From Practicing Anxiety to Learning to Breathe

We often react anxiously to stressful circumstances when they arise, but our responses to them are not involuntary—they’re learned processes. Catastrophizing, or reverting to imagining the worst outcome in given events, is one of those learned processes we respond with which reflects a deeper rift in our understanding of who God is. In Mark 4, we see a contrast between the disciples catastrophizing in the face of a storm and Jesus remaining relaxed in the midst of it because he had full confidence in the provision and sovereignty of the Father. Throughout his ministry when under persecution and pressure, Jesus stayed aligned with God’s presence and demonstrated to us that transcending peace is not merely a fleeting feeling or state of mind, but a reflection and practice of our relationship with the Father.