How Many Fears Are Imaginary?

It’s easy to forget that Jesus commands His people not to be anxious (Matthew 6:25). When we give in to anxiety, we’re not trusting Him—and that lack of trust, like any other sin, is something we’re called to repent of and put to death.

But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. I can personally attest that anxiety is a besetting sin in my life. The hardest part? Most of the things that stir up my fear either never happen or turn out to be far less significant than I imagined.

One of the most helpful sermons I know of on this is Charles Spurgeon’s Needless Fears. He addresses the question in Isaiah 51:13, “Where is the wrath of the oppressor?” and suggests that the oppressor never even came. He connects this idea to people who overwhelm themselves with fears that aren’t even real.

Here’s how he describes them:

“In their imagination, there are rivers in their way, and they are anxious to know how they shall wade through them, or swim across them. There are no such rivers in existence, but they are agitated and distressed about them. Our old proverb says, ‘Don’t cross the bridge till you come to it,’ but these timid people are continually crossing bridges that only exist in their foolish fancies. They stab themselves with imaginary daggers, they starve themselves in imaginary famines, and even bury themselves in imaginary graves. Such strange creatures are we that we probably smart more under blows which never fall upon us than we do under those which do actually come.”

This is especially convicting when I consider that Jesus said not only to not be anxious, but to specifically not be anxious about tomorrow (Matthew 6:34). We don’t know what tomorrow will bring (Proverbs 27:1; James 4:14), so why would we worry about it? God knows what we need, and if He cares for the birds and the lilies, why do we have so little faith to believe that He will care for us?

Still, for me, the command not to be anxious is difficult enough. Maybe that describes you too. If so, let’s not make it harder by worrying about things that may not even happen.

Let’s set our focus on today, seek first the kingdom of God, and trust that the Lord knows, sees, and cares deeply for His people.