America is anxious.

More than 42 million of us suffer from some form of anxiety disorder.

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That’s only those who have sought a diagnosis and treatment.

The percentage of the anxious among us could be as high as 43%, according to the American Psychiatric Association’s annual mental health poll.

That constituted a jump from 37% in 2023 and 32% in 2022.

Stress and sleeplessness top the list of factors compromising peace of mind.

Sleepy Americans are feeling the stress because of anxiety about the economy (77%) and the recent U.S. election (73%), among a myriad of concerns.

The afflicted can opt for any number of pharmaceutical and therapeutic treatments, but some seem to be turning to the Good Book…and that’s good news!

According to YouVersion’s report this past week (which included global statistics), Philippians 4:6 was the go-to verse for 2024.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

The Greek word for anxious here is merimnao, which also means “over-concern.” Merimnao shares a root with the word merizo. Merizo means “to divide,” “distract,” or “draw in different directions.”

The over-concern or anxiousness of which Paul is writing distracts believers.

It literally draws us away from living as the Lord would want.

This distraction — this drawing away — is the natural result of living as if God were not able to work all things to the good for we who love Him and are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28).

Maybe we just don’t believe God is able — or more frighteningly — willing to work things out for our good.

If we don’t believe God will work things out — or at least won’t work them out the way we would like — then who do we think will?

If we don’t trust God, we probably can’t trust anybody else.

I guess that means we need to do it.

But that creates another problem, doesn’t it?

Because — I don’t know about you — but I just may have some competency issues in certain areas.

Like predicting what next week will be like.

Or fixing a flat tire.

Or just planning tonight’s meal.

If I secretly don’t trust God and I’m not capable, is it any wonder I’m anxious?

So how, I ask, am I to take the good apostle’s counsel?

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

I pray.

I give thanks.

I pour my requests into God’s ears.

Does my anxiety — my secret lack of trust in God — mean my prayers may be empty of faith?

And if empty — or at least depleted — of faith, wouldn’t my prayers fail to assure me of the Lord’s ability and willingness to work in my requests?

But God, being God, is always good, so even if I try to mess things up by interfering with His answering my requests, He will always do the best for me.

Ironically, that means my requests are often fulfilled as I had prayed or sometimes spectacularly better than I had hoped.

And that all reinforces — subconsciously — the efficacy of my worry, my anxiety, and my efforts to trust in my “God/self” combo — my own kind of idol.

Hence, my idolatry is strengthened and validated…and my anxiety remains.

Worry is prayer to the wrong god, a spiritual mentor once told me.

And that wrong god would be myself.

Worry is the idolatry of self.

To eradicate anxiety, the idol has to topple — and be utterly crushed and blown away.

That wasn’t going to be easy.

Before I knew Christ, I forged a life and career in unforgiving New York City. I learned to plow through the inevitable obstacles — alone.

I had no family in the city…no friends…no real job when I first moved to NYC.

Relying on myself became more than a habit — it became a reflex.

It rooted into my being.

Coming to Christ, I continued to live as though “God helps those who help themselves” was highlighted in my Bible.

The Bible teaches otherwise.

In fact, unlearning my self-help habit — and tackling anxiety and worry — has been a painful, years-long process.

I wanted to solve this problem, but — of course — I couldn’t rely on myself to do it.

What a frustration!

Finally in despair over my worry problem, my self-reliance, I threw myself upon the mercy of the Lord’s court.

I acknowledged my idolatry of self and asked the Lord to free me of it. We agreed together that only He could help me shed my worry, my anxiety, my reliance on myself.

I had not reckoned with the mess and pain of crucifixion of “self.”

My world turned upside down.

I was led again and again into situations where I came to the end of my resources. All I could do was pray, wail, and wait until the Lord delivered me.

It felt like the Lord was excavating every part of my life — my career, my relationships, my home.

In fact, He was excavating me from me.

He was answering my prayer.

I just didn’t like the process.

And I complained about it often, loudly, with many tears — to everyone in my church family.

Then in embarrassment about my behavior, I retreated from the Lord and everyone else.

I went around this emotional washing machine cycle after cycle.

I was intensely lonely.

I was fighting the death-to-self process. I wanted my life, my choices, my anxiety, my worries, and my solutions.

In His mercy, the Lord showed me that my fight was only natural. The body fights for breath in crucifixion.

The reflexive struggle for life was part of ridding me of my reflexive self-reliance.

Every so often, in my long “Friday” on the cross, I would catch a glimpse of Sunday’s resurrection. A picture of and a feeling of freedom waiting.

That kept — and keeps — me going.

I’m not anxiety-free. I still worry on occasion.

But on my best days, I am calm.

I feel the comfort of knowing the Lord is trustworthy and working His best solution always.

Recently, my husband Rich (also an IFA contributing writer) lost his laptop while traveling.

When we realized this, we prayed and filed loss reports with the airlines and the tracking service he had received as a gift.

Then we prayed and waited. For a couple of days, we had no positive news.

We thought about the implications of the loss: We’d have to try to wipe the laptop’s data remotely. We’d have to change loads of passwords. We’d have to buy a new laptop.

During this time, I was strangely peaceful. In fact, when I tried to worry, I just couldn’t!

The Lord came through as we had prayed. The tracking service found the laptop and returned it to us free of charge.

We delighted in the Lord’s spectacular resolution of our dilemma.

But I especially delighted in how the Lord had lifted the anxiety from me and in how Paul’s words to the Philippian church came alive to me.

Lord, reveal the root of our anxiety. If it is idolatry of any sort, please reveal that and remove it. We choose to swap idolatry of self with its worry and anxiety for the cross of death-to-self. Stand with us through our Fridays and Saturdays, so we can rejoice with You on our Sunday victory. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Is anxiety a concern for you? How do you pray about it?

New York City–based Joyce Swingle is an intercessor and a contributing writer for IFA. With her husband, Rich, also a contributing writer for IFA, Joyce shares the gospel of Jesus Christ around the world through theater, speaking, writing, and film. Prior to going into full-time ministry, Joyce worked for about 20 major magazines and now works in pastoral ministry and Christian counseling. www.Richdrama.com. Photo Credit: Joice Kelly on Unsplash.