Anxiety is no fun, but it often seems unavoidable. Uncertainty abounds, and we have a lot to worry about. But this past Sunday, we heard Paul say, “Be anxious for nothing.” Then, in a familiar Gospel reading midweek, Jesus chides Martha for her anxiety.
Anxiety doesn’t come from God
Of course, God wants us to be responsible and concerned for the welfare of ourselves and others. But, we’re told, that doesn’t have to translate into anxiety. If you feel anxious, then you can know that those feelings don’t come from God. This gives us hope that God has another way.
Specific prayer
You may just find, as in the caseof Martha, that you’re anxious because you’ve taken on a burden that God hasn’t given you. As a rule, grace is given for what God requires. If there’s no grace for your task, then God probably doesn’t require it. The way to discern the difference is through prayer.
Paul tells us that in place of anxiety, you should always “make your requests known to God.” Then, he says, anxiety will give way to peace (Phil 4:7). Unless you have some kind of mental disorder (for which you can get help) this is the basic remedy. But let’s say you prayed today and you still feel anxious. I experienced this a few times over the past week. In each case, anxious feelings persisted until I realized that I hadn’t prayed specifically about the matter at hand.
Peaceful prayer
But it also matters how we pray. Scripture doesn’t commend prayer as an anxious battery of flares sent up to God. The prayer of faith brings peace.
Pray with thanksgiving. In our Philippians passage, Paul specifically tells us to pray “with thanksgiving.” When you preface your prayer with thanksgiving, then you infuse your prayer with faith. This is because when you remind yourself about how God has already provided, then you have more assurance that he will provide for you again.
Pray with generosity. In today’s Mass reading, Jesus followed up the Lord’s prayer with the story of a persistent man who wakes up his neighbor so he can obtain enough bread for a traveller. The point of the story is to explain how much more God will answer such requests. The petition wasn’t selfish, but was part of an effort to serve someone in need. Likewise, we can have greater faith that God will answer our prayers when the basic thrust of our life is to extend God’s generosity to others.
Knowledge vs. practice
These are familiar passages and basic instructions, but common knowledge doesn’t always translate into common practice. That’s why we get anxious.
So remember, anxiety doesn’t come from God. Unless, that is, you see it as a God-given reminder to pray about your need with generosity and thanksgiving.