7 Steps to Deal with Anxiety in a Biblical Way: Combining Faith and Mental Health
By Sheila
It’s 2 AM. You’re laying in bed staring at the ceiling, while your heart is pounding and your brain won’t shut up – it’s cycling through every worst-case scenario, those embarrassing moments from years back, and even everything that could possibly go wrong tomorrow…you are there thinking.
If you’ve been there, you’re not alone. As a Christian struggling with anxiety, you’ve probably heard some version of “just pray about it” or “you just need more faith.”…
Listen, I’m not saying prayer doesn’t work – it absolutely does. But sometimes we need more than a one-liner. I mean we need actual, practical steps we can take in those moments when our chest feels tight and we can’t catch our breath.
In this article, I’m going to share seven biblical ways to deal with anxiety that combine what Scripture teaches with strategies that actually work in real life. Because here’s the truth: God designed your brain, your body, and He likewise gave us tools to use both, though we don’t live only with our brain and body!
Why Christians Struggle with Anxiety (and That’s Okay)
Before we move further into the steps, let’s address something important here. Having anxiety doesn’t mean you’re a bad Christian or that you lack faith in any way. You know, even people in the Bible experienced anxiety:
- David wrote entire Psalms about his overwhelming fear and distress (Psalm 42, 55, 94)
- Jesus himself acknowledged His anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane, saying “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” (Matthew 26:38)
If Jesus experienced distress, we can admit when we’re struggling too. Anxiety doesn’t disqualify you from being faithful – it makes you human.
Step 1: Name It to Tame It
This first step sounds almost incredibly too simple, but it’s honestly game-changing: just name what you’re feeling.
How many times do we feel that overwhelming wave of anxiety and immediately try to push it down? Or try to pray it away without even acknowledging what’s actually happening, remember the bible say the Spirit can intercede for us when we don’t know what to pray about; Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: Romans 8:25?
Furthermore, this is what I love about the Psalms – they’re full of people being brutally honest with God. David doesn’t put on a fake smile. He names his pain, his fear, his anger. He gets specific.
How to do it:
Do either of these when you feel anxiety creeping up, write it down or say it out loud: “I’m anxious about…” and then finish the sentence. Get specific. Don’t just say “school.” Say “I’m anxious about the presentation I have to give tomorrow and I’m scared everyone will think I’m stupid.” This doesn’t mean your confession is negative, you are just dealing with something specific so you can narrow your faith down on it. Remember as I mentioned earlier when Jesus said – “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. He dealt with the specific so He can pray on it, a lot of christian live in denial.
Also, do a body check. Where do you feel the anxiety? Is your chest tight? Is your stomach in knots? Are your hands shaking? Name that too.
Why this works: Your brain needs to process emotions, not suppress them. And God can handle your complete honesty – He already knows what you’re feeling anyway.
Step 2: Do the Philippians 4 Swap
You’ve probably heard Philippians 4:6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”
This is serious now, so how do you actually do that when you’re already in anxiety mode?
The truth is many of us miss this – Paul isn’t just saying “stop being anxious.” He’s saying “swap your anxiety for prayer.” It’s an exchange. You’re taking that worry and literally handing it over to God.
How to do it:
Make a literal swap list. Write it out or type it in your notes app:
- I’m anxious about: ___________
- I’m asking God for: ___________
- I’m thankful for: ___________
Real example: “I’m anxious about my grade dropping in math but I’m asking God to help me focus when I study and to give me peace about whatever happens. I’m thankful that I still have time to bring it up.”
In this scenario the key is to pray it out loud. Open your mouth so wide and say to the mountain of………. Actually say the words. Your brain processes spoken words differently than just thinking of them.
Every time that worry loops back (because it will), do the swap again. As many times as you need to and that is the power of confession right there taking effect in your life!
Step 3: Break the Spiral With Your Body
This is something crucial to understand: anxiety isn’t just in your head – it’s in your body. Your heart races, you can’t breathe right, your hands get sweaty, your stomach churns. You can’t just think straight..
Don’t overthink this; the Bible recognizes this. We’re not just souls floating around – we’re body and soul (1 Thessalonians 5:23). Jesus took naps. He ate meals. He went away to rest when He was overwhelmed by crowds. Jesus understood that our bodies need care.
How to do it:
When anxiety hits and you feel it physically in all your being don’t waste time to interrupt that cycle. These are some techniques you can use right now:
Box breathing: Breathe in for 4 seconds, hold for 4, breathe out for 4, hold for 4. Repeat four times. This literally resets your nervous system. Start talking about the scriptures to yourself.
The 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique: Name 5 things you can see, 4 things you can hear, 3 things you can physically feel, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste. This pulls you out of your anxious thoughts and back into the present moment.
Move your body: Go for a walk, start praying, declaring scriptures, do some jumping jacks, shake your hands out. Anxiety is trapped energy in your body that needs to be released.
Sleep, water, food: Yes, it sounds basic, but you can’t pray away anxiety if you’ve had four hours of sleep, an energy drink, and nothing else all day. Your body needs fuel. That’s not unspiritual – that’s good stewardship of what God gave you.
Step 4: Shrink the Timeline
Anxiety loves to pull us into the future, doesn’t it? It will drag us into disaster scenarios that haven’t even happened yet, painting evil pictures in our brain. “What if I fail? What if I don’t get into college? What if everyone hates me? What if I’m alone forever?”
