Reclaiming Your Mind

Living Above Worry and Anxiety

If you are a past worrier like me, you know how we roll.

Usually, something happens first.

The child is late coming home from work or does not pick up the phone.

There is an issue.

Then the mind gets to work.

What if?

What if something happened? What if there was an accident? Why aren't they answering their phone?

Then your mind takes off on an adventure. It begins building the worst possible scenario of what could go wrong. The possibilities it pulls up are endless. Fear creeps in, and suddenly all the bad outcomes begin lining up.

And, of course, in preparation for the onslaught, your defences go up. You start preparing

for what you will do, what you will say, who you will call and how you will handle

whatever terrible thing your mind has decided may have happened.

Then, two hours later, with enormous relief, you discover that what you feared did not happen.

The truth is that we all worry about something. Some worries are justifiable; some, not so much. Some of us worry about our jobs, an upcoming qualifying exam, a presentation at work, our children not getting along, retirement, our finances or our health.

Yet from past experience, many of the things we worry about never become reality.

Consider the hours and days we have lost mulling over possible bad outcomes,

sometimes in pain, tears and anguish over things that did not materialize.

And even when some of the things we feared did happen, somehow we overcame them, accepted them or found a way to continue living our lives.

Then there are things completely outside our control.

Yet we worry about those too.

A little poem I read recently captures what worry can do to us:

Better never trouble Trouble Until Trouble troubles you;For you only make your troubleDouble-trouble when you do;And the trouble—like a bubble—That you're troubling about,May be nothing but a cipherWith its rim rubbed out.

Oh, how our minds, with their alarms of impending doom, can double our trouble.

But does knowing all this necessarily stop us from worrying the next time?

No.

If you are a worrier, or find yourself in any category of worry, do not despair. You are in good company. Many of the giants in the Bible had their moments too.

Let's take an adventure through the Bible.

1. Abraham: “I Said to Myself…”

Consider Abraham.

When Abraham entered the region of Gerar, he told people that Sarah was his sister. Abimelech, king of Gerar, took Abraham at his word and took Sarah into his household.

But God would have none of that.

God appeared to Abimelech in a dream and warned him:

“You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”(Genesis 20:3, NIV)

When Abimelech confronted Abraham, Abraham explained:

“I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’”(Genesis 20:11, NIV)

Notice Abraham's words:

“I said to myself…”

This is often where it starts—the things we say to ourselves before anything has actually happened.

Abraham had already decided:

There is no fear of God here.

And then:

They will kill me because of my wife.

Fear crept in, and with it came a defensive plan. Abraham told Sarah:

“This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, ‘He is my brother.’”(Genesis 20:13, NIV)

I laughed out loud when I read this.

What a way to show love.

2. Jacob: “Esau Is Coming—with Four Hundred Men”

Then there is Jacob.

Years earlier, Jacob had left home after deceiving his brother Esau and taking the blessing their father intended for him.

Now Jacob was coming home.

His messengers returned with news:

“We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.”(Genesis 32:6, NIV)

Four hundred men.

The Bible tells us:

“In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well.”(Genesis 32:7, NIV)

Jacob went into action.

He reasoned that if Esau attacked one group, perhaps the other would escape. Then he sent gifts ahead, hoping to soften Esau before they met.

But when Esau finally arrived:

“But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept.”(Genesis 33:4, NIV)

None of what Jacob feared came to reality.

3. The Twelve Spies: “We Seemed Like Grasshoppers”

Then there were the twelve spies.

Moses sent them to explore the land of Canaan.

They found an extraordinarily fruitful land and returned carrying a cluster of grapes so large that two men carried it between them on a pole.

Their report began well:

“We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey!”(Numbers 13:27, NIV)

But the people were strong.

The cities were fortified.

And there were giants.

Ten of the spies became convinced that Israel could not take the land:

“We can't attack those people; they are stronger than we are.”(Numbers 13:31, NIV)

Then came this extraordinary description:

“We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”(Numbers 13:33, NIV)

The giants had not called them grasshoppers.

They had. Their minds had conjured up a fearful picture of what would happen to them.

Pause and think of the title of a storybook:

The Giants and the Grasshoppers.

In their minds, there was no hope.

Fear does not always stop in the mind. Sometimes, it sends us running.

4. Elijah: “He Was Afraid and Ran for His Life”

Then let's consider Elijah.

Elijah had just stood on Mount Carmel against the prophets of Baal.

He challenged them to prepare their sacrifice and call upon Baal to send fire.

They called.

Nothing happened.

They shouted.

Nothing.

They even cut themselves.

Still nothing.

And Elijah mocked them:

“Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.”(1 Kings 18:27, NIV)

Eventually, Elijah prepared his own sacrifice. He even had water poured over it until everything was soaked.

Then he prayed.

Fire fell from heaven.

Later, Elijah prayed again, and rain returned after years of drought.

What a day.

But what happened next reveals what fear can do even to the best of us.

Jezebel heard what Elijah had done and sent him a message:

“May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”(1 Kings 19:2, NIV)

And what happened to the man who had just stood before the prophets of Baal, mocked them and called down fire from heaven?

