August 16, 2024

Matthew 6.27 (NIV)

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"

Pray twice as much as you fret.*

This is a classic example of a rhetorical question because I’m pretty sure Jesus wasn’t expecting anyone to raise his hand and answer, “Me! Worrying has really increased my lifespan!” It’s as if Jesus is saying, “So, tell me how all this worrying is working out for you.”

We are aware that worrying can actually shorten our lives. Stress makes us unhealthy. We waste a lot of time and energy crossing imaginary bridges. But how do we not worry? I mean, if we don’t worry, it might look as if we don’t care!

I am not a worrier by nature but here are some tricks I use for those times when I feel a fret coming on. These tricks won’t surprise you; I just hope they will remind you.

• Quote some worry-reducing scripture. Like this one (Matthew 6.27). How about I Peter 5.7?  Check out Philippians 4.6 and 7 – a step-by-step worry-busting formula.
• Journal. My daily “quiet time” includes writing my prayers. When I am worried about something, I start by making a list of all the things I can do about it and end by realizing that I can’t do anything. It’s so much easier to let God have it when it’s clear that the solution is out of my control.
• Talk to someone. Voicing my worries almost always makes them seem smaller than they did inside my head. Saying them out loud reduces their size and their power.
• Pray without ceasing. Make sure that you really are praying and not just fretting.
• Listen. “In the midst of our praying, let us ‘listen’ . . . And let us listen carefully, for God doesn’t shout.”*

There may be greater sins than worry, but there are none more debilitating and useless.*