Insightful Instructions Addressing Anxiety
Do Not Be Anxious
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Matthew 6:25-34 (ESV)
In brown text you will notice Jesus’ instructions on anxiety. Three times at the beginning, middle, and end of this message He tells us not to be anxious. Three additional instructions are also written in this passage that provides guidance and answers on addressing anxiety.
LOOK
CONSIDER
SEEK
Let’s start with the latter instruction of SEEK. This is the most often instruction when preached on anxiety to SEEK FIRST the kingdom of God and His righteousness, His way. Discover the spiritual kindom way of Jesus first, and then the physical things: food, drink, and clothing will be added. The physical will be provided or gained when the heavenly, spiritual way of God is addressed first. This is often the familiar message taught on this passage for anxiety to turn our eyes upon Jesus through prayer, scripture, and communion. I want to focus on the other two instructions to address anxiety which is to LOOK and CONSIDER.
Jesus tells us here to LOOK at the birds and CONSIDER the lilies. Every time in my Christian life I have read this passage before, I have understood it as a metaphor to be like the birds and to be like the lilies: carefree and living in the present moment. I do believe this is the advice of our Lord, and recently in reading this scripture, I felt another layer in Jesus’ instructions opening the eyes of my heart. I believe He is literally saying an answer to healing and preventing anxiety is found in experiencing nature. His very own creation that He made for us.
LOOK at the birds. Actually let your eyes feast upon nature. CONSIDER the lilies. Other translations read: Observe, Notice, Look how, See how, learn how, think about the flowers. Mediate upon the ways of creation. Creation can point to the ways of the Creator. I hear Jesus saying through this passage and others, “I made this home for you. Take time to enjoy and experience it. My fingerprints are in the design. I’ve called it very good (Genesis 1:31) - go and receive the goodness of my creation.”
LOOK & CONSIDER. Perhaps the best way to look and consider creation is to be outside. As a holistic wellness provider, I appreciate the research suggesting the health benefits of being outside. The scientific explanation is continuing to emerge that being outside improves hormone regulation by reducing cortisol causing stress, releasing serotonin to reduce anger and improve mood, and improving heart health by optimizing heart rate variability and the power of heart frequencies. A systematic review of greenspace exposure concluded that studies across the board demonstrated significantly lower incidence of stroke, hypertension, asthma, high cholesterol, diabetes (type II), preterm birth, heart disease, and all cause mortality from being outside (Twohig 2018).
I would go one step further to suggest that not only looking at creation and being outside has therapeutic benefits, but actually touching the earth via the practice of grounding may also have God-given health and healing benefits. Since the earth has it’s own frequency and electrical charge, being in physical contact with the earth can provide natural healing effects to reduce inflammation, pain, stress and improve sleep and well-being (Chevalier 2012 and Menigoz 2019). References and Links to articles are provided below.
If we have anxiety about the things in this life; first seek the source of life: God's kingdom and His ways. Also then, LOOK upon and CONSIDER, meditate, ponder over His creation. Experience it: be in it and touch it. Always seek appropriate medical action when needed, but from a wellness and preventative standpoint especially, don't miss the innate and natural goodness of God's creation. If we are spending countless minutes and monies on exercise, therapies, appointments, supplements, and health gadgets, I hope we are also reaping the freely accessible wealth of benefits in creation.
Since I always wear shoes, I could go days without actually touching nature if I’m not intentional about it. Most of the research studies for the healing effects of grounding suggest 30 minutes a day, and like physical activity, I advocate that any amount is better than nothing.
Understanding the risks of walking barefoot, here’s a few ideas:
Step outside and greet the day before or during a morning cup of coffee
Do your devotional outside. Bonus if you stand or pull up a chair with bear feet on the ground
Go outside on your work or lunch break even if it's just for a moment of fresh air
Exercise outside when possible. Go for a walk. Bring your equipment outdoors. If you do workout inside, how could you do the warm up or cool down outside?
Go to the park and take your shoes off for a little bit on the weekends
Sit out on the porch versus vegging on the couch/recliner. Bonus if you move your patio furniture on the ground!
Perform daily activities outside: take phone calls, open the mail, fold the laundry, etc.
If you physically can’t make it outside, perhaps there could be benefits in listening to nature sounds, looking out a window, or watching a nature documentary to CONSIDER when we can’t experience.
And when you do experience nature and soak it all in, don’t forget to BREATHE!
My soul has always been drawn to the outdoors. That's probably why I moved to Colorado after being raised in Wisconsin. The sunshine. The beauty of the mountains. The outdoor recreation. I’m no granola hippy; rather, I stand in awe of God’s great creation and desire to help restore wellness spiritually and physically. My mind for science and training in holistic care hopefully bring forth revelation and encouragement to experience the fullness of life on this side of heaven.
“Inhale: I look at creation
Exhale: Experiencing Your Goodness”
Stay tuned in the future of Breath Beads for publishing more Breathful Moments content about experiencing Jesus in creation.
How can you invest in experiencing God’s creation in your daily, weekly, or monthly rhythms?
Make sure you bring your Breath Beads as a tool for reaping those health benefits!
References
Twohig-Bennett C, Jones A. The health benefits of the great outdoors: A systematic review and meta-analysis of greenspace exposure and health outcomes. Environ Res. 2018;166:628-637. doi:10.1016/j.envres.2018.06.030
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6562165/
Chevalier G, Sinatra ST, Oschman JL, Sokal K, Sokal P. Earthing: health implications of reconnecting the human body to the Earth's surface electrons. J Environ Public Health. 2012;2012:291541. doi:10.1155/2012/291541
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3265077/
Menigoz W, Latz TT, Ely RA, Kamei C, Melvin G, Sinatra D. Integrative and lifestyle medicine strategies should include Earthing (grounding): Review of research evidence and clinical observations. Explore (NY). 2020;16(3):152-160. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2019.10.005
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31831261/
You may also enjoy my article on A Key to Health for the benefits of breathing better!
