There is a critical difference between a thought present within us and a thought becoming us. Anxiety inescapably afflicts the human condition, but we are not meant to bond with our anxiety. Paul’s encouragement in Philippians 4:6—“Do not be anxious”—implies it is possible to differentiate ourselves from anxiety. It is possible to “not be your anxious thoughts.” Anxious thoughts will come, but we do not become them. We can differentiate. You also can recognize that you are not your hijacker.
