My 100 MPH Mind

My mind goes at 100 hundred miles an hour. It’s hard to stop it or even slow it down. It makes me run through every scenario that has happened throughout the day to run havoc in my mind as I lay my head on my pillow to go to sleep. It makes me view every word my lips have said and review it in slow motion, if it could have been said differently, or not said at all. I’m sure this routine is an experience a lot of us are familiar with.

If you’ve never had this, just imagine: it’s been an awesome day, you feel like you’ve worked really hard, you get home and you’re super tired, and all you want to do is curl up in bed and fall asleep. Instead of a peaceful sleep, follows an exhausting routine. We obsess about each individual moment of that day and beat ourselves up over the things that we never said. The same conversation stays stuck on the repeat button, with VAR analysing all the ways in which we could have been wrongly perceived. We spend hours stirring our thoughts and end up getting not much sleep in the process. We put noise into our heads – not even productive noise – just so that we don’t need to be in our own company. Distractions are necessary and needed.

Ultimately, our desire for control over our lives can lead to these thoughts taking over our minds, leaving us in an exhaustive state of anxiety for the following days, disrupting the connections and relationships we have with other people and God.

Are You An Over-Thinker?

I think it’s easy to know if you over-think. It’s the ability to be fully present but in the background the cogs are constantly turning. I’m not going to give advice because it tends to be easier said than done but these are the thoughts currently on my mind:

Over-thinking sometimes pushes a wedge in between my relationship with God, and I understand it all resorts to trust (which is a lesson I am learning throughout this year).  When all I hear is my own voice repeating my own problems, I find that there is little space to hear God’s voice.A lot of the time we don’t allow ourselves to be available for that small, still voice, we can only rely on the loud, thunderous, roaring voice: the voice of the people who know how to shout the loudest and demand all our attention, the voice that tells us that we failed today, that we are alone and that we are making a fuss about nothing; the very voice that does not come from God, but whoever or whatever we have our attention turned towards in that very moment. We tend to forget that by being in our own company, we can be completely honest and vulnerable, being readily available with God, allowing His soft whisper to speak.

Christ’s Complete Control

I sometimes turn to the Bible when my overthinking gets too much and I need a bit of help from the Word of God. Philippians 4:10-13 speaks truth when it addresses the subject of overthinking. It says:

“I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.” (NIV)

I think the apostle Paul, the guy who wrote this, would agree that we all need to stop overthinking, not just Christians. Throughout this Paul essentially gives three clear instructions: don’t worry about anything, but be grateful and put your trust in something grater than you. When we allow ourselves to get caught up in all of the proverbial “what ifs,” we are essentially not trusting that our faith is big enough to help us in this particular situation. What we really should be considering is, “What is the right thing to do on my end?” This crazy question is often far easier to answer than we originally think. It all boils down to trust (I’m still getting my head around this particular subject). Who do we trust? And, do we trust that by playing the same scenario in our head at 100 mph that somehow we’ll manage to make everything right when the time comes?

If you’re feeling this way, just know that you’re definitely not alone, I am a constant over-thinker. As I continue to overthink, I can always remember that it is Him that gives me strength. He never panics and He’s never disappointed. He’s not measuring success in the same ways we are but wants to be with us every step of our lives.

Thanks

Nick