I admit it—I worry about things.
With everything currently going on in the world, it’s hard not to worry! Whether it’s your own personal health, the well-being of those near and dear to your heart, the financial challenges in a suffering economy, or trying to navigate through your new virtual “normal”, we all are facing things in life that are overwhelming.
That’s why it’s important to stay rooted in God’s word. There are a lot of things in life that are out of our control, but we can control how we respond.
Here are 5 Biblical practicals (and Scriptures!) on what to do when you’re feeling worried:
1. Trust in God (Isaiah 26:3)
One of the very first things we should do when we’re feeling worried is trust God—but what exactly does that mean?
The original Hebrew word for “trust” in this scripture is batach, which means “to be secure, [and] to fear nothing for oneself”. So in order for us to be in perfect peace, we have to be secure in the Lord and not be fearful.
Usually when I’m anxious or worried about something it’s because I want to be in control and I’m not surrendered to the outcome. My thoughts are plagued with fears of “what-ifs”, as I wrestle through my emotions. This is the exact opposite of what it looks like to trust God.
According to the Scripture, trusting God is being secure in the Lord and not having any fears—that means, being okay with not being in control of a situation and being surrendered to the outcome. If something doesn’t go my way and if things look very bleak, I need to have a heart of surrender that says, “God, I trust what you’re doing, even if I can’t see the bigger picture.”
If we can get to that heart of surrender—which is that true, full trust in God—then we can be kept in perfect peace.
2. Seek God’s Kingdom and Righteousness First (Matthew 6:33)
This is one of our favorite Scriptures in the Bible that pertains to worry/anxiety. Let’s read it in its full context (Matthew 6:25-34):
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
This is actually Jesus speaking here, and he makes it very clear that he doesn’t want us to worry!
One thing that’s pretty interesting about this passage is that it actually unveils a life long mystery as to why we worry. In Matthew 6:30 it says:
30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?
According to this Scripture, we worry because we have little faith.
Most of us may not want to admit that we have little faith because we somehow think that makes us “bad Christians”. But it’s important to note that the Scripture doesn’t say that you don’t have any faith—it just says that you have little faith. So think about the areas in your life that you worry about the most. Is it money? Health? Family? Work? Whatever you worry about, that’s the area of your life where you have little faith and therefore, little trust in God (go back and read point #1)!
Thankfully, this Scripture gives us a solution on how to deal with our worry. In Matthew 6:33 it says:
33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Rather than spend our time worrying, we need to seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness first!
Okay, great practical, right? But what does that mean?
The original Greek word for “kingdom” here is basileia, which is used throughout the New Testament to refer to the reign of the Messiah. Therefore, whenever we think of God’s kingdom, we can think of it in the same way we think of any other kingdom. A kingdom has a king (ruler), a particular set of rules (a law), and people that live within the kingdom. God’s kingdom has God as the king, the Bible as the set of rules (i.e. as its law), and God’s people as his people that reside within His kingdom.
Therefore, to seek God’s kingdom first would mean to prioritize everything in God’s kingdom first—Him (through prayer), his law (through reading the Bible), and his people (through fellowship).
The Scripture also talks about seeking God’s righteousness first. The original Greek word for this is dikaiosynē, which means integrity, virtue, purity of life, uprightness, and correctness in thinking, feeling, and acting. So, to seek God’s righteousness first means to seek out what is right according to God—and you can find that in the Bible.
So don’t worry—seek God’s righteousness and kingdom first!
3. Pray with Thanksgiving to God (Philippians 4:6)
One of the most powerful things you can do when you’re worried or anxious is pray. We all know we should pray when we’re worried, but Philippians 4:4-6 actually tells us to do just that!
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
What’s amazing about this Scripture is that it says that, in every situation, we should be praying and petitioning our requests with thanksgiving to God. In other words, our prayers to God should be filled with thanks. Thanks about what? Well, according to the Scripture—everything!
This is actually a hard teaching, especially when the things you’re anxious about may not actually be something you’re thankful for… If you’re anxious about your finances and your inability to pay your rent or mortgage, then what is there to be thankful for, right?
It’s all about perspective, which is probably why Paul continues with the call to remember what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8–more on this in the last point).
Despite the things that we’re worried about, there is always something to be grateful for. If you’re worried about your health, do you at least have health insurance or close family and friends that are taking care of you? If you’re worried about paying your bills on time, do you at least have a home to stay in or a job to work? If you’re worried about graduating, do you at least have great teachers that are trying to help you get through?
I know that might feel like a stretch when you’re in the thick of something, but never underestimate the healing power of gratitude. And since the Bible says that we should pray with thanksgiving, we should do it, and see how God’s peace will guard our hearts and minds (verse 7).
4. Take Captive of Your Thoughts (2 Corinthians 10:5)
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
Rather than allow our minds to travel down paths they shouldn’t go, we should fight to do a better job at taking captive of our thoughts (verse 5 above). What exactly does that mean?
The original Greek word for “captive” here is aichmalōtizō, and it means to subjugate and bring under control. Therefore, when we read 2 Corinthians 10:5 again, it’s saying that we need to subjugate and bring under control our thoughts, and make them obedient to Christ.
Let’s face it—we all have thoughts that “set [themselves] up against the knowledge of God” (verse 4). We can wrestle with little faith (see point 2 above), have doubts, or just wallow in our own pessimissim. It’s these types of thoughts that we need to take control of.
But how exactly do you do that? Read point 5 below…
5. Think Positively (Philippians 4:8)
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
This is a continuation of the Scripture in point 3, but it’s so important in working through our feelings of worry and anxiety. It’s a practical way to take captive of our thoughts per point 4. We need to think positively!
When we’re spinning out in worry or feeling anxious, we can tend to focus on the negative and every bad thing going on. Again, by focusing on the negative, it can prevent us from having a heart of gratitude in our prayers, which is what should help us to have peace (see Philippians 4:7 above).
Therefore, we need to think about what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy! Is your mind meditating on all of these things or are you worrying and anxious about your problems (the negative things)? If we’re focused on meditating on all the positive things above, there really is no room in your thoughts to worry about the negative!
CONCLUSION
We pray you can get time to truly meditate on the Scriptures above and allow them to transform your heart and mind as you work through your worries!
Remember that the best way to deal with worry is to (1) trust God; (2) seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness; (3) pray with thanksgiving; (4) take captive of your thoughts; and (5) think positively.
What Scriptures do you meditate on when you’re feeling worried or anxious? Feel free to share it in the comments section so others can look them up too!
