Riding the rollercoaster
Well, 2020 what a roller coaster of a ride you have been! With each week comes a new and surprising twist in the up and down, wild ride of a global pandemic.
Uncertainty breeds anxiety and with it minds beset by fear and worry. From all roads and directions, warnings are being voiced about the mental health of the nation.
So what to do?
How can we maintain mental wellbeing? How can we help a struggling friend? Of course, there is a clinical anxiety disorder which requires specialised help. However many of us find ourselves simply wrestling with “common or garden” anxiety which colonises our minds with its incessant distracting chatter. This week we are thinking about managing anxiety.
Mind and soul foundation is a Christian agency dedicated to supporting our mental health. They have great resources which we recommend
https://www.mindandsoulfoundation.org/
Anxiety & Uncertainty
The Jesus we meet in the gospels runs the whole gamut of emotional states. So was Jesus anxious? Is it really ok to be anxious?
Anxiety is our God-given risk management system. It helps us assess threat and danger and keeps us from making bad decisions. It a bit like anger – the emotion is the warning light on the soul’s dashboard, its what we do with it that turns good or bad.
This week we dive into Jesus experience on the brink of the crucifixion in the garden of Gethsemane and we ask:
“What can we learn from Jesus about how to face anxiety and uncertainty?”
You might like to have a look at this and let us know what lessons you picked up from this text.