Skip to main content

Thoughts On Anxiety

Dear Friends,

Recent studies have shown that 32.3% of the U.S. population (110,618,560 people) report dealing with anxiety/stress/worry symptoms (*2023 Household Pulse Survey of the U.S. Census Bureau). That’s down about 10% from November of 2020 when 42.6% of the population (147,260,958 people) reported symptoms. Yet it’s still very high – with the highest percentage of those being between 18-24 years old.



Therefore, today, I wanted to pass along some “thoughts” (20 to be exact) that speak to the issues of anxiety/stress/worry. If you happen to be one of the people who wrestles with any of these, I hope you find this selection helpful. Enjoy.

“Anxiety is contemplating your future apart from seeing the hand of a loving and sovereign God directing and guiding it.”

“Though there is much to be puzzled about, there is nothing to be worried about.”
C. S. Lewis

“We fly off the handle because we flew away from anything having a handle to hold on to a long time ago.”
Garret Keizer


“Worrying is carrying tomorrow’s load with today’s strength – carrying two days at once. It’s lunging into tomorrow today. Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows; it empties today of its strength. 'Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself' (Matthew 6:34).”
Corrie ten Boom

“We must try to take life moment by moment. The actual present is usually pretty tolerable, I think, if only we refrain from adding to its burden that of the past and the future.”
C. S. Lewis

“Prayer is often worrying in God’s direction, and when we’re finished, we’re more upset and anxious than before.”
Tim Keller

“Worry is like a rocking chair—it gives you something to do, but it won’t get you anywhere.”
Jodi Picoult


“As to the “state of the world,” if we have time enough to hope and fear about it, we certainly have time to pray about it.”
C. S. Lewis

Written on a gravestone: “Here lies a Worrier… Died a Thousand Deaths… Buried but Once”

“Good Morning! This is God. I will be handling all of your problems today. I will not need your help! Relax and have a great day.”

“Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.”
Anonymous

“Anxiety is the natural result when our hopes are centered in anything short of God and His will for us.”
Billy Graham

“Our anxiety does not come from thinking about the future, but wanting to control it.”



“Where faith begins, anxiety ends; where anxiety begins, faith ends.”
George Müller

“Worry reveals our allegiances. Fear and worry are not mere emotions; they are expressions of what we hold dear. They reveal the loyalties of our hearts. If we know Christ and have affirmed our allegiance to Him, worry is a sign that we are trying to have it both ways. We certainly don't want to renounce our allegiance to Jesus, but we want to protect what we feel is our own. We are not so sure that the Lord can be trusted with some of these things, so we look for help elsewhere. And if there is no obvious alternate source of help, we worry.”
Ed Welch

“If I am too worried about what may or may not happen tomorrow, I cannot concentrate on what is happening today.”
Madeline L’Engle


“Anxiety is a conversation you have with yourself about things you cannot change. Prayer is a conversation with God about things He can change.”
Rusty Hutson

“We as Christians can often bring anxiety upon ourselves by putting higher expectations on ourselves than God puts on us. We often bury ourselves in worry when we mistakenly think we must produce the righteousness Jesus credits to us as a gift, by grace, through faith. We create stress in ourselves by trying to live up to unrealistic or excessively high expectations of perfection not called for in the Bible. Perfectionism and stress are inseparable partners.”

“Living with anxiety is like being followed by a voice that knows all your insecurities and uses them against you. It gets louder and louder until it’s the loudest voice in your head and the only one you can hear.”


“Anxiety is like a toddler. It never stops talking, tells you you’re wrong about everything, and wakes you up at 3 a.m.”
Anonymous

Blessings on Your Day, Pastor Jeff

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Thoughts In Memory of Tim Keller

Dear Friends, News broke last Friday (May 19) that pastor Tim Keller had gone home to be with Jesus. I must say that his commitment to a gospel-centered understanding and application of Scripture, his determination to reach this generation, his encouragement to live out the Gospel through our lives and words and actions, his keen insights into contemporary culture, and his gracious way of engaging even with those he disagreed with – have been an inspiration to me and multitudes of others. He was truly a gift of God to many pastors and parishioners in our day. Therefore, today, in honor of his life and ministry, I offer you a mere sampling of 20 Tim Keller quotes. But I warn you that although reading Keller can be insightful and refreshing, it can also be a bit convicting and unsettling. Through his insights you will learn to see old things in a new light (which stirs the spirit!), but you will also discover that you do some of what you do for reasons other than what you had th

Thoughts From Horatio Spafford

Dear Friends, I like stories. True stories. And not always stories that have a happy ending. In fact, I have gained much solace from stories that were very sad (like this one), but were helpful because they were about real people, struggling with raw emotions, and real issues, in an imperfect and fallen world where our ultimate hope must rest elsewhere. This morning I read a story I've read before. It's one I have even shared from the pulpit before. And I know that many of you (like me) have already heard as well. But then I thought, "Maybe some do not know it." And if you happen to be one, you need to read on! I pass this story along for you. For those who have not heard the story behind the writing of the hymn, "It Is Well With My Soul" by Horatio Spafford. Because once you know the story behind it, it's hard to ever sing it again in the same way. And even if you already know it, it is always helpful to pause and think once again about a

Thoughts From Priscilla Shirer

Dear Friends, During difficult times have you ever been tempted to focus only on the negative, the lack, the struggle, the sense of hopelessness? And if you were tempted to do so, did it blind you to what you did have? Did it cause you to overlook the blessings that were there all along, even in the midst of those times of lack? It’s not hard to do so. Our mounting concerns during difficult times can blind us to God’s supply. This week’s “thought” speaks to that situation. It comes from the devotional book entitled “Awaken” by Priscilla Shirer. A friend gave it to me a couple weeks back and I’m just starting to go through it. This particular devotion is entitled “What Do You Have?” and is based on II Kings 4:2 where a widow owes money, is confronted by creditors who come and threaten to take her two sons and sell them into slavery, in order to cover her debt. When Elisha finds out, he asks her: “What can I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?” Priscilla’s