“Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has He in anger withheld His compassion?” – Psalm 77:9
Dr. Robert Creech offers the following helpful definition of anxiety: “the automatic biological reaction to threat” (Family Systems and Congregational Life: A Map for Ministry, 2019). Real or perceived, our reaction to threat is automatic and physical…first. But our second action is neither automatic nor physical. It is willful and mental. We choose where to aim our thoughts when our bodies react to a threat. We can either aim our thoughts at the threat and escalate the automatic, physical response, or we can aim our thoughts at Truth and de-escalate the feelings of anxiety.
Psalm 77 gives us a blueprint…
“I sought the Lord in my day of trouble…I refused to be comforted. I think of God; I groan; I meditate…” (Ps 77:2-3).
Do you see the psalmist wrestling with where to aim in response to his distress? It seems that his anxiety wins…
“Will the Lord reject me…forever? Has his faithful love ceased forever?…Has God forgotten to be gracious?” (Psalm 77:7-9).
But the psalmist is not overcome by his anxiety. He wrestles his mind until the anxiety subsides…
“I will remember the Lord’s works…I will reflect on all you have done” (Psalm 77:11-12).
When the threats, real and perceived come, where you aim your thoughts next will either escalate or de-escalate your anxiety. Right now, more than ever, our world needs Christians who will wrestle with their thoughts until they are aimed at Truth, not threats. Where are you aiming yours?
Think These Things 