had two strong oxen, they'd try to outdo one another, and it would break off. If both were too weak, you would not get the work done. The ideal pairing was to have a strong one to lead. We are the weak oxen. We can do nothing apart from Jesus. He desires to be with us in our work and life.

To overcome anxiety, you need to ask yourself these questions.

What are the things that yoke you right now? 

What are the things that are on top of you? 

What are the things that you feel like you are carrying all by yourself? 

What and who are those things that you hide from? 

What are the things that give you anxiety? 

The good news is that those burdens you're carrying or that you don't want to confront, they are the places where you need to be healed. Christ wants to heal you. 

If you're feeling anxious, and you're running a million miles an hour, seek where God is in the midst of that. What would it look like for you to take a Sabbath? Take a nap, or sit and be still. Go out of town, and find some good food. Get outside and look at the lilies and the birds. God provides for them, and He's providing even more for you. So enjoy the beauty of His nature.

The inspiration for the artwork of our podcast, The Wandering Years, was drawn from Hosea 2:14. "God says: 'Therefore I'm now going to lower her, I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her.'" We meet God in the wilderness, and for us, sometimes it takes leaving home or leaving those places of anxiety and stepping out into the wilderness to be with God. 

Step outside. Step out of your fear. Step into vulnerability. Step into communion. Step into freedom of anxiety. 

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About Christ Church Memphis
Christ Church Memphis is church in East Memphis, Tennessee. For more than 65 years, Christ Church has served the Memphis community. Every weekend, there are multiple worship opportunities including traditional, contemporary and blended services.