The remedy for constant fear and Instant Struggle - E. Ehresman.
Dear Worriers of Worrytown, I have a challenge for you.
If I’m being honest, I could have unanimously won an election to be president of Worry Nation at one point in my life.
I’m not even exaggerating; it was that bad.
When I was an adolescent and into my teenage years, I used to worry constantly. Beyond my concerns about tests, prom dates, catty friends, etc., I would also worry that my parents were hurt if they didn’t come home on time, that my sisters were going to make bad decisions when they were staying with friends, or that one of my grandparents was going to fall or get sick and nobody would be there. I would even sometimes work myself up into worrying that someone would break into our house at night (and then I wouldn’t sleep).
I’m not kidding. It was so, so bad.
The worst part for me was that I knew this wasn’t what my family wanted for me and it certainly wasn’t what God wanted for me.
The thing about worry, though, is that the more you worry, the more you feel in control of the situation (which is totally absurd, I know), so even though I wanted to stop worrying, I couldn’t. It was almost like I was addicted.
Then, God interrupted my life as He likes to do and reminded me that my worrying does absolutely nothing but take peace from me.
You know that verse in Matthew that goes “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not!”? Well, I started seeing it everywhere. Now, mind you, I had heard this verse before, but I had probably brushed it aside with one of those “oh, that’s nice” attitudes.
Well, He made me start paying attention to it.
I scrolled through Pinterest, and this verse was in different forms like every 8 pins. I scrolled through Facebook, and for four consecutive days, four of my friends posted this verse. (After the first few, you start to notice a trend, ya know?)
I decided to research what God says about worry and found that it makes him sad when I take my worries upon myself. He does not want me to live in constant fear and internal struggle; He wants me to cast my cares on Him for Him to take care of! “Cast your burden on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved.” Psalm 55:22
First, the prayer and petition aspect reminds us that it is perfectly okay to ask God to take our cares from us. I get selfish with my worry sometimes and don’t want to bring anyone else into my problems, but this verse reminds me that God is not just anybody. He is my Creator, my Father, and my Counselor. He will deal with whatever I’ve got.
Secondly, we can learn from the thanksgiving evident in this verse. This part is important to me, personally, because it has proven to work time and time again. When I first started investigating this verse and deciding what it meant for me, I realized that I did not do enough thanking God for the simple things in my life. Once I started making a conscious effort to see all of the blessings in my life, I realized how much God really does take care of me, and I knew then that He would never let me down.
Friend, I say to you:
– search through your life and find those worries that are stealing the peace that surpasses all understanding from you.
– Petition God and let Him know what you need from Him, and make sure to thank Him for every blessing in your life.
Once you realize every way that God cares for you during every second of your life, you will know that all of your cares amount to nothing compared to His power.
Let’s leave Worrytown desolate.
~Emily Ehresman
If I’m being honest, I could have unanimously won an election to be president of Worry Nation at one point in my life.
I’m not even exaggerating; it was that bad.
When I was an adolescent and into my teenage years, I used to worry constantly. Beyond my concerns about tests, prom dates, catty friends, etc., I would also worry that my parents were hurt if they didn’t come home on time, that my sisters were going to make bad decisions when they were staying with friends, or that one of my grandparents was going to fall or get sick and nobody would be there. I would even sometimes work myself up into worrying that someone would break into our house at night (and then I wouldn’t sleep).
I’m not kidding. It was so, so bad.
The worst part for me was that I knew this wasn’t what my family wanted for me and it certainly wasn’t what God wanted for me.
The thing about worry, though, is that the more you worry, the more you feel in control of the situation (which is totally absurd, I know), so even though I wanted to stop worrying, I couldn’t. It was almost like I was addicted.
Then, God interrupted my life as He likes to do and reminded me that my worrying does absolutely nothing but take peace from me.
You know that verse in Matthew that goes “Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not!”? Well, I started seeing it everywhere. Now, mind you, I had heard this verse before, but I had probably brushed it aside with one of those “oh, that’s nice” attitudes.
Well, He made me start paying attention to it.
I scrolled through Pinterest, and this verse was in different forms like every 8 pins. I scrolled through Facebook, and for four consecutive days, four of my friends posted this verse. (After the first few, you start to notice a trend, ya know?)
I decided to research what God says about worry and found that it makes him sad when I take my worries upon myself. He does not want me to live in constant fear and internal struggle; He wants me to cast my cares on Him for Him to take care of! “Cast your burden on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved.” Psalm 55:22
I don’t know about you, but giving my worries to the One that created the Heavens and Earth sounds pretty good to me. If He can speak things into being, He can take care of my life.One of the verses that really strikes a chord with me is Philippians 4: 6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” This verse can hit us worriers hard for two reasons.
First, the prayer and petition aspect reminds us that it is perfectly okay to ask God to take our cares from us. I get selfish with my worry sometimes and don’t want to bring anyone else into my problems, but this verse reminds me that God is not just anybody. He is my Creator, my Father, and my Counselor. He will deal with whatever I’ve got.
Secondly, we can learn from the thanksgiving evident in this verse. This part is important to me, personally, because it has proven to work time and time again. When I first started investigating this verse and deciding what it meant for me, I realized that I did not do enough thanking God for the simple things in my life. Once I started making a conscious effort to see all of the blessings in my life, I realized how much God really does take care of me, and I knew then that He would never let me down.
Friend, I say to you:
– search through your life and find those worries that are stealing the peace that surpasses all understanding from you.
– Petition God and let Him know what you need from Him, and make sure to thank Him for every blessing in your life.
Once you realize every way that God cares for you during every second of your life, you will know that all of your cares amount to nothing compared to His power.
Let’s leave Worrytown desolate.
~Emily Ehresman
Comments
Post a Comment