Worrying and Paranoia on Something Stupid!

[PictCry]

:eek:can worrying really control you? I am having so many problems i think I’m either getting paraniod or going insane. I am a Christian and I am trying hard to get rid of these demonic thoughts but then I start worrying about them coming back or if i do get rid of them I start reflecting on how I got rid of those thoughts an then I start worrying again! Its crazy! I just want the evil thoughts to go away!! Why are they even bothering me? Is it natural for Christians tp feel plagued by their thoughts? What does God think about it when it happens? Is there a way to get rid of them? Are they sins if we don’t want to willingly think them? Please help!

[JesusMySavior]

"(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) - Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; " (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)

Give those bad thoughts to God. Have people pray for you and over you. Sometimes if I'm having evil or lustful thoughts, I stop what I'm doing and go talk to a friend, confess the thoughts, and have them pray over me.

The mind is a battlefield, as Joyce Meyer always says. Let God renew your mind (Romans 12:2) and take control of your thoughts and actions. :)

"As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he..." (Proverbs 23:7)

[Followtheway]

That has happened to me so many times its rediculous, some things to do are to re-examine your lifestyle: 1. have you repented, 2. are you obeying the Lord with all you are, 3.are you putting a bunch of junk in porno, scary movies, junk music.

and after that take control and demand satan to leave.

[petrospetra]

:eek:can worrying really control you? I am having so many problems i think I’m either getting paraniod or going insane. I am a Christian and I am trying hard to get rid of these demonic thoughts but then I start worrying about them coming back or if i do get rid of them I start reflecting on how I got rid of those thoughts an then I start worrying again! Its crazy! I just want the evil thoughts to go away!! Why are they even bothering me? Is it natural for Christians tp feel plagued by their thoughts? What does God think about it when it happens? Is there a way to get rid of them? Are they sins if we don’t want to willingly think them? Please help!

Hey There,
Anxious, worrying thoughts can become a habit, but praise God it is one that we can break.

Below I have re-listed a post I put on another thread
http://bibleforums.org/forum/showthread.php?t=163807


Dealing with Fearful Thoughts

Last year in June I received one of those phone calls you never want to receive. "Peter, the school just rang," my wife explained. "Our daughter fell of the playground equipment and hurt her arm. She's in sickbay, can you go and see if she is okay?"

Dropping everything, I drove to school while lifting urgent prayers heavenward. Upon reaching sickbay, my heart grieved at the sight of my unnaturally pale ten-year-old daughter lying on the sickbed, her tear streaked face contorted in agony. She had fallen backwards from the top of the playgym and landed on her right wrist. Lifting the arm gently, I saw massive swelling just below the wrist.

Pulling out my phone, I rang my wife. "Her arm's broken, so I will take her to hospital now."

"No, Papa, no, I don't want to go to hospital," my daughter wailed in anguish as fearful images conjured by a mind plagued with pain flooded through her.

"It will be okay, the hospital will know exactly what to do to help your arm get better," I assured her.

"Noooo," she sobbed, convinced that the hospital would only cause more pain to her throbbing arm.

The school's office ladies put her arm in a splint, and with great coaxing I managed to get my daughter off the sickbed and onto her feet. I put my arm around her and walked her in the direction of the car park.

As soon as my daughter was engaged in the activity of walking, rather than lying on the sickbed with nothing to do but focus on the pain in her arm and the fears of what would come next, she began to look and feel better. The colour returned to her face, she stopped crying, and she even managed to talk to her well meaning friends who followed us. By the time we reached my car, I even elicited some laughs from her.

And therein lies an important lesson to learn when we are afflicted by fearful thoughts. When they come flooding in, the worse thing we can do is to sit or lie down and examine, consider and debate those thoughts. The more we examine them, the more fatigued our mind becomes, and the fears soon become larger than life.

We can see from my daughter's example that inactivity, while afflicted by fearful thoughts, was the worst thing she could do. On the other hand, we can see that constructive activity was the best thing she could do. Constructive activity can include going for a walk, jogging, washing the car, gardening, engaging in a hobby, helping others in need, etc. This activity weakens fear's grip on our mind and brings relief.

