• Why are you fearful (about your job, your future, your family, etc.)?
• Why are you nervous? Why do you have headaches? Why can't you sleep?
• Describe the way you feel. Do you feel guilty? What might have caused such feelings?
• Do you think you may be running from something?
Again, these questions should be asked in a friendly, conversational manner. You are discussing these matters as an equal, not as one in the superior position of counselor or spiritual leader.
If the anxiety seems to have been brought on by true feelings of guilt, this could indicate wrong behavior that needs correction. Experiencing God's forgiveness in Christ can remove guilt and guilt feelings, which will contribute to healing. Share "Steps to Peace with God," page 11.
Avoid telling people that if they think right they are bound to feel right. To the contrary, some people need to learn that right living produces right feelings. God alone is the source of positive thoughts. Facing the basic problem—sin—will eventually produce the kind of conduct which pleases God, and will result in better emotional health.
Anxiety about the future may reveal concern about death and future judgment. Again, this opens the door to present Christ.
3. Discuss the necessity of daily Bible study and prayer. We must not only read the Bible, but must assimilate its teachings in such a way that they begin to mold our life and character. Memorizing the Bible is most important. "Thinking God's thoughts" will take the place of worried, anxious concerns.
Prayer is the companion of Bible study. According to the Bible, we should "be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God" (Philippians 4:6).
4. Share some of the promises of God's Word. God can be trusted to keep His promises. See "Scripture."
5. Advise the inquirer to get involved with a Bible-teaching church. Thinking of and serving with others can be an antidote to negative and unhealthy introspection.
6. Pray with the inquirer for genuine solutions (see Psalm 34:4, next page).
If you detect deeper problems than you can deal with, suggest that the person consider counseling with a Christian psychologist.
Scripture
"I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears" (Psalm 34:4).
"Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God" (Psalm 42:5, NIV).
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself" (Matthew 6:33–34, NIV).
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6–7, NIV).
"Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7).
Other suggested Scriptures: Psalm 55:22, NIV Proverbs 3:5–6 Romans 8:28 Philippians 4:13 Philippians 4:19, NIV
ASSURANCE OF SALVATION
Background
Assurance of salvation is the awareness of belonging to Christ and having complete confidence that He has given us everlasting life. Many Christians lack this kind of assurance. Because of ambivalence about their relationship with Christ, they don't really experience the joy of the Lord. The only thing they are entirely sure of is that they have doubts. Uncertainty can stem from any of the following:
• Not being truly converted. A Christian is a person who has trusted in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior:
"If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation" (Romans 10:9–10).
A person who lacks this experience cannot possibly be certain about having eternal life. Salvation is not based on a person's performance, but on his or her relationship with Jesus Christ. Confident Christians can say, "For I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day" (2 Timothy 1:12).
• Trusting feelings rather than God's Word. Some people, especially new Christians, expect a sustained, emotional elation; and when this is missing or lags, doubts come. Our eternal relationship with God cannot be based only on emotion. We must rest on facts based on His written Word. We are to commit ourselves to the finished work of Christ on the cross. Having trusted Him, we continue in this relationship, confident that "He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6).
• Sin and disobedience in the life of the Christian. These will result in ambivalence and uncertainty: "A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways" (James 1:8, KJV). Sin must be acknowledged and confessed in order to maintain unbroken fellowship with God.
The Christian who does not nurture his or her life in the Word of God, prayer, fellowship, and witness will dry up, opening the way to uncertainty and doubts. The biblical admonition to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18) is not just an idle phrase. We grow or we die.