But look at what Jesus says in Matthew 6:11 – “Give us this day our daily bread.” Not weekly bread. Not yearly bread. Daily. And then in verse 34, He says, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.”
Jesus is essentially saying: just focus on today. Just focus on right now.
How to do it:
Whenever you’re overwhelmed with everything on your plate, ask yourself: “What’s the next right thing I can do in the next hour?”
Not the next ten things. Not everything you have to do this week. Just the next ONE thing in the next hour. Instead of “I have to write an entire five-page essay,” think “I can write one paragraph in the next 15 minutes.”
Why this works: You can do hard things for 15 minutes. Anyone can do anything for 15 minutes. So shrink it all down. Make it small to be doable. Then tackle the next 15 minutes after that.
Step 5: Build Your Truth Playlist
Let’s be honest – anxiety is a liar. It tells you things that simply aren’t true. “Everyone hates you. You’re going to fail. Nothing ever works out for you. You’re not good enough.” These are not real of who God created you to be!
We need truth that we can grab onto quickly when those lies start playing on repeat in our minds. 2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to “take every thought captive” and make it obedient to Christ. Philippians 4:8 instructs us to think about whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right.
Saying these scriptures out all the time will help you dominate your thoughts and demolish the stronghold of anxiety in your system.
How to do it:
Simply open your notes app right now and create a note called “Truth Playlist” or “Anxiety Toolkit.” In that note, write:
- 3 to 5 Scripture verses that specifically speak to your anxieties
- 3 true statements about who God is
- 3 true statements about who you are in Christ
When anxiety hits, open that note and read it out loud. Every single time.
Scripture verses to consider:
- “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7)
- “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7)
- “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20)
- “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you” (John 14:27)
- “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you” (Psalm 56:3)
Add to this list as you discover more truths that help. Make it personal to your specific struggles.
When your brain is spinning, you need something solid to grab onto. This is it.
Step 6: Know When to Get Help
Real talk: if you’re a Christian struggling with anxiety, you might feel like asking for professional help means you don’t have enough faith. Like if you were really trusting God, you wouldn’t need a counselor, therapist, or medication.
But that’s simply not true, and it’s actually not biblical either.
Consider these biblical examples:
- Paul had a “thorn in the flesh” that he prayed about three times, and God didn’t take it away (2 Corinthians 12:7-9)
- Luke, one of the Gospel writers, was a physician – God clearly uses medical help
- The entire book of Proverbs emphasizes seeking wise counsel
When to seek help:
If your anxiety is interfering with your daily life for more than two weeks – you can’t sleep, can’t focus, have panic attacks, and avoid activities you used to enjoy – please talk to someone.
Consider reaching out to:
- A school counselor
- Your youth pastor or church leader
- Your doctor (anxiety can have physical causes)
- A Christian therapist or counselor
Here’s the truth: Medication, therapy, and faith can all work together. Taking care of your mental health is stewardship – it’s taking care of the body and mind that God gave you.
Needing help doesn’t mean you failed. It means you’re human, basically the bravest thing you can do is admit you can’t do it alone no you can’t!
Step 7: Practice the Pause
This last step might be the hardest, but it’s also one of the most powerful.
When anxiety hits, we normally react immediately, spiral, panic, frantically text someone, doom-scroll on social media or we just do something, anything, to make the feeling go away.
But what if we paused first?
Biblical foundation for the pause:
- “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10)
- “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still” (Exodus 14:14)
How to do it:
When you feel anxiety rising, pause for 10 seconds before you do anything. Just ten seconds.
Use a breath prayer – something short like “God, I trust You” or simply “Jesus, peace.” Something you can repeat.
Then ask yourself: “Is this thought helpful right now? Is it even true?”
Next, choose one of the grounding techniques from Step 3. The box breathing. The 5-4-3-2-1 method. Whatever works for you.
The goal isn’t to make the anxiety disappear in 10 seconds. The goal is to create space between the anxious thought and your response to it.
That space? That’s where God meets you.
Your Next Steps: Moving Forward with Faith and Action
Let’s recap the seven steps to deal with anxiety in a biblical way:
- Name what you’re actually feeling – be honest with God and yourself
- Do the Philippians 4 swap – exchange anxiety for prayer with thanksgiving
- Use your body to break the spiral – try breathing techniques and grounding exercises
- Shrink the timeline – focus on just the next hour, not the whole future
- Read your truth playlist – combat lies with Scripture and truth
- Get help if you need it – professional help is biblical and wise
- Practice the pause – create space before reacting to anxiety
A Final Word of Encouragement
Anxiety doesn’t mean you’re broken no not in any way or that you lack faith. It means you’re a human that needs help whether physical or divine.
Actually some days might be harder than others. Growth isn’t a straight line upward – it’s messy and it goes back and forth. And that’s completely okay.
God doesn’t just meet you on the other side of anxiety when you’ve got it all figured out. He meets you in it. Right in the middle of the 2 AM panic. Right in the middle of the racing heart and the spiraling thoughts. He’s already there.
Your challenge for this week:
Pick ONE of these steps. Just one. Try it every day for seven days and see what happens. Small steps still count as steps.
Remember, combining biblical truth with practical mental health strategies isn’t a lack of faith – it’s using all the tools God has given you to care for the mind and body He created.
You’ve got this. And more importantly, you’ve got Him.
What helps you deal with anxiety? Share your thoughts in the comments below. And if you found this helpful, share it with someone who might need to hear it today.