“Elijah was afraid and ran for his life.”(1 Kings 19:3, NIV)

Eventually, he sat under a broom bush and prayed:

“I have had enough, LORD… Take my life.”(1 Kings 19:4, NIV)

What a change.

From mocking the prophets of Baal to running for his life.

From calling down fire from heaven to asking God to take his life.

Fear had changed his entire outlook.

5. Martha: “Worried and Upset About Many Things”

And then there is Martha.

No army.

No king coming with four hundred men.

No Jezebel.

No giants.

Just dinner.

Jesus had come to her home. Martha welcomed Him and began doing what needed to be done while Mary sat at Jesus' feet and listened.

Eventually, Martha had had enough:

“Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”(Luke 10:40, NIV)

Jesus answered:

“Martha, Martha… you are worried and upset about many things.”(Luke 10:41, NIV)

Many things.

There really was work to do. Someone really did have to serve.

But somewhere along the way, the many things had taken over.

An Emerging Pattern

These stories show us an emerging pattern in how worry can grow:

AN ISSUE ARISES

↓

THE MIND GETS TO WORK

↓

“What if…?” “Suppose…?” “They might…”

↓

WORRY / FEAR

↓

PLAN. PREPARE. PANIC. REACT.

↓

And often, the outcome is nothing like the one we imagined.

Different people. Different circumstances.

The same escalating mind.

The issue may be real. The question is what our minds do with it.

Our minds, and the fears they play up, can become enemies of our peace.

So worry, with its companion fear, is something we must learn to confront if we are to

reclaim our peace of mind.

But how?

How do we begin to exercise control over our wandering minds?

1. Recognize That Worry Is Useless

Jesus' guidance is helpful here.

In His teaching about worry, Jesus asks:

“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life?”(Luke 12:25, NIV)

And then:

“Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?”(Luke 12:26, NIV)

What a powerful truth.

As we say back home:

Who has worrying helped? What has it solved?

Worrying about a situation does not give us control over its outcome.

Paul gives us something else to do with the worry:

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”(Philippians 4:6, NIV)

And look at what follows:

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”(Philippians 4:7, NIV)

There is a beautiful movement here:

Do not worry → Pray about it → Give it to God → His peace guards your mind.

My Aunty Helen, a woman of great faith, never worries—yes, as impossible as that sounds.

I often ask her how she does it. Why is she never bothered about anything?

Her answer is usually some Bible line:

“Take it to the Lord in prayer.”

Or:

“It is well! God is able.”

I have admired her for a long time for her composure when things are not looking well.

James Gordon Gilkey, an author I enjoy reading, describes people like her as having gained mastery over their minds.

And perhaps this is our quest today:

How do we gain mastery over our minds so that every wandering thought does not get to take us wherever it wants to go?

Gilkey suggests reminding ourselves that we have resources, people who can help us, and, above all, a living God whom we can trust with ourselves and those we love.

Our wandering minds may still present their dismal conclusions.

But we do not have to accept every one of them.

2. Train the Wandering Mind

Gaining mastery over our wandering thoughts requires practice—reining them in, training them and learning not to accept every conclusion they present to us.

Emmet Fox offers a practical way of doing just that.

When wandering thoughts begin, deliberately turn your attention towards the great truths of Scripture.

He points particularly to Psalm 18:

“I love you, LORD, my strength.”

“The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge…”

(Psalm 18:1–2, NIV)

Look at where the mind is being directed:

My strength.

My rock.

My fortress.

My deliverer.

My God.

My refuge.

Here we see the Psalmist affirming his faith, trust and confidence in God.

It is worth taking a fresh look at this Psalm when worry and doubt begin to take over—to remember who God is and where our help comes from.

Later David says:

“He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me.”(Psalm 18:17, NIV)

David was speaking about real enemies. But Fox draws a spiritual application from these words to the fears and doubts that can become powerful enemies within us.

There is something worth considering there.

Our fears and worries can indeed become enemies of our peace of mind and rob us of the ability to live well.

So when the wandering mind begins again, we can deliberately bring it back to what we know:

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you…”(Isaiah 43:2, NIV)

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”(Hebrews 13:5, NIV)

“The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.”(Deuteronomy 33:27, NIV)

This is the shift:

From the worry to the Word.

Not once.

Again and again.

Because the wandering mind may wander again.

And when it does, we bring it back again.

Until this great promise becomes more and more our lived experience:

“You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”(Isaiah 26:3, NIV)

REFLECTION:

As You Go About Your Day…

Reflect on the great promises of God we have considered today. Think again about the words of Psalm 18: God is our strength, our rock, our fortress, our deliverer and our refuge.

Then ask yourself:

1. What issue am I worrying about today, and where has my mind taken it?

2. What truth from God's Word can I bring my mind back to whenever the worry returns?

3. Is there something I cannot change or control that I need to stop carrying and bring to God in prayer?

   
   

May the LORD bless you and keep you; may the LORD make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; may the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace. In Jesus' name. Amen.