If you are a Christian experiencing OCD and religious scrupulosity, you may find taking communion to be particularly difficult. The following statements can help you stay grounded in your values as you anticipate taking communion.
1. Purpose
The purpose of communion is to remember Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, where his body was broken and his blood was shed for you. As you take communion, you can remember Jesus’ death and resurrection in the past, be strengthened and refocused on your walk with Jesus in the present and look forward to being with him in Heaven in the future (Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:25-26).
2. Worthiness
We are not perfect through our own merit or worthy in and of ourselves. We go to communion believing that it is Christ’s worthiness and perfection that makes us worthy (Romans 5:1).
3. Accusations
OCD, depression, mental illness, and your adversary Satan will always tell you that you are unworthy to partake. Remember: Your worthiness comes from Christ!
4. Feelings
You do not need to feel perfectly peaceful or experience certain emotions or sensations during communion. Trying to make yourself feel positive emotions or push away unpleasant ones usually backfires.
5. Intrusive Thoughts & Doubts
The presence of intrusive thoughts or doubts is not a reason to refrain from taking communion. This remains true even if you are unsure about the nature of the thoughts.
6. Timing and Intensity
Fears about communion often become more intense the closer you get to taking it. Hypervigilance and anxious checking make this worse. Jesus is not looking for “technicalities” to keep you from taking communion. Rather, he desires to have communion with you!
7. Self-Examination
Self-examination is for reviewing your life with Christ, recognizing areas where you can grow and improve, and moving forward! Self-examination is not perfectionism, excessive self-scrutiny, or obsessive self-analysis. It is not for proving to God that we are somehow perfect and have therefore earned our ‘ticket’ into communion.
8. Analysis and Rumination
The more you focus on your worries (e.g., “Did I really repent?” “Was I truly sorry?” “Am I somehow being dishonest?”), the stronger those worries will become, and the more anxious and discouraged you will feel. Remember to get out of your mind and into your life!
9. Focus
A good coping statement is “I am going to take communion to focus on what Christ has done for me and on growing my relationship with him.”
