A Good Antidote
By Susan Klein
“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”
Matthew 12:25 (NIV)
As I look back over my
fifty-some years of life, I have to wonder how much of that time was spent
worrying about things I couldn’t control. How many days, weeks even, did I lose
to worry? (I believe the converse of the above verse to also be true.) And the
thing is, none of my worrying changed the outcome of any of those situations.
In God’s sovereignty, He allowed the rain to fall and the sun to shine. The
outcome was in His divine control, and my fretting did not change a thing. The
only things worry did change were my peace of mind and my health.
So why do we do it?
Why do we spend so much of our time fretting about matters small and large that
are going to happen, or not happen, regardless? I used to think it was a major design
flaw. God must have given us a faulty wire somewhere along the way. After all, He
created us with a vast and detailed emotional network, so He must have made a
mistake. But, wisdom eventually knocked on my faulty thinking and showed me
that worry is a choice, not an emotion. Granted, some people are more prone to
worry or even have anxiety disorders, but they will be the first to tell you
that they have to make a conscious choice to “not worry.”
God has equipped us
with the ability to choose, and we must choose trust over worry. Jesus tells us
in the Gospels that we will have trials in this life. He also exhorts
us to not worry about things we need because our heavenly Father knows what we
need before we do. He will not leave us high and dry! He may not give us our
desired outcome, but He will give us what we need to sustain us in each and
every situation. Perhaps if we could truly fathom His outrageous love, mercy
and grace, we’d choose to worry a whole lot less. Maybe that’s the antidote: wonder,
not worry. Learn more about God, His character, and His attributes so we can
choose to be secure in Him. Besides, the time we spend with Him is time we
won’t spend worrying.
In the words of Corrie
Ten Boom, “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows. It empties today of
its strength.”
GOING DEEPER:
1. What types of situations trip your worry trigger?
2. Try increasing your time spent in God’s Word and in prayer,
getting better acquainted with Him.
FURTHER READING:
Susan is
married to Mark, and has two adult children. She enjoys teaching Bible studies,
writing, and tutoring with the Literacy Council. She is a member of the Peace
Team at Oakwood.
