The Anatomy of Anxiety
Part 26: The 911 Psalm
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, and 25.
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.
Relating God’s Eternal Word to Our Daily Relationships
How do we use the Bible in helping hurting people? The extremes seem to be a quick quoting of a text, often out of context. Or, minimizing the sufficiency of Scripture and turning to secular self-help concepts.
But since the Bible is truly sufficient and relevant to all issues of the soul, then we must learn how to relate God’s Word to our daily lives and relationships by jointly applying the truth in love to specific life issues.
I spend several hundred pages in Spiritual Friends demonstrating how we can do this. Since this blog is one page, not several hundred, I’ll introduce you to some sample healing spiritual conversations. Then I’ll illustrate a sample scriptural exploration.
Sample Healing Spiritual Conversations for Victory Over Anxiety
Healing spiritual conversations are three-way conversations: you, your Spiritual friend, and the Ultimate Spiritual Friend—Christ through His Word.
These “trialogues” jointly apply biblical principles to help a person struggling against anxiety to know that “It’s possible to experience peace even when you feel worried.”
Ponder a few sample healing spiritual conversations related to victory over anxiety:
*“As God empowers you to have victory over anxiety/worry/stress/fear, how will you be thinking differently about God and life? How will you be relating to God and others differently?”
*“When your battle with anxiety is overcome through God’s power, what will you be doing differently?”
*“How have you been cooperating with Christ to overcome your anxiety/worry/stress/fear?”
*“Imagine into the future. How do you see yourself tapping into Christ’s resurrection power to defeat this anxiety?”
*“What would it be like to worship God in the middle of all of this?”
*“What would it be like for you to turn to Christ in the midst of this?”
*“Tell me how you’ve been clinging to Christ as your anchor as you’ve gone through this?”
*“When and how is Christ already empowering you to win some of these battles against anxiety?”
*“Tell me about some times you’ve already been able to find Christ’s peace and rest in this?”
*“What might God be wanting to accomplish in your life through your battle against fear?”
*“What biblical principles have you already been applying to find peace?”
*“What scriptures could we explore together to apply God’s truth to your fight against anxiety?”
Sample Scriptural Explorations for Victory Over Anxiety
In scriptural explorations, you don’t preach at or simply quote a passage to your spiritual friend. Instead, together you explore how a relevant passage applies to your friends specific life issue.
We’ll use Psalm 91 (often called the “911 Psalm”) because in it the psalmist calls out to God in the midst of fear, panic, and anxiety.
*“Let’s take a look at Psalm 91. If you were to write your own ‘911 Psalm,’ how would you word it?”
*“In your paraphrase of Psalm 91, what would the theme of your story be? How might your Psalm turn out? What role would you play in your Psalm? What role would God play in your Psalm?”
*“In your 911 Psalm, what would your relationship to God be like? How would God work your story out for good? How would God be your strength and give you strength to overcome fear and anxiety?”
*“How do you react to this Psalm? How is it different from your situation? How is it similar?”
*“How have you been responding differently from the psalmist? Similarly?”
*“What in this Psalm would you like to add to your story? How do you think you could do that?”
*“Are there any situations in this Psalm that remind you of anything you are experiencing?”
*“How does this Psalm help you to gain new perspective on your situation”?
*“The psalmist is very candid with God about his fears. What would it sound like for you to honestly share your anxieties and fears with God?”
*“The psalmist describes numerous images of God such as Shelter, Most High, Almighty, saving from the snare, finding refuge under His wings, and so many more. Which of these images of God would you like to apply in your battle against fear and worry?”
*“The psalmist describes numerous images of who he is in God’s power such as trampling a lion and stomping a cobra. Who are you in Christ as He gives you victory over what you fear?”
*“Repeatedly the psalmist describes God’s protective presence. What difference will it make for you to consistently envision and experience God being with you in your trouble, fighting with you in your battles, and hearing you every time you call?”
Keeping It Real
1. In your own life, which of the sample spiritual conversations would you like to apply as you battle against worry, fear, stress, and anxiety?
2. In your own life, what would it be like to write a “911 Psalm” to call God in your day of trouble?
The Rest of the Story
In our next post, we’ll learn the art of “soothing our soul in our Savior.”
Join the Conversation
Why do Christians so seldom know how to relate God’s Word specifically to their life struggles?
Spiritual Friends
