Worry


Are you sometimes a worrier?  Maybe you can’t sleep because of the problems you are thinking about.  Maybe you have stomach problems or headaches or pains in your chest because you are stressed by your problems.  Maybe you don’t know how you are going to pay all your bills.  Maybe you worry about your children, your parents, or other people in your life.  Maybe you have a big event in your life coming up and you don’t know how you are going to handle it.  Maybe you have health problems that you worry about. Maybe you have a conflict with another person in your life and you worry about what you should say or do.  Maybe you worry about problems in your community or country and how they might impact your life.  There are many things that you could worry about. 

When we want things to go right, it is natural to have some concern for a good result rather than a bad result.  The apostle Paul had concern for the churches that he was working with.  2 Corinthians 11:28 “Besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches.” The problem comes when concern turns to worry and anxiety and there is a continual worrying. We become enslaved to our worries.  We turn things over and over in our minds and don’t have the proper faith and trust in God. 

What does Jesus say about worrying? Matthew 6:25-34 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry 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, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?  Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” The specific worries Jesus addresses here are what to eat or drink or wear.  Your worries are most likely different than these, but the same principles apply.  Let us look at what He teaches.

God cares about His creation and He cares about you; you are valuable to Him. Matthew 6:26 “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”  Peter wrote in 1 Peter 5:6-7 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”  As a child of God, He cares about you and your life. You are valuable to Him. Trusting that God cares for you should relieve your worry.

Worry is impractical.  Matthew 6:27 “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?”  A cubit is approximately 50 centimeters or 20 inches.  Your stature is your height.  By worrying, can you increase your height by a cubit?  Of course not.  Jesus is essentially saying that you can’t make significant changes in your life by worrying.  So, give up worrying. 

Worry demonstrates your lack of faith and trust in God.  Matthew 6:32 “For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.”  In this passage, Gentiles would be those who don’t believe or trust in your heavenly Father. Do you want to act like them?  Your heavenly father knows what things you truly need and He understands your problems.  Put your faith and trust in Him.

Worry is distracting. Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” When you worry, your thoughts are on your problems; they are not on God and His kingdom or His righteousness.  Jesus teaches that when you put the priority and emphasis in your life upon God, He will provide for you and give you what you need.

Worry is futile. Matthew 6:34 “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”  Our worries are about what will happen in the future. You can’t really change tomorrow. Put your thoughts and energies on what you can do now.  When tomorrow comes you can do the same thing and deal with what you can do at that time.  God will lead you.  Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” By being a lamp to your feet, His word can show you the next step to take.  He doesn’t show you the future but instead He guides you in what to do next.  So don’t worry about tomorrow.

Here are some scriptures that should encourage you.  Psalms 55:22 “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.” Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, 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 minds through Christ Jesus.”  I encourage you to not worry or be anxious but to trust in God. Ask Him to show you what to do and thank Him for the blessings He has given you in your life.


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.