worry

Tonight I had dinner with two of my closest friends. As we were eating we were discussing how we are dealing with things in our lives that are beyond our control. As we talked, the word ‘worry’ kept coming up. It made me think of a statement I heard the other day…

“Worry is praying for what you don’t want.”

Hmmm. Think about that. Worry; something you do that produces nothing but anxiety. I thought back to other times I have worried about something. Did it change the outcome? No. If things turned out badly, my worrying did nothing to change that. And, if they turned out well, I wasted all that energy on something that never came to pass. A huge expenditure of energy with no return, maybe even negative effects when we think about what stress does to us.

And returning to the quote….does ‘worry’ become my prayer? I give more time and attention to what I don’t want to happen than to what I do want to happen. Or another option is going to the extreme of actually leaving the outcome in God’s hands. I know….easier said than done.

But, what a freeing place to camp. Consider what it is that you are choosing to worry about today. Sit quietly, take some deep breaths and release it to God. When you realize that you have picked it back up during the course of the day….breath and release it again. Keep choosing to release.

Grace and peace,
Deb