The title of this new book tells you a lot about what’s under its cover.
When the Noise Won’t Stop is written by someone who knows what it’s like to suffer from anxiety.
Author Paul Grimmond knows what it’s like to have your brain on fire and not have a hose to put it out. He knows the pain of thoughts that will not leave you alone – no matter how much you struggle. He knows the angst of a beating heart and sweaty palms despite the absence of any ‘real and present’ danger.
He knows anxiety from the inside.
Author Paul Grimmond knows what it’s like to have your brain on fire and not have a hose to put it out.
And his firsthand experience makes this book an incredible resource to those suffering from anxiety.
A Valuable Guide
When the Noise Won’t Stop discusses panic, anxiety, the associated guilt, and what to do with it all.
When the Noise Won't Stop
Paul Grimmond
Is there a relationship between anxiety and sin? If so, what does the Bible say about it? Does the gospel offer comfort to those suffering from anxiety disorders? How can our hope in Christ lead us when living seems impossibly hard? Are psychology and medication biblical ways to seek help?
When the Noise Won’t Stop combines deep personal experience and comprehensive biblical study to demonstrate how the gospel addresses the pain and difficulty of anxiety. Avoiding simplistic answers while candidly sharing his own struggles, Paul Grimmond presents readers with a future that is both down-to-earth and full of hope, showing how the good news of Jesus offers light and promise to those who are suffering.
As a psychologist, I’ve read plenty of books on anxiety. To be honest, some of them aren’t super helpful.
But this isn’t one of those books.
As you read its pages you can tell Grimmond has done his homework. He is wonderful at walking with the sufferer, gently offering psychological truths, and helping us understand the ins and outs of this painful condition.
He doesn’t stop there either.
There’s more to the Bible’s view than ‘Don’t be Anxious’
So often we google “anxiety and the Bible,” and we end up in Philippians 4:6. But is “do not be anxious” all that the Bible has to say?
As Grimmond points out, not at all.
The Bible has much more to say about anxiety. And it involves understanding the purpose and place of anxiety in God’s world.
Grimmond dives into the Greek word for anxiety: merimnao. Taking us to the New Testament, he gives helpful accounts of how this word is used and in what contexts. For example, who knew that sometimes this word merimnao is used to exhort us to be anxious! (See for example 1 Cor 12:24-25, Phil 2:19-20, 2 Cor 11:28).
Who knew?
So often the western world wants to paint anxiety as the eternal bad guy. But Grimmond goes beyond this to see that anxiety is part of a fallen world and that sometimes it can even be helpful. Grimmond’s view of anxiety, borne out of his own experience, is balanced and nuanced.
So often the western world wants to paint anxiety as the eternal bad guy. But Grimmond goes beyond this … sometimes it can even be helpful.
Standing Alongside the Anxious
On the flip side, he doesn’t shy away from the pain that anxiety often brings. Grimmond writes:
Anxiety is tiring. Bone-achingly, soul-wearingly tiring. It’s tiring because it comes out of nowhere when you least expect it. It’s tiring because it’s always there and you can’t get a break … It’s tiring because it’s your body doing what it does to get ready for a fight or to run away. For most people that happens occasionally, and afterwards they get to rest. In cases of severe anxiety it happens all the time, and when you most want to rest it gets even worse. (183)
Anxiety can fill our head with ‘noise’ that won’t stop. It drives our heart to beat too fast. It magnifies our fears. And it shrinks our reality.
Anxiety is tiring. Bone-achingly, soul-wearingly tiring.
Grimmond has wisdom for this, too. He outlines how to manage anxiety and offers helpful therapeutic techniques, also weighing in on the medication debate. I’m not going to tackle that topic in a review, so you’ll need to buy the book to see what he thinks…
The final couple of chapters are written for those who care for someone struggling with anxiety.
When the Noise Won’t Stop is helpful for all sorts of Christians, but particularly the following:
- Christians who are struggling with anxiety.
- Christians who are caring for, or living with, those that suffer from anxiety.
- Pastors of those who suffer from anxiety.
- Those who want a better biblical framework for dealing with anxiety.
The Bottom Line
Grimmond gives a clear picture of anxiety and all its tentacles. He skilfully addresses our biblical questions, too.
But most profoundly, he weaves God’s love for us through its pages—there is help for the anxious soul.
You will come away from his book understanding that on this side of heaven we may not be free from some of the difficulties that anxiety brings. And yet, we can know God’s enduring love for us as we journey with anxiety.
Moreover, we can work to love and serve him even in the midst of anxiety. Now that’s often a tough gig, so I’d recommend buying When the Noise Won’t Stop as an excellent road map to navigating anxiety—either as a gift, or for yourself. I’m confident it will be one of those books that doesn’t gather dust!
On the contrary, my intuition tells me it will be a valuable resource for years to come.
