Anxiety: A Bridge Between Psychology and Biblical Truth

Anxiety: A Bridge Between Psychology and Biblical Truth

For over a decade, I have been part of the Garden City Community, navigating its transitions and growing alongside this incredible group of people. Today, I want to speak on a subject close to my heart—anxiety. As a licensed mental health therapist with a private practice downtown, I specialize in helping people process childhood trauma, anxiety, and depression. But more importantly, I speak today not only from professional experience but from personal experience as well.

Anxiety is something I have wrestled with and continue to work through. My hope is that you hear me today not as someone who has it all figured out, but as someone who is walking this journey alongside you.

Understanding Anxiety

Anxiety, at its core, is a human emotion—much like anger, sadness, or happiness. There is nothing inherently wrong with it. However, when it is out of proportion, it can become destructive, stealing joy from daily life. Simply put, anxiety is the preparation and expectation of bad things happening. The challenge is that each of us defines "bad" differently—whether it's illness, failure, or social rejection.

Statistically, documented anxiety has increased by 134% since 2010. Researcher Jonathan Haidt, in his book The Anxious Generation, highlights this growing mental health crisis. But how many of us struggle with anxiety without it being documented? The truth is, many of us live with this daily battle.

The Three C’s of Anxiety

Anxiety craves:

• Certainty – It wants to know the outcome ahead of time.

• Comfort – It seeks to be soothed when discomfort arises.

• Control – It tries to micromanage the details of life.

Understanding these cravings helps us recognize anxiety’s patterns and how we can begin to address them.

What Does the World Say About Anxiety?

The world often tells us that anxiety is permanent, that it is part of our identity. We live in what I call a “diagnosis culture,” where social media and the internet offer a constant stream of mental health information. While diagnosis can be a helpful tool when used correctly, self-diagnosing can lead us to believe we are our struggles rather than seeing them as something we experience.

But here’s the good news: God designed our brains with the ability to change.

Neuroplasticity—the brain’s ability to create new neural pathways—means that we are not stuck. Philippians 1:6 reminds us, "He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion." Through intentional effort and reliance on God, our brains can heal and new patterns can be formed.

What Does Religion Say About Anxiety?

For years, many faith communities treated anxiety as sin—a sign of weak faith. Some even discouraged seeking professional help. But when we look at Jesus in Luke 22, we see Him experiencing deep distress, sweating blood in anticipation of the cross. Clinically, this aligns with a panic attack.

If Jesus, who was sinless, experienced deep anxiety, then feeling anxious is not a sin. What matters is how we respond to it. The command "Do not fear" appears throughout Scripture—not as condemnation, but as an invitation to trust God’s presence in our fear. "Do not be afraid, for I am with you." (Isaiah 41:10)

What Does the Gospel Say About Anxiety?

Unlike the world, religion, or our wounds, the Gospel offers a different perspective: Anxiety is an invitation for connection with Jesus.

Anxiety seeks certainty, comfort, and control—things we cannot always attain in this world. Yet in Jesus, we find them in their truest form:

• Certainty – "Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ." (Romans 8:38-39)

• Comfort – "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7)

• Control – "Be still and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10)

Jesus gave up every comfort and relinquished all control for the certainty of a relationship with us. The cross reminds us that even in our deepest anxiety, He is present, offering peace beyond understanding.

Anxiety is not our identity, nor is it an unchangeable fate. It is an emotion that, when surrendered to Christ, can lead us into deeper trust and reliance on Him. The world may tell us anxiety is permanent. Religion may tell us it is sin. Our wounds may tell us it is a safety mechanism. But the Gospel tells us that in our anxiety, Jesus meets us, offering certainty, comfort, and control in the only place it truly exists—in Him.