Worry is a wasted emotion. It serves no purpose. Worry never solved a problem, it never soothed a wound, it never calmed a fear. Worry throbs like a sore tooth. While it’s easy to say, “Don’t worry about it,” no one has ever stopped worrying about it by having another remind them of that truth. As humans, worry and anxiety ruminates in our mind from degree to degree. However, some obsess about the simplest things and others become physically ill over fears of what might happen tomorrow. So, how DO we stop worrying and live a more peaceful life? The Bible gives us clues:

  1. We are to have a relationship with our Heavenly Father such that we talk to Him all the time, discussing our struggles, complaining about our issues, arguing about our circumstances and finally, resolving all of these things through the deep understanding that He is God and that is enough.
  2. Our doctrinal understanding of God’s sovereignty in all things should help bring us peace. We not only don’t need to be “in control”, but we should NEVER be in control. Our incessant need for control is where most of our worry stems. When we rest in God and His less-than-fully-understandable plan for our life, peace follows.
  3. Understand that “peace” isn’t defined as us obtaining our desired outcome. Peace is a calm IN the storm, not a calm because the storm has passed. We all face storms, some that pass and some that stay. While we pray for resolution – “May this cancer go away” – making our requests known to God, we must do so in a way that lays these requests in the hands of our Father. “Lord, please heal me; take this disease, let me continue to serve You.” Picture making them “known to God” as passing them off to Him; we are to hand them to Him, trusting that He will deal with them as He wills.
  4. We must face our carnal desires of selfishness. Sin is real and we are real sinful. What is the foundation of worry? Is it not a fear of NOT getting what we want? “How can you say that?” you scream, “I just don’t want to die.” Well, of course you don’t so make these requests known to God, pass them off to Him, and leave the results in His hands. But, be honest with yourself enough to admit that continual worry and anxiety is simply a revelation of the degree to which you really aren’t passing it off to Him. What does the Bible tell us to do when we struggle in an area of sin? Repent. That means to just admit your frailty and your willingness to turn away from it and, most importantly, your need of help in doing so. This leads me to my final point:
  5. Admit to your utter dependance of Jesus Christ. You can’t win your battle over worry, anxiety, fear and sin without complete dependance on God. This is where the peace comes from. It surpasses human understanding that one can suffer and trust at the same time. We all fail over and over every day. It’s okay. Let it remind us of our need for Him. Just climb back up on His lap, put your head on His chest make your requests known to Him again.

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