When my daughter was five years old she rode a pink and white bike with training wheels on our family walks around the neighborhood. She confidently pedaled up and down hills with her training wheels steadying her bicycle wheels. The training wheels were effective to give her confidence to keep riding, until one day, when she literally got stuck in a rut. With her front wheel wedged into a crack in the middle of the road and her back wheel forced a few inches off the ground, the training wheels were rendered totally ineffective. Though she furiously spun her little legs on the pedals, she wasn’t going anywhere. My husband and I had to hide our laughs as frustrated tears started to form in her eyes. She was literally spinning her wheels.
I think about that moment often as a physical picture of what’s going on in my head. I like to spin my wheels. I am a perpetual over-thinker. I live in a pattern that goes something like this: I get excited about a new idea. I feel passionate about that idea. I pray and submit the idea to God. I move one step forward in faith. And then…I’m stuck. I start wondering if this was really a good idea. I look at everyone else’s idea and realize my idea kind of stinks. No, actually I hate this idea…I think. Did God even want me to do this? I get foggy, confused, overwhelmed, and discouraged. And I stay in this place, usually for far too long, spinning my wheels.
Maybe you’ve followed a similar pattern too. It’s fun to feel excited about something we think God has called us to do, but that follow-through, man…it’s tough.
There’s more at play here, though, than running out of motivation. This perpetual pattern of overthinking every move is a sign that our hearts might be stuck in a cycle of unbelief.
This tendency toward doubt, comparison, and decision paralysis is the knee-jerk reaction of a heart that isn’t fully convinced God is trustworthy.
I know. I hated to hear that too.
When we live in this state of overthinking, we find ourselves diving deeper into confusion and farther away from clarity. That isn’t the pattern of the character of God. Paul’s word to the Corinthian church struggling with disorderly services was that God delights in order, not chaos. “For God is not a God of confusion but of peace.” 1 Cor. 14:33 We see this confirmed throughout scripture from Genesis, when God created order out of nothing, to ancient Israel where God created a nation for himself and established a law, and into eternity where God establishes his holy kingdom. All of it has beautiful order.
When our over thinking minds delve into a state of confusion, we’re behaving more like children of the father of lies than children of the God of order.
So what can we do about this problem of overthinking?
First, if overthinking is a symptom of unbelief, we need to repent and ask God to strengthen our faith in him.
Faith is from God, so the way to strengthening our faith is in drawing near to him. Let his word remind us of his character. Let his presence embolden us with fresh faith.
Second, we can lean toward action over inaction.
Sometimes being stuck is solved simply by moving. My daughter’s training wheels became effective again as soon as my husband lifted her front wheel out of the crack in the pavement. If we know our next step aligns with God’s word, we’re seeking him consistently, and surrounding ourselves with godly council, what’s stopping us? Inaction is a playground for the overthinking and unbelieving mind. Action requires faith.
And finally, live aware.
It’s not as simple as it sounds. Overthinking is a quiet thing. No one knows the thoughts spinning our in our heads. Confusion is a slow fade. But if we watch for it, we’ll start to recognize the shift in our minds from excitement to doubt, confidence to questioning. We can stop this pattern of unbelief by reminding ourselves that we are not children of confusion, but children of the God of order.
So let’s set stop spinning our wheels and start believing afresh that the God who ordered the universe is trustworthy to order our steps.