Worry

Worry. The Bible discourages it. Some might even say it is a sin. But isn’t worry one of those “acceptable” sins? How will people know we care if we don’t worry about them? Isn’t a hallmark of a good friend, wife, mother, daughter that we worry about the ones we love?

What does the Bible say about worry? In Matthew 6 Jesus Himself tells us we have nothing to worry about. He points out that God takes care of the birds of the air and the flowers in the field and are we, His children, not more valuable than those things. In Philippians 4:6 (NKJV) it says “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” This sounds like a pretty good deal to me. I hand all of my anxiety to God and He in turn gives me peace. 

So why does God discourage us from worrying? I believe it is because of the spirit behind worry. When we worry about something, we are rehearsing all the things that could go wrong. We head down the infamous “what if” path, and ultimately we are partnering with and allowing fear into our lives. God is not the author of fear. The enemy is. So that means we are believing what the enemy is saying about the situation rather than what God is saying about the situation. That is a big deal. 

The Bible also says in I John 4:18  “perfect love casts out fear.” So wouldn’t that mean that if we really loved the people in our lives, we would agree with what God says about them and not be fearful? I know, way easier said than done. I definitely can get caught in the worry trap easily as well.  But consider this if you will. The next time you catch yourself headed down the “what if” trail with a basket full of worries, stop and pray. When we pray, we are partnering with God for His will to be done in the situation. So this solves two problems. One, we are taking captive a destructive thought God does not want us to have, and second, we are choosing to partner with the creator of the universe that loves us so much.  That is really what I believe God wants to do. He wants to show us His heart for the situation or person and partner with us to bring Heaven to Earth. What a powerful thing to do!