Soul Care Series: Leading Through Anxiety
Managing Anxiety During COVID-19
by Dr. Brenda Neyens
As leaders, we all have challenges with various problems, worries and concerns. With the addition of COVID-19, managing the normal challenges and concerns is harder for most of us, and the intensity can be much greater depending on our particular circumstances. While everyone (including those we lead) is facing challenges of some kind during this season, as leaders we have the opportunity to model how to respond to anxiety in a healthy, Christ-centered way that is honest, based in humility and that shows our trust in Jesus.
1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
Notice the verse says to “Cast all your anxiety,” not “If you have anxiety.” We all experience anxiety at some point. Anxiety is how we respond as human beings when we are faced with a threat, to the unexpected, or to what is not normal. The compelling invitation that we find in 1 Peter 5:7 is to be compassionate, to be humble, and to lead from the heart.
To cast means to drop something, so this verse is more accurately understood as surrendering something (anxiety) rather than taking some kind of action. As a leader when we assume and model this posture of surrender we lower not only our personal anxiety level but the overall anxiety within our organization. Here are a few steps to help in this process of surrender.
Step One: Authenticity
People want to follow leaders who keep it real. In terms of anxiety, the first step is to admit that we have worries. If we fail to do this we lose credibility and model living from a false self.
Unprocessed emotions are potential fuel for anxiety, which means that we must recognize and acknowledge the emotions under the surface. These emotions are likely connected to losses (for example loss of events, planning and strategy to name a few) and struggles (both personal and professional) connected to COVID-19 but they may also be related to other situations. If we fail to process our emotions in a healthy manner we run this risk of taking our frustrations out on others. In other words we lack compassion for ourselves and others.
Step Two: Lament
During this season a key emotions we experience is disappointment. To process effectively we can rely on the Biblical practice of lament. A lament allows us to pinpoint and take our struggles to Jesus. To learn how to lament, just follow the structure provided in many of the Psalms, one-third of which are written as laments. A lament opens and closes in praise to God. The body of a lament contains the author pouring out their disappointments and struggles (and worries/anxiety) to God.
As Michael Card writes in A Sacred Sorrow: Reaching Out to God in the Lost Language of Lament (Quiet Times for the Heart), “We do not lament because we are in despair. We lament because we know that He is there.”
Step Three: Take Responsibility
In the face of this pandemic, we may be avoiding or ignoring our own stress. A common hiding place is when we move from being “responsible to” other people to being “responsible for” other people. Any time that we assume responsibility for others in the areas they are designed to be responsible for themselves, we increase our own anxiety. This can be a very subtle progression as we begin to focus on others to the point that we neglect our own emotional health. This path will keep others dependent on us (in an unhealthy way) and will increase our own overall frustration. We need to be able to set healthy boundaries with others and with ourselves.
Step Four: Practice Exercises that Help to Lower Anxiety
Remember: Find ways to recall and share the stories of God’s faithfulness in your life. During this season social media can help us accomplish this. Sharing stories of His faithfulness with others will help calm our mind and give hope to others.
Deep muscle relaxation: Tense and then relax your muscle groups in a specific order to relieve stored up tension. There are great online videos to help you learn to do this.
Engage is relaxing activities: laughter, quality time with others, enjoying nature, meditating on Scripture are a few examples.
Practice a “Surrender Prayer”: A surrender prayer involves letting go of everything and everyone. To do this, hold out your hands in front of you with your palms up. Then, as you turn your palms downward and lower your arms, say:
“I surrender _________ to you, Jesus.” (Fill in this blank with something/someone specific)
“Into your hands, I give ______ to you Jesus.” (Name a person, group, or even yourself)
Practice a “Breath Prayer”: A breath prayer is excellent for anxiety reduction. It combines proper breathing technique with calling upon Jesus for His help and peace.
Breathe in through your nose for a count of three. The slower the better.
Breathe out through your mouth for a count of five.
Now add the name of Jesus in your mind while you inhale.
After a few times of doing this, add in what you most need in your mind when you exhale (examples may include “your peace,” “your comfort,” or “your hope.”)
Do this several times in a row with eyes closed. You will notice a change physically as well as in the level of your anxiety.
Find a friend: Identify a prayer partner you can share with when you are feeling anxious, and they in turn can do the same with you. Telling someone not be anxious is not particularly helpful, but having someone to share our anxieties with allows us to share the burden we carry. Praying with one another helps us experience the love of Christ which drives out fear (1 John 4:18).
In closing, I pray for the peace of Christ for each of you during these difficult times. Remember we are in this together.
Additional Resources:
Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God's Transforming Presence by Ruth Haley Barton.
Finding Quiet: My Story of Overcoming Anxiety and the Practices that Brought Peace by J.P. Moreland
*Dr. Brenda Neyens holds a doctoral degree in spiritual formation ministry, and serves on the counseling staff of King of Kings Church, a Within Reach network partner.