Three Questions For The Battle Against Worry
June 2025
By: Jason Hsieh, Associate Pastor of Counseling and Discipleship
Asking questions amid our worries can help us focus and take dominion over this struggle. This article poses three questions to ask yourself or others in the battle against worry.
1. What Does Worry Take Me Away From?
“Worry” means to be pulled in different directions. Matthew 6:34 and the context provided by verses 19-33 of that chapter shows us why. In that verse, Jesus commands us not to worry about luxury or basic necessities because God knows our needs and calls us to far greater work than obtaining temporary treasures. Rather than worry about these temporary matters, Jesus says to consume ourselves with trusting, worshipping, and doing the work of reflecting God in a fallen world. And therein lies the rub. Worrying isn’t just about doubting God or not seeing Him accurately. It’s also about being torn in different directions. The inordinate amount of time and bandwidth that worry takes can consume us, eating up our time, thoughts, and resources that should be used to further God’s kingdom.
2. How Do I Know If I’ve Gone Too Far with My Concerns?
What starts out as a reasonable or biblical concern can grow into something larger and sinful if left unchecked. The following continuum isn’t intended to be a scientific examination but offers an idea of how our concerns can progress. Definitions of each word are included below. Knowing where you land in a given moment or on average can help you steer back toward reasonable, right-sized concern.
Concern: Care that’s reasonable and in proper relation to the whole picture (reality, facts about circumstances, and facts about God’s character, purposes, and promises). Examples include Philippians 2:20 and 1 Thessalonians 3:5.
Worry: To be distracted because of the amount of care you have for something or someone that’s disproportionate with reality. God knows you’ll have concerns and cares in this world (John 16:33); it’s that outsized concern that drifts into worry that’s spoken against in Scripture.
Distortions: Worries can progress to include false thinking about God, others, and ourselves. Examples include not believing that God is who He says He is or not believing He will do what He promises. We can slide into incorrect views about what people or possessions can or can’t do for us. Or we may have distorted views of how much influence we have on what we’re worried about or what will happen if our fears come true. Left unaddressed, distortions can lead us to avoid our rightful responsibilities or seek total control.
Avoidance: Not caring enough about what or who God has given you to care for; irresponsible and neglectful. Potentially worse than worry as it neglects who or what God has given us to shape for His purposes and glory. Notice how the man given one talent had incorrect views of his master, leading that man to be afraid of his master and neglect his responsibilities to steward what he was given (Matt. 25:24-25). Avoidance can also come from being overwhelmed or being worn down over time.
Control: Pushing God out of the equation, putting yourself or what you’re worried about on the throne; having a mentality that it all falls on you; willing to act unwisely or even sinfully to get what you want.
3. Whose Agenda Am I Pursuing?
Agendas can keep meetings on track by helping participants know what to expect, how to prepare ahead of time, and what will be accomplished. Since worry is about being pulled in different directions, knowing God’s agenda for our concerns can help us stay on track. But sometimes, we forget Satan also has an agenda. Our adversary is on the prowl and would love to take us down through our worries.
The following chart highlights examples of the dueling agendas that God and Satan have for our concerns. You’ll notice that some are about speech, others about thoughts and the heart, and still others are about actions or a combination. And that’s because this is a multi-faceted battle that requires our entire being to be engaged.
God’s Agenda for Our Concerns God wants us to…
Remember His goodness and provision in our life
Take advantage of hardships to become more like Christ, especially when our fears become a reality.
Fulfill our responsibilities as faithfully as possible, and leave outcomes to Him
View Him and our worries accurately.
Tell Him about our fearsGet lost in our own thoughts and fearsLive and act based on reality.
Recognize worry is sinful.
Take our thoughts captive.
Place our identity in the call to reflect Christ.
Express care and concern in proper relation to the reality of our circumstances.
Satan’s Agenda for Our Concerns Satan wants us to…
Forget or doubt God’s goodness and provision in our life. Squander opportunities to grow in Christ by pursuing escapism or total control.
View our worries as big and God as small.
Neglect our responsibilities or attempt to seize unreasonable control.
Live and act based on assumptions and “movie” reels we create in our minds.
Believe worry isn’t a sin or that it’s not so bad.Get objective, Christ-centered perspectives from others to filter our thoughts and consider reality.
Go it alone and fill in the blanks with unfiltered thoughts not based in reality.
Think our thoughts are our own; no one can tell us what to do with them.
Place our identity in what we’re worried about.
Express concern disproportionate to the reality of our circumstances.
Questions for Reflection:
Who from your church can give you an objective assessment of where (on average) you fall on the continuum of concern and help you pursue God’s agenda for your concerns?
Which aspects of God’s agenda for your concerns could help you get back to reasonable, right-sized concern?
This article was originally published by Biblical Counseling Coalition on May 31, 2024 and is reposted here with their permission.
