While a lot of attention has rightly been focused on the physical dangers of the COVID-19 virus and the economic impact of social distancing, more and more people are discussing its influence on our mental health. Anxiety, stress, fatigue and depression are a reality for many people in the midst of this pandemic. Perhaps you’re feeling some of these symptoms for the first time or maybe you’re finding that COVID-19 has exasperated what you were already feeling. I’d like to share where I believe the Bible intersects with COVID-19 and our mental health.
This week I read Jonathon Seidl's struggle to admit something. He refers to it as his “secret.” And when you hear his anguish in confessing it, you might think he’s admitting to an unsolved crime or an illicit affair. His big secret is the fact that he’s been diagnosed with anxiety and OCD. Before getting help, he would regularly re-read e-mails upwards of 50 times, convinced that there was an error he was missing or a tone that he needed to correct. He would lie in bed convinced that he had forgotten to lock his truck. And in cleaning the house with his wife, he would get annoyed if things weren’t done in a certain order: “The floor before the dishes!” He would often tell himself, “This isn’t a big deal,” but he couldn’t let go of the fact that it was a big deal to him. Admitting what was going on inside him and getting treatment for it, was a significant turning point in his life. Unfortunately, being a Christian actually made that more difficult for him than the average person.