One day back in 1990, while suffering from clinical depression, I lay curled into a ball on my bed while my mind churned endlessly over the things that troubled me. Somehow, I managed to fix my thoughts upon Jesus and felt Him say, "Come on Peter, you don't need to do this. Come with Me - I have lots of constructive things for us to do together." So I got off the bed and sat at my desk, whereupon I lost myself in one of my hobbies: creative writing. I began to feel better immediately.

Those who are beset by fearful thoughts on a regular basis, try so hard to stop thinking about the fears that swamp them. But it is to no avail - it is as though the fears have taken over their mind.

I would like to ask you, the reader, to do something right now.

Please think of an elephant. Picture it in your mind - think of its huge, floppy ears, that long curling trunk, those twin ivory tusks, the powerful legs.

Now stop thinking about the elephant and its ears, trunk, and tusks.

You failed, yes? The image of the elephant is still in your mind.

Now let us try that again. Please think of an elephant. Picture it in your mind - think of its huge, floppy ears, that long curling trunk, those twin ivory tusks.

Now, please picture in your mind the cover of your favourite novel. What colour is the title text? What image is on the cover? Does this image accurately represent the story in the novel? Did the book's cover influence your decision to read or buy the book? Should a book be judged by its cover?

Now, have you noticed that you are no longer thinking of an elephant?

This is the point I am trying to make. We cannot stop fearful thoughts by will power alone, and fighting or fearing them gives them more power. But if we busy ourselves in a constructive activity while leaving the fearful thoughts in the back of our mind, like background music, they will soon fade away. This is how we resist fear, this is how we overcome it, this is how we obey God's commands to not be afraid. Deuteronomy 31:8 "The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

The Bible says, "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith." 1 Peter 5:8-9. Note that it says Satan is only like a roaring lion he relies upon trickery and deception when he attacks God's children. So, "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." James 4:7.

Now back to my daughter's trip to the hospital.

Fortunately, we did not have to wait too long before a caring, gentle doctor checked her arm. Then came some x-rays, and finally, the doctor gently encased her arm in a plaster half-cast. He explained to her that it would take six weeks for her arm to heal, but then it would be as strong as ever. As the doctor joked with my daughter, she actually enjoyed the whole experience, laughing and smiling.

Afterwards, as we walked back to my car, I said to her, "Think about the fears you had while in sickbay about getting your arm treated in hospital, and then think about what the hospital visit was really like. Now, what have you learnt from this?"

"That things are not as bad as we fear they will be?" she replied thoughtfully.

"Spot on," I said, smiling. "And that is a lesson to remember for the rest of your life."

* * * * * * * *

Recall that the Bible says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith.” 1 Peter 5:8-9. Note that the Bible says Satan is only like a roaring lion – he relies upon trickery and deception when he attacks God’s children.

The Bible also says, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7.

Deuteronomy 31:8 “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”

All verses from NIV.


Additional Reading

And for a more detailed glimpse into dealing with anxious thoughts that have become obsessive, especially during depression, feel free to check out these other two articles that I wrote:

This article shows how the problem occurs
http://cornerstonethefoundation.blogspot.com/2009/02/understanding-depression-to-cast-off.html

This details a route to stopping the cycle of anxiety, etc.
http://cornerstonethefoundation.blogspot.com/2009/02/breaking-fear-cycle.html

God bless
Peter

[Sojourner]

Satan is very artful at making Christians think that evil thoughts are there own (which may or not be the case) and then making them feel condemned or guilty for the thoughts. Don't think that God condemns you, remember that Christ took our condemnation on the tree (cross).

"There is there now no condemnation to those that be in Christ." Rom. 8:1

"Who [is] he that condemneth? [It is] Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Rom. 8:34

"Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee" Psa 119:11

Replace God's Word for your unpure thoughts.

May God lead you and bless you.

[karenoka27]

It is so important for you to take your Bible with you wherever you go. Leave it open and stop and read it as you walk by. You need to get His mind in your head so that there is no room for anything else.

James 4:7-"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."