Is Anxiety a Sin?

There are days when it seems like every student in my youth ministry is struggling with anxiety or depression. I know that’s not actually true - but it’s undeniable that mental health is at an epidemic low and students are struggling to develop coping skills. Springtide Research Institute has published a new report about GenZ’s mental health struggle. 

One question students (parents and youth workers too!) sometimes wonder but rarely ask is this: Is anxiety a sin? After all, if Jesus said “Do not be anxious,” then doesn’t that make it sinful? Not necessarily… 

Three Key Verses on Anxiety 

Jesus Understands Anxiety (Matthew 6:25-34)

Jesus doesn’t rebuke his disciples from desiring life’s necessities. Instead, he directs their hearts and minds towards the character of God, who is trustworthy and good. If God provides beauty for the fields and food for the birds, then of course we should be able to trust God with the things we’re worried about. Living in anxiety is counter-productive. Those who struggle with anxiety already know that! 

Christians believe in the God who provides. This is the doctrine of Providence. Wise pastoral care for students who struggle with anxiety certainly involves more than telling them, “Trust God to provide!” But it certainly doesn’t involve less than that. Jesus calls us to walk by faith, trusting our Father in Heaven to provide. 

Paul Understands Anxiety (Philippians 4:4-7)

In this passage, Paul tells believers to “rejoice in the Lord always.” He calls us away from anxiety and invites us to give ourselves to prayer, with thanksgiving. When we do this, we’ll experience the “peace of God, which transcends all understanding.” 

This sounds great. Honestly, it sounds exactly like what anxious people actually want to experience! And yet, it’s easy for us to read this and think, “Paul obviously doesn’t understand my struggles.” This is where it’s important for us to remember Paul’s life. When he became a Christian he lost all his status and all his friends. He became public enemy number one, because they viewed him as a traitor. He was betrayed, beaten to the brink of death multiple times, shipwrecked, and wrote this very passage while imprisoned for preaching the gospel. It would be easy for Paul to think, “God, I gave up all my status for you, and you treat me like this?!” But instead, he rejoices in his sufferings, because he knows God is faithful.

What is Faith (Hebrews 11:1)

The above verses (and others) about anxiety find their home in Hebrews 11:1 and what it tells us about faith. Anxiety in and of itself isn’t sinful. Not trusting God is sinful. It’s sinful to live as if you need to take care of yourself because you can’t trust God to provide. But, in some powerfully surprising ways, anxiety and depression and other mental health struggles, can actually be the things God uses to drive you towards deeper faith. 

As Hebrews 11:1 tells us, “faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” It’s faith because it’s hard. It’s faith because we can’t see it. It’s faith because we aren’t sure what’s going to happen. When you experience fear and anxiety and depression, do you dive deeper into your struggle or do you allow them to drive you to your knees in prayer and faith?

Anxiety is not inherently sinful. In the same way that there’s a doubt that leads to faith and a doubt that leads to faithlessness, there’s anxiety that leads to faith and anxiety that leads to faithlessness. Let’s be youth workers who invite students to approach their anxiety and mental health with a desire to strengthen their faith in the midst of the struggles they experience. 

Pastoral Counsel for Students who Struggle

Take Care of the Body God Gave You

God gave you a body. Yes, our bodies can suffer from disabilities and hormonal imbalances that fuel various mental health struggles. He also designed our bodies to operate best when we get a good night of sleep, eat healthy, and exercise. Students who go to bed at 2am, live on junk food, and never leave their dark bedrooms while holding a glowing screen up to their eyes aren’t doing themselves any favors. For some who struggle with anxiety, it’s an act of faith to go to bed early, put the comfort food away, and go for a walk outside. 

Reduce Social Media

We all know the more time we spend on social media the more we’re going to compare our personal insecurities against everyone else’s highlight reels. Looking at the Screen Time app on our phones will prompt a hard reality-check for many. Generally speaking, we know we need to reduce our screen time - the question is whether or not you want to flourish enough to make the necessary sacrifices and limitations. 

Ask for Help

If you’ve experienced ongoing anxiety for more than a few weeks, then ask for help. Talk with a parent or youth leader or guidance counselor or teacher. It’s good to talk with your friends for support, but it’s important to build a team that’s more than your peers. A counselor/therapist can help you develop coping skills to escape a downward spiral. 

Christians who see a counselor and who take medicine to help with their anxiety or depression are not second-class Christians. This isn’t an indicator that your faith is weak and insufficient. Building a strong network of friends and adults is a hard thing to do, especially if you’re a private person, but it’s a good reminder that you aren’t alone and don’t need to navigate your struggles alone. Many godly Christians faithfully battle anxiety by praying and taking their medicine while driving to talk to their therapist. 

Seek First God’s Kingdom and Righteousness

Allow your struggles to lead you towards faith, not away from it. Yes, life is hard and can be marked by anxiety or sadness or a host of other struggles. God never minimizes those challenges. This is an invitation to trust God in the midst of the struggle. 

If our faith is only worth something when things make sense, then our faith isn’t worth very much. Faith is hard precisely because it’s difficult. Calling those who struggle with anxiety to trust God doesn’t minimize their struggle. Anxiety is real. Hormonal imbalances are legitimate. Counseling and anti-anxiety medications can be a blessing from God for those who are struggling to find peace. And in the midst of all this, let us never lose sight of the faithfulness and providence of God. (The Rooted Ministry recently published a “Prayer for a Teenager Struggling with Anxiety,” and an excellent article about “Welcoming the Anxious Student to Youth Group.”)

If God takes care of the flowers in the field and the birds in the trees, then he will take care of us whom he loved so much that he gave his only begotten son so that we would believe in Jesus and receive eternal life. The most real thing in this world isn’t our temporary feelings, but the promise of God. One day, Jesus will return and “He will wipe every tear from [our] eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things [will pass] away” (Revelation 21:4).

(update 3/29/24: Go here for a helpful resource to Invite Anxious Students to Find a Better Story.)