We don’t need a dictionary to give us a definition of worry. We all know what it’s like to worry. Everyone worries about something. Whether it’s a lack of money, a strained relationship, or failing health, all of us face circumstances that cause stress, worry, and anxiety.
Worry is like carrying a heavy backpack on a long hike. The weight of worry drags on you and pulls you down, robbing you of peace of mind and sapping you of joy.
Ironically, we often worry about things that never happen. Despite insufficient funds, somehow, the bills get paid. There is food in the fridge and gas in the car.
Even in those circumstances that take a wrong turn, worry does little to change the outcome. Worry does nothing to solve the problem. Worry only makes the situation worse because, rather than facing the problem with faith, we allow the problem to stress us out and ruin our emotional health.
According to the Mayo Clinic, anxiety can cause ailments like headaches, chest pain, upset stomach, problems sleeping, restlessness, lack of motivation, and difficulty focusing on tasks. Excessive worry can lead to serious health problems like high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.
For some people, worry and anxiety can become such a heavy burden that they feel trapped. Like a cornered animal, they see no escape. Their anxiety grows until depression falls upon them like a dark cloud.
So, what can we do about our propensity to worry? First, let’s look at why we worry. Jesus says:
Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing?
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:25-33)
We worry because we are concerned about our needs. Jesus, however, tells us not to worry because, first of all, God will meet your needs. Jesus says, “Your heavenly Father feeds [the birds]. Are you not of more value than they?”
God cares about you. The Bible says: “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7).”
Second, no amount of worry can improve your life expectancy. Jesus says, “Which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” Since our life expectancy is wrapped up in our physical health, we can conclude that worry will not improve our health. We could expand this to say that when we get sick, worry is not the cure.
Third, God knows your needs and will provide. Jesus says, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need [these things]. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
To seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness is to seek his morally pure authority over your life. If you willingly and sincerely submit to God’s moral authority, you need not worry because he will provide your needs.
Why shouldn’t we worry? Because if we seek God’s rule in our lives, he will meet our needs. This verse is helpful, but we need a little more advice. What else can we do to overcome worry?
The Bible gives us some good advice for turning worry into faith. The Bible says,
Do not be anxious about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7).
The first way to turn worry into faith is to seek God in prayer. “In everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
When you worry, get on your knees and pray.
Second, give thanks to God for your needs. The Bible says, “In everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
Our prayers for help need to be mixed with thanks.
To thank God in the midst of deep trials is not easy, but when we thank God, he changes our perspective on the situation. How we react to adversity is a matter of perspective. Chuck Swindoll said, “Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.”
In other words, what is important is not the cards we are dealt, but how we play them. If we can come to the place where we see the trial from a different, more divine perspective, God will grant us a peace that otherwise eludes us.
This change of perspective comes when we give thanks to God. More than anything else we might do, giving thanks to God in the midst of hardship transforms our perspective and takes us to another level where we gain insight that “surpasses all understanding.”
What is the result of seeking God in prayer and praying with thanksgiving? “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
So, when you find yourself tossing and turning in the middle of the night, weighed down with worry and anxiety, let me suggest that you slip out of bed, find a quiet place, get on your knees (believe it or not, kneeling in prayer makes a difference), and pray, remembering to always thank him.
This response to worry begs the question: what should you pray? First, tell God that you need him. Tell God that you are seeking him. King David prayed to God, saying, “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God (Psalm 42:1-2).”
Second, be specific about your needs. If you need money to pay your bills, ask God for the resources. If you need healing, ask God to heal you. If you are concerned about a loved one, tell God. Jesus says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened (Matthew 7:7).”
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