The Christian Call to Not be Anxious

one - Pervasiveness of anxiety

After having discussed the nature of the feelings and the emotions, we should probably mention the most pervasive emotional disorder in America today. The reason most people are seeking mental health support today is anxiety.

It’s sort of strange that in a world where we have an endless supply of food and drinking water, the most sophisticated health-care the human race has ever seen, and the ability to connect with nearly anyone by phone call or text, we should suddenly be getting so stressed out. When our basic needs are being met so completely, why are we so anxious?

two - The Christian call to not be anxious

Anxiety is a kind of general, habitual fear – it’s a constant worrying about the future and as Christians, we’re not supposed to be anxious. Jesus Himself repeatedly says, do not be anxious, and the priest at mass prays for God to take away any anxiety from our lives.

So everyone around us is suffering from anxiety – but we’re not supposed to. In a way, you could almost say we’re not allowed to. (Remember, Jesus doesn’t say try not to be anxious. He says do not be anxious).

So what do we do about that? How are we supposed to avoid this contagion that’s afflicting the general population?

three - Which world are you living in?

It’s easy to see why people in a secular world are anxious. In fact, maybe they should be anxious. After all, if this is a godless universe – which just came about by blind chance – then at the end of the day the whole thing is just a fight for survival. Human life, like all other life, is just a competition for scarce resources – like money and pleasure and status and the ability to make an impact. You’re on your own, and you’ve only got a little time to try and compete for those things before you die.

If life really is a rat-race, then it makes sense that people would feel like rats – running around, stressed out, trying to get as much as they can before the clock runs down.

But if you’re a Christian, then you have no excuse for seeing the world like that, and you have no excuse for approaching life that way.

If you’re a Christian, you know that this world has been built by your Father specifically with your happiness in mind.

This world isn’t a scramble for survival. It’s a gift from your Dad, who wants nothing more than to make you happy. If that’s your world, you have no justification for anxiety. The only rational response is peace and gratitude.

four - Anxiety and the Future

It’s true that there are challenges in this life – but it’s also true that the challenges are limited, and come one at a time.

Anxiety comes from fantasizing about the future, and all the different possible challenges you may face. But when you think about possible future hardships, you forget two things. First, None of those hardships is here now – so why are you letting yourself suffer from an evil that isn’t even present in your life?

Second, none of those hardships is actual – and most of them won’t be. Most possible hardships are actually incompatible.

You might worry that you’ll lose your job, or you might worry that they’ll pile on the work even harder. But for sure both of those things can’t happen.

The point is that actual hardships only come one at a time; but when we worry about possible hardships, we worry about heaps of them at once

So why take on more hardships than the ones life actually offers?

Jesus is incredibly clear that anxiety comes from dwelling on the future. He says, “Have no anxiety about tomorrow. Sufficient for the day is its own evil.”

This is a good world, built by a good God. If a given day has some difficulty, we can handle it. But let’s not make more work for ourselves by stressing out about difficulties from days that aren’t here and that may never arrive.

five - Peace and Prayer

The number one way to get rid of anxiety is to develop a daily habit of prayer. Why? Because anxiety comes when we think we’re in control – when we think we’re important and that everything depends on us. But when we spend time with the Lord in prayer we remember who He is – We say, “Oh, that’s right. You’re God and I’m not. I forgot. It all depends on you, not me. You can handle running this world. You can handle running all the variables in my life. I was trying to handle it, and I totally couldn’t, and it was really stressing me out. Thanks for being in charge. I’m just going to try to do my best today and leave the rest to you. Because you’re good, and you’re capable, and I trust you, and I love you.”    

That’s the Christian response to a world riddled with anxiety. That’s the Christian witness to a secular society that’s freaking out.