Worry-Wart

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7

This is such a wonderful verse. I absolutely love it! A few years back, I had this verse posted in my bathroom so I read over it everyday. It was a time of my life where I was anxious, to just get through the miserable circumstances, and move on to what I wanted. God constantly reminded me that He was in the situation, and He knew the desires of my heart. As time went on, I prayed every day, and He gave me His peace. What a beautiful thing the peace of the Lord is!

I've been reading through Crazy Love by Francis Chan and there is a wonderful section about worry and stress.

He writes, "Worry implies that we don't quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what's happening in our lives. Stress says that the things we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace toward others, or our tight grip of control. Basically, these two behaviors communicate that it's okay to sin and not trust God because the stuff in my life is somehow exceptional. Both worry and stress reek of arrogance. They declare our tendency to forget that we've been forgiven, that our lives here are brief, that we are headed to a place where we won't be lonely, afraid, hurt ever again, and that in the context of God's strength, our problems are small, indeed."

WOW. That was such a slap in the face for the biggest worry-wart I know, myself. I can't tell you how many times people close to me tell me I worry and think too much. And the reality is that earth is not our home. We were designed for something MORE. While reading this in Crazy Love, I realized that I've been spending so much energy and time worrying about things that aren't in my control, and never will be. I realized I need to humble myself, open my heart and hands to the One who I can fully trust with my life, and do it.

If you are worried about how much you worry, here is an easy self-assessment quiz