Stop Your Worrying!

February 14, 2007

Dear Friend,

Let's talk a moment about worry. You know that mental distress or agitation resulting from concern usually for something impending or anticipated is Webster's definition of worry. There are many things to worry about, and we all seem to find something to think about that causes mental distress. Some people even have physical symptoms that are a direct result of their worry and that have to be treated with therapy or even medications. And there are long-term effects from worry; the main one is stress. Worry causes your body to be stressed, and stress is like taking a spoon and bending it back and forth, back and forth. It gets heated up and weakens and finally breaks. All from the stress. And that is what worry does to our bodies.

An expert in the area of cancer and its prevention, Lorraine Day (a physician right here at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center), tells us that the top three causes of cancer are diet, dehydration (did you think water wasn't important?!), and stress. Hmmm, perhaps I need to do more than eat right; I need to also address the worry and stress in my life!

So what should I do about worry? Well, eradicating worry is easier said than done; but if we practice some principles, it will definitely lesson our worry load. Here are some ways that I have found to decrease my worrying, and I hope that they will help you as well. (Oh my, what if they don't work for you? Now I have something else to worry about!)

Give whatever you are worrying about to God. Money, clothes, your future, your life, health, your children, your future spouse. It's not in your hands anyway! You just think you're in control. See how fast a fire, disease, or an affair can ruin all your plans. So give them to God. When you find yourself feeling anxious about something, give it to God; and every time you think of it and start worrying again, give it to God again. Tell Him, "God, I can't change this. I give it to You. It's in Your hands now."

Focus on the good and the positive in your life. When your thoughts go to what you normally worry about, give them to God; and after you've given them to God, focus on your blessings. Thank God for your friends, for your health, for the clothes you have now, for the place you have now to live in. "Worry is blind, and cannot discern the future; but Jesus sees the end from the beginning. In every difficulty He has His way prepared to bring relief. Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we know nothing. Those who accept the one principle of making the service and honor of God supreme will find perplexities vanish, and a plain path before their feet." Desire of Ages, page 330.

Read what God says about worry. Jesus actually said a lot about worry; and when we take the time to read what He said and meditate on it and apply it to our lives, you'd be surprised at how practical His advice is. Here's one passage from Christ:

Then Jesus said to his disciples: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?" --Luke 12:22-26

Read this over, and think about it when you start worrying. God will speak directly to your heart and you will find your worrying will get smaller and smaller. Here are some more great passages. If you are reading this online, simply click on the text and it will link you to the verse.

• 1 Samuel 30:6
• Psalm 37
• Psalm 55:22
• Matthew 6:25-34
• Matthew 10:28-31
• John 14:1-3
• 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
• Philippians 4:6-7
• 1 Peter 5:7

When you and I give our worry over to Him and stop picking up the load again and again, He will carry our worries; and we'll learn what it means to have His peace in our minds and our lives.

Have a great worry-free week; I'm praying for you!

Mark