ANTIDOTE FOR WORRY

Worry is a killer!  It is a contributing factor in heart disease and hypertension according to medical experts.  It is also directly linked to mental and emotional illness. Worry is not only a killer of the human body, it is also a killer of the joy of living.  Many people are so paralyzed with worry that they cannot enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

Worry is distinctively a human characteristic.  Did you ever see a horse or a dog or any other animal go around with a worried expression on his face? Unfortunately, Christians seem to be as much afflicted with worry as people in the world.

Many of our worries are unnecessary.  God does not want us to be miserable and morose, filled with fear of the present and dread of the future.  Jesus said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly: (John 10:10).  

In God’s Word we can learn a few simple rules which, if applied, will largely eliminate worry from our lives.

First, let us realize God loves us and is personally concerned about each one of us as individuals.  Jesus told his disciples: “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.” (Matthew 10:29-31).  Paul said “What shall we then say to these things?  If God be for us, who can be against us?  He that spared not His own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:31, 32).

Second, let us have faith in God.  We may think we trust God but falter when a crisis comes. Jesus chided His disciples upon one occasion by saying, “O ye of little faith!” (Matt. 6:30). God has all the abundance of the universe at His disposal (Psalm 24:1). He loves us and will not withhold any good thing from us if we but ask Him according to His will. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matt. 6:33).  Most if not all of our worries would be dissipated if we had a stronger faith in God and in His providence.

Third, let us learn to live one day at a time.  What is past cannot be changed.  What is future is in the hands of God.  We need to learn to live in the present tense and we will not be so tense.  Jesus said: “Take therefore no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.  Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof” (Matt. 6:34).

Fourth, let us remember  to “Take it to the Lord in Prayer” as the words of an old hymn states so well.  If we would do this, it would lift many a burden from our shoulders. The Apostle Paul said: “In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  And the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall guard your hearts and thoughts through Christ Jesus”  (Phil.  4:6,7).   The Apostle Peter adds: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time; casting all your cares upon him; for he careth for you” (I Peter 5:6).

Let us not shorten our lives or fail to enjoy everyday living because of needless worry.  Let us trust our gracious heavenly Father to fulfill His promises to us.  Just as we want the very best for our fleshly children so God wants us, His spiritual children, to have what is best for us. “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?  (Matt. 7:11)

—Selected
Written by Rod Rutherford