Some of you may have seen my posts on Facebook recently about having my blood tested for some serious conditions. I was entirely certain that I had at least one of those conditions. I have been panicking and stressing out for the last few days awaiting the results and thinking about how horrible it was going to be to hear the news. Turns out, nothing serious is wrong. Now normally, I am not a hypochondriac. However I have Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder. These don't effect me at all when I am properly taking my medicine. However, if I stop taking my medicine for about 7-15 months straight, I lapse into the agoraphobic stage of panic. It takes anywhere from 3-7 weeks for me to be able to function outside of my house normally. The reason I say all this is because I see a striking parallel between my mental state when I am not on my medicine and the spiritual state of many well meaning people when they are not fed the truth of Scripture, and are instead filled with lies and traditions that lead to anxiety.
Think of it this way: when I am not on my medicine, everything and anything can and will scare me. There have been times where I was terrified to look at the sky, because all I could imagine was gravity just vanishing and me floating uncontrollably into outer space. It is ridiculous, I know, but with the right amount of influence from certain chemicals in the brain, everything becomes a very real possibility. Even, and sometimes especially, the most ludicrous sounding things. When something you trust (your brain) is constantly telling you that something is wrong, you start to believe it. Even when everyone else around you that hasn't been influenced by the chemicals in your brain can see how silly your thoughts have become.
When people aren't told of certain passages in Scripture, they believe that anything and everything they do jeopardizes their standing with God. They look at the sky and are terrified that God is looking down on them just waiting to condemn them to a torturous fiery pit of despair if they slip up. It is ridiculous I know, but with the right amount of influence from certain people in the "Christian" religion, everything becomes a very real possibility. Even, and sometimes especially, the most ludicrous sounding things. When someone you trust (your pastor/preacher/deacon) is constantly warning you that God's love is conditional, you start to believe it. Even when a basic understanding of Who God is and what He has accomplished for each and every one of us, would prove to you just how silly this reasoning is.
2 Corinthians 5:19 (NLT) "For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation."
Take your medicine to avoid insanity.
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