Worry

"But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves." Luke 21:14


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I keep my old diaries in a little cupboard of an antique, peeling dresser. I got out a couple of those diaries yesterday and read entries, here and there, and frowned a bit, too. My main thought? "Man, I used to worry a lot! It's all over these pages."

And then I thought of the above verse, though with variations. These past few years I've had to make up my mind not to worry beforehand about tons of stuff. I finally realized I couldn't just wait for the worry to go away-- I had to stay determined not to worry.

And so now, that verse, for me, reads like this:

"...make up your mind not to worry beforehand about the crazy Christmas month (otherwise known as December)--"

"...make up your mind not to worry beforehand about Tom's arm which he hurt a week ago and again two days ago--"

"...make up your mind not to worry beforehand about how Naomi will continue to support herself out on her own in this big, expensive world--"

"...make up your mind not to worry beforehand about driving in snow, terrorists, my soldier nephew, bills, slipping on the ice, our aging parents, our diabetic cat, my weight, moving to a different state, other peoples' choices, my blog stats, politics, the end of the world--"

Life is too short for all that... Besides, how does it make God look if I say I know Him, yet I'm a trembling, card-carrying worrier?

I think we tend to wait for things to drop from the sky, like, a sudden ability to stop worrying, among other things. But not much comes that way. Freedom comes from making up our mind not to worry, but to trust, instead. It comes by getting to know God for ourselves--getting to know the joy which comes from hanging-out in His presence... getting to know His endless, passionate love for each of us, personally... and coming to know, for ourselves, that He never falls out of love with us...

...and as the love and joy grow, so does the trust, and the worry becomes just words in a long ago diary you pull out on a snowy Sunday afternoon.

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"You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence." ... Acts 2:28

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" ... Matthew 6:17