Dr. William Backus - Finding Freedom from Anxiety and Worry

L ee and I met at the refreshment table during a church coffee hour. As often happens when people find out Im a clinical psychologist, the conversation soon turned to common human problems and their psychological and spiritual implications. Before long, this young man was sharing his worries with me.

I cant seem to make my paycheck stretch ever to pay all the bills, Lee said. I dont want Sandy to work outside our home because Jill and Ethan need their mother, so were trying to get by on what I make as a shoe store manager. But theres never enough.

According to Lee, about the time he thinks he can see the way to get through the month, something unexpected comes up: Jill needs orthodontic work; Ethan needs winter clothes; Sandys allergies flare up. One visit to the doctor and the resulting prescriptions can devour a hundred dollars, and then theyre buried in unpaid bills again.

The result? Lee loses sleep for about half of each pay period, wondering what to do until the next paycheck. Worse yet, Lee is concerned about the fact that he worries when he ought to be trusting God.

I try, he said, but somehow I get through praying, and an hour later Im fighting my anxiety againthis sense that the bottom is going to fall out. And I know its wrong! Lee believes hes not the kind of Christian he ought to be as long as he worries in this way, so hes miserable. When he grows anxious, he feels wrong for not trusting God. He wants to break the cycle and have the peace of God that transcends all understanding the Bible talks about (Philippians 4:67).

Lee was reaching out for help. But I had no more expertise than he had in managing money; in fact, I could remember the earliest years of my own marriage, with busted budgets, skimpy clothing allowances, and a steady diet of hamburger. Instead of financial advice, I tried to make some suggestions about how to cut back on his worries.

Its Not the Same for Everyone

Lee is not alone. Everybody experiences anxiety to some degree or another. In fact, anxiety is a condition of mind that lurks behind much of our thinking. It conditions our response to life in countless ways, often limiting us and limiting what God can do through us.

Of course, not everybody gets anxious in the same way or for the same reasons. For some, anxiety is slight, and so its normally ignored. For others, anxiety is so massive the sufferer nearly stops functioning. Some anxious people appear cool and collected, while others cant seem to hide their jitters from the world.

Imagine, if you will, three different people in Lees financial bind. The first might be an avoider. Though he feels a rush of panic on becoming aware of another financial shortfall, he simply sits and watches late-night TV, avoiding the entire mess until he starts receiving threatening letters from creditors.

A second person in the same situation might pay immediately, even reducing his standard of living to meet his obligations. Yet he is miserable, tightfisted, envious of those who have something he doesnt have, and resentful toward God. He also fears constantly that future needs wont be met.