No Worries

April 24, 2017

Day 114: Don't Worry About Tomorrow:
"Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up." —Proverbs 12:25

It's so easy to say, "Don't worry about tomorrow," but if we would just do that, we'd be so much happier. The anecdote today is about a guy named Rob who came to Dr. Anderson with a list of 50 things that he was worried about, all for which there was very little he could do and in all likelihood would not come to pass. For instance he was worried about his thirteen-year-old son who wanted to join the military and fight in a war when he turns eighteen, the stock market's unpredictability, increases in insurance premiums and increases in taxes. In addition he was worried about his blood pressure. Anderson let him list off the first 12 things and then stopped him. "Rob, Let's put your list away. One: your son doesn't even know yet who he wants to take to the middle school dance. Two: The stock market always goes up and down, but over the long term, it always goes up. Three: Taxes and insurance will always go up. Should I continue?"

Anderson's point is that we should focus on the things that we can directly affect instead of worrying about the things over which we have no control. Sometimes it takes someone else to help us put things into perspective. Anderson offered Rob encouragement by telling him that he could help him lose 50 pounds and promised he wouldn't even feel it. When asked how he could do that, Anderson replied, "Hand me your list."

That is essentially what we need to do. We need to hand God our lists. He promises that we have nothing to worry about. There are at least 30 verses in which we are told to either not worry, not be anxious, or not be troubled. To list a few: Philippians 4: 6: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."  Psalm 55:22: "Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you..." John 14:27: "...Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."  In Matthew 6:25-34 we are told to consider the birds and flowers and how they do not worry. Are we "not much more valuable than they?"

All we really need to do is "Be still and know..." (Psalm 46:10).