Worry Not? (Is there anything good about worry?)
One of my jobs (I have 4 non-paying jobs) is serving as an administrator of a Pastoral Counseling Center. I like the term “pastoral counseling.” Some people prefer “spiritual counseling” but since no two people on earth (as far as I can tell) can agree what the word “spiritual” means, and what it doesn’t, I consider it a poor modifier. The same can be said for “Biblical” Counseling. Added to the ambiguity of what it means is the suggested arrogance in the term that other types of counseling than their own is “unbiblical.” Sadly, my denomination is largely bought in on the use of the term “Biblical Counseling.” But they can use any term they want as long as the principles utilized are sound.
But a lot of times they are not. One problem is the temptation of many to use the Bible like a collection of self-help aphorisms. What does this mean? Well, you may have seen this sort of thing shared on social media. It might be a list of problems and a Bible verse to go to as an “answer” to each problem.
“Oh, you are exhausted? Well look at this verse, ‘Come unto Me, ye heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Does this help? Doubtful.
“Uncertain about the future? Let’s read this together, ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not on thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct thy path.'” Is the person less uncertain now?
“Oh you are always worrying? Don’t you know the Bible says, ‘Be anxious for nothing’?”
The problem with verse dropping is that it often makes an aphorism out of a part of a larger discussion— essentially ripping a passage out of its broader context.
For example, I am a worrier. I worry about lots of stuff. Back when I organized medical mission events, I would tell people in the preparation… “I worry so you don’t have to!” I would say it as a joke… but I wasn’t really joking.
Some people say worry is wrong or that the Bible says that worry is a sin or that worry is a lack of faith. I don’t find that very helpful, because it does not stop me from worrying. In fact, it is likely that my worry is increased since I am now worried about my worrying.
Pastoral counseling does use the Bible when appropriate, but avoids superficial verse dropping.
To me pastoral counseling would be better described as a theological form of counseling. It is integrative.
This is not going to be a full theological or pastoral examination of worry, but here are a few thoughts that strike me as relevant for theological reflection.
First, worrying is a universal human condition. We are born in distress and continue in life this way until death. It may, or may not, be accurate to describe worry as “sin” but if it is, it is very different from other sins because it seems to be built into us to ensure that important things are taken care of. Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount speaks of worrying about what we will eat or drink and more. Jesus in no way suggests that these concerns are irrelevant. They are important needs that must be addressed. The passage does not seem to dwell on whether it was a sin to worry about these things, but rather He makes clear that God is concerned for us, invested in us, and (therefore) willing and able to provide for us. Worry should lead us to remember God’s benevolence and provision.
Second, it is not so much about worry itself, but what we do in response to it. Emotions are not really good or bad… they are built into us after all. Rather, it is what we do with those emotions. Philippians 4:6-7 is a classic passage people use to say that we should not worry. But I think that is a careless reading of the passage. In the passage it is pretty clear that the issue is not worry/anxiety. After all, the continuation of the passage speaks of what you should do when you worry, which implies that one does actually start the process with worry. In other words, the passage seems to really be saying, “Don’t dwell in a state of worry,” or perhaps “Here are some things you should do when you are anxious.” And that passage is valuable. Embrace thankfulness. Talk to God. Seek help from God. Center your life on Christ.
Third, worry is meant to be addressed socially. One of my favorite chapters in the Bible is II Corinthians 1. Around verses 3-7 is an area where it talks about comforting one another. It says that we are able to comfort those around us utilizing our own experiences we have with comfort we have received from God. Rather than focusing on worry and anxiety as “bad,” understand it as the first step of healing through the comfort of God or from others. Additionally, the Epistles talk about this specifically as the work of the church body. We are not just to comfort one another, we are to love one another, accept one another, encourage one another… and more (I think there are something like 16 or 18 different “one another” passages. I forget the actual number.)
If one brings it together, a good understanding of worry, I believe is to spend less time on judging those who worry (I know as a chronic worrier I don’t like to be judged) but recognize worry as an opportunity to:
-Draw closer to God and communicate with God.
-Seek support from others.
-Use the process as an educational experience to be better at supporting others.
