How to Fight Anxious Thoughts

There have been a lot of thoughts swirling in my head lately, especially with the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these thoughts are of the “what if” variety. “What if I catch the coronavirus? What will it do to me? Will I have complications? What if I have to be hospitalized? Will I be able to afford the medical bills?”

Anxiety is a familiar beast to those with chronic illness. The “what if” battle is familiar territory. How do we fight the battle and come out the victor? Paul tells us how in 2 Corinthians 10:3–6, “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.”

Fighting with a Powerful Weapon

First, Paul reminds us the war we are fighting is not a war we can see. It is a spiritual fight, one we can’t see. But we can feel it. It happens in our heads every day. Some would say our hearts. Because it is a battle with my thoughts, I think of it happening in my brain.

Because our fight isn’t physical our weapon is not physical. However, that doesn’t mean it is not powerful. No, Paul says it has “divine power to destroy strongholds” in verse 4. Also, Hebrews 4:12 says it is “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, [able to pierce] to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

In order to combat fearful, anxious thoughts (or any sinful thoughts, really), we must know the truth found in God’s Word. In order to know it, we must be in it consistently.

How to Use Our Weapon

How do we use our powerful weapon against anxious thoughts? The pat answer we are given in Sunday school and from the pulpit is “by applying it to our lives.” But what does that actually mean?

The way Paul puts it is “destroy[ing] arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and tak[ing] every thought captive to obey Christ” in 2 Corinthians 10:5. Every time a “what if” enters my brain, I must actively squash it with the truth. It goes something like this:

The situation: My doctor orders a CT scan for some pain I’ve been having. I get the results, and it shows an abnormality. The doctor wants to see me for a follow up to discuss it next week.

My immediate thoughts: “What if it’s cancer? What if I need surgery? What if this will cost thousands of dollars? I don’t have that kind of money!”

Squashing the “what ifs”: “Ok, now wait. What is true? You don’t know what it is. You do know that God is in control, that He is good, that He is with you no matter what, that He loves you, that He will work this for your good no matter what it is. He has told you to not be anxious but to trust Him. Trusting Him means remembering who He is and relying on that. So do it.”

Squashing anxious thoughts is not a one and done deal. This happens every time anxious thoughts pop up, which can be many times a day. Or an hour. But the result is “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, [which] will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:7).