Is Worry a Sign of Weak Faith? Understanding Anxiety in a Christian Life
Not all Christians understand that worrying is a part of the process of refining our characters. Sadly, because of legalism, some believers think that worrying is a sign of weak faith and believe that people who experience anxiety are just magnifying the issue and making it a big deal.
However, the lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic had impacted not only those who did not have Jesus but most especially those who believe in Him. Christians are not excused from being the target of mental illnesses due to anxiety.
Some may be guilty or unworthy of feeling worried, and instead of drawing closer to God, they just tend to run away not only because of their guilty feelings but also because of what other Christians would say about them.
So, this blog will dig deeper into understanding anxiety in our walk as Christians. It’s vital to understand that mental health is one of the enemy’s tactics to destroy our connection with God.
Christians should have a more profound knowledge about anxiety so we can help ourselves and encourage others not to dwell on it.
Our Feelings Matter to God
Bonnie Grey shared her healing experience in her brokenness due to her anxieties. She emphasized that God does not make us feel guilty about how we think, but it is our fellow Christians.
So some of us like her just keep our battles silently and fight them alone, trying to pray harder that those feelings would just pass.
Yet, God’s unconditional love and grace are more expansive than we could imagine. We matter to God, and how we feel matters to Him. He wanted to heal us from our pain, not to shame us. One way for God to heal us is by knowing the root cause.
When a person is anxious, there could be a lot of factors, such as being emotionally exhausted. Not everyone realizes that being emotionally battered has the same or even more severe impact than physical abuse.
The healing process could take a long time; if not, some people even pass away carrying those burdens inside them.
Grey revealed three myths so we could all freely come near God as we face our anxieties and help those suffering from mental and emotional distractions.
One myth she mentioned was that Jesus Christ commanded us not to worry and that we were failing God and disappointing Him. However, He told us not to be anxious because He cares about us.
Our Father in Heaven does not expect us to be ideally in good shape or to become worry-free. He understood where our anxieties came from and knew exactly how we would be destroyed if we allowed these things to eat us.
God does not want us to waste our time worrying, so He wanted us to strengthen our faith rather than our anxieties.
Another myth she explained was that most people think that if a person reads the Bible, prays, praises, and gives thanks more, then he could have peace surpassing all understanding. But the trust is faith is not an emotional amnesia to forget all our struggles.
Faith in God gives us the courage to deal with the brokenness of life and find healing for the losses we have been through.
Jesus Himself Understands our emotional sufferings
Whenever we feel guilty about our anxieties, remember Jesus Himself, who has been so faithfully obedient and prayerful, has suffered emotional anguish. Before He was crucified, He was overwhelmed with physical and emotional exhaustion.
Thus, no one will ever understand our situation that the one who suffered the most painful battle just for His purpose is to free us from the bondage of sins and become more than conquerors.
Read More: What to do when faith is shaken.
