The Anatomy of Anxiety
Part 29: Mental Healing
Note: For previous posts in this blog mini-series, visit: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, and 28.
Big Idea: Does worry, doubt, or fear get the best of you sometimes? Do you wonder where anxiety comes from and how to defeat it in your life and the lives of those you love? Then we need a biblical anatomy of anxiety. We need God’s prescription for victory over anxiety.
Think About Our Thinking: Take Control of Our Thought Life
To defeat anxiety, the Apostle Paul encourages us in Philippians 4:7 to guard our heart—our rational control center, and to guard our mind—our thought life, mindsets, the thematic ways we think about life. We can put it this way:
Put off fleshly mindsets that develop into ruts and routes in the brain. Put off the old, habitual, fearful, phobia and worry-filled themes and threads in your thought life.
In fear, we let our brains talk to us, control us, and convince us of defeatist lies. In Psalm 42:5, David took control of his thought life. He stepped back and said, “Why are you downcast, O my soul?”
To defeat fear, worry, anxiety, stress, panic, and phobias, we have to think about our thinking. We have to identify the lies we’re believing.
Hauntings: Put Off the Lies of the World, the Flesh, and the Devil
Reflect on some of the typical shrinking thinking associated with anxiety.
1. High Probability Thinking
I overestimate the likelihood of a negative outcome. “If it’s possible, then it’s probable.” “It’s possible that I could gag while the dentist works on my mouth, so I’m sure it’s gonna’ happen!”
2. Extreme Negativity
I see the glass always as half empty, not half full. “This situation is bad and sure to get worse.” “Some of the church folks are complaining—I bet it’s just about everyone who’s unhappy with me. I’m sure a church split is coming.”
3. Over Vigilance
High worry leads to over-preparation—for the worst case scenario. “I have to prepare perfectly for this speech or I’ll forget all my lines and make a complete fool out of myself.” “I need God-like control; I must see and prepare for every possible negative contingency.”
4. Worry Inaction
Worrying seems better and feels better than doing something about it. We scan and scan and scan, and never take a stand. “I hate this worrying, but I feel paralyzed by it, and then I procrastinate and avoid, and then things get worse, and then I worry more…”
5. Catastrophizing
We spiral into ever increasing levels of dread. “If I get nervous while driving over this bridge, then I’ll lose control over the car and end up crashing into the bay.”
Issues of the Heart: Core Fears and Sinful Beliefs
If we only looked at these false beliefs from a surface level, we’d be doing little more than “rational-emotive therapy” or “cognitive-behavioral therapy.” A Christian approach to anxiety looks deeper—to issues of the heart, because every belief ultimately traces back to how we relate to God, how we view God, and how we view our relationship to God—by works or by grace.
In Romans 8:15, Paul tells us that we have not been given a spirit of fear. The word means fear that torments, craven fear. In the context, it’s a fear of rejection due to failure to measure up to God. We fear separation from God.
Paul contrasts this with the spirit of adoption by which we cry out, “Abba, Father.” Our Father’s perfect, grace-love casts out all fear of rejection.
These two very different “spirits,” or core attitudes of the mind and soul in relationship to God, suggest core issues of the heart—core fears and the sinful beliefs behind them.
1. My Acceptance Is Based Upon My Works
Rather than accept our acceptance by grace through faith, we try to earn our way back to God. We try to regain His favor by our works. Ultimately the shrinking thinking associate with anxiety is traceable to our shrunken view of God’s grace and our bloated view of our works.
2. God Does Not Have a Good Heart
We refuse to turn to God’s grace because of our arrogance and because of our sinful belief that “God doesn’t care.” We reason, “Since I’m separated from God, or at best a slave, He cares little about me. In fact, I’m a sinner and He hates sinners. I’m on my own. He may care about others, but not me. God’s care for me is smaller than my problem.” Here we see a shrunken view of God’s goodness.
3. God Does Not Have Great Power
Or, we reason, “Perhaps He’s caring, but simply not in control. If He is powerful enough to save me and protect me, then for some reason His power is unavailable to me. So I must take compulsive control. My problem is bigger than God’s control over it.” Now we identify a shrunken view of God’s greatness. Our sinful refusal to believe God’s grace, goodness, and greatness are behind our symptoms of anxiety.
Keeping It Real
1. Which of the “hauntings” (the 5 shrinking thinking categories) most often haunt you? How could you put off these lies and replace them with God’s truth?
2. Which of the issues of the heart (the 3 sinful heart beliefs) might be the root cause behind your issues with fear, worry, and anxiety? What would it look like to repent of these?
The Rest of the Story
Obviously, we don’t want to stop here. Putting off is vital. Yet Jesus warns us that to put off without putting on is like the man from whom one demon was cast out, but seven worse demons took his place. Putting off empties us. Putting on fills us—with Christ’s truth and love. In our next post we’ll learn how to respond to the Spirit’s whispers of reassuring peace.
Join the Conversation
What’s the difference between the approach in today’s blog and how secular psychology would deal with “false beliefs”?
