Don’t WorrySýnishorn

A friend was waiting for her husband to return home from work, but he did not show up at his usual time. She hesitated to call him since he would ride his motorcycle back home. As an hour passed, she began worrying, “What if a car had hit him? What if he had an accident and was taken to the hospital?” Finally, the doorbell rang, and she nervously opened the door expecting a stranger to give her the bad news. But to her surprise, at the doorstep was her husband, who was drenched in the rain and delayed because of it.

How often do we let our anxieties get the better of us, imagining the worst-case scenarios?

Worrying does not change our circumstances but can harm our physical and mental health. Anxiety causes increased heart rate, dizziness, abdominal pain, indigestion, chest pain, fatigue, insomnia and headaches, leading to health problems and more worries. In the long run, it affects our mental health and robs us of our peace.

Jesus asks, “Can anyone by worrying add a single hour to your life?”

Jesus reminds us that adding hours to our life is determined by God, and they are beyond our control. Similarly, there will be situations in our life that are beyond our control, and we ought to leave them in God’s hands. Worrying will not change our situation, but God can. Therefore we need to surrender our anxious thoughts to Him.

The Apostle Paul, while in prison amidst discouragement and hopelessness, encourages us to rejoice and be joyful. He tells us to let our petitions and praises shape our worries into prayer. When we are anxious, Paul urges us to pray with thanksgiving to God while committing our concerns to Him.

Today, are you worried?

Next time, try keeping an “Anxiety Jar” where you can write down your worries, pray about them, thank God for His answers and drop them in the jar. You will be surprised when you look back to see that most of your worries never came to pass.