Worrying for What?

In a previous blog post, I mentioned some things that I was worrying about. I then came across one of my journal entries about the topic. It was actually a poem I had written about worrying (at one time, I was trying to start my own greeting card business). Because it seems that I have been doing more worrying lately, I thought I would share with you what God has been working with me on.

In my opinion, I find that worrying is a normal part of everyday life. I do not find it unnatural to be concerned about our loved ones, our situations or our circumstances, especially when things are not going the way we want them to go. Some of us have went to the doctor but the report was not what we wanted to hear. Some of us have children that have gotten sick or they are struggling in school. Some of us may have older parents and we worry if they will be ok. Some of us worry about our jobs and our financial situations. Life is full of something to worry about. However, there are dangers to worrying that I want to share with you.

Danger Number One: WORRYING QUESTIONS OUR FAITH LEVEL. Romans 10:17 (NASB) states: “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” If faith comes by hearing God’s Word, which will ultimately help us to handle worrying, could it be that we are not in the presence of God enough? Could it be that we are not saturating ourselves with God’s Word enough? In these cases, when we are not connected to God like we should be, this opens the room for the enemy to plant more doubt in our minds.

Danger Number Two: WORRYING PROHIBITS THE SPIRIT OF GOD TO MOVE FREELY IN OUR LIVES. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (NASB) states: “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.” Nothing that we have is ours. Everything belongs to the Lord and that includes our bodies. How can we glorify God with our bodies when our bodies are full of stress, frustrations and concerns? How can the Spirit of God dwell in us when we are medicating ourselves to deal with worry?

Danger Number Three: WORRYING CAN ALTER YOUR PURPOSE. Jeremiah 29:11 (NASB) states: ‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’ God already has plans for us. But when we begin to worry, those God given-plans are thwarted, delayed, or can become non-existent because we did not cast our cares upon Him. We choose to hold on to them and worry about them instead. If your purpose is to finish your degree, this can be altered because there is worry about how it will be financed. If your purpose is to start your own business, there is worry that it may not be successful. We have to watch when the enemy tries to block our purpose.

Danger Number Four: WORRYING DISPLAYS A MEDIOCRE OR NON-EXISTENT PRAYER LIFE. There is a saying that I came across: IF YOU’ RE GOING TO PRAY, DON’T WORRY. IF YOU’RE GOING TO WORRY, DON’T PRAY. Trusting God completely is necessary to overcome worrying. But worrying and praying do not go together. As mentioned earlier, it is common to worry about our loved ones, our jobs, our future. However, God says in Proverbs 3:5 (NASB): “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding.” Our own understanding may not necessarily be God’s will. We cannot do God’s work for Him. Sometimes, we have to get out of His way and let Him be God. This requires us to open our mouths and cry out to God. Get in your prayer closet! Get on your knees! Find your war room, lay prostrate before Him and cry out to the Lord!

My advice to you: research what the scriptures say about how to handle worrying. Memorize those scriptures and pray about those worries every time they come to mind. Don’t worry. Just sit back and watch God move!

For ever hoping for you